Parental Problems - School Solutions
Giving government ground
A recent headline in EdWeek magazine, a Leftist publication for teachers, read “Elementary Students Can’t Manage Their Emotions. What Schools Can Do to Help.” Teaching students to manage their emotions is not the school’s job, but teachers cannot teach when children are out of control. Frazzled teachers are seeking solutions to parenting problems - skills parents should be teaching at home. Poor parenting is one of the reasons why Social Emotional Learning has pervaded schools.
If parents want schools to get back to teaching the basics of reading, writing, and arithmetic, then they need to send children to school who are ready and willing to learn. “Gentle parenting” leads to spoiled, selfish children who reject any authority other than their own. The opposite of “gentle parenting” is not harshness, but being the adult in the room who sets clear boundaries, gives consistent consequences, and models and teaches respect for authority. All of this, combined with unconditional love, lays the foundation for academic success.
If the reason you think you cannot home educate your children is because you cannot control them or they drive you crazy, then they are not prepared to meet their full potential in a school environment either. The very best environment for learning is a loving home. Part of love is discipline administered calmly and consistently. A child who understands and abides by boundaries will feel more secure and be able to accept instruction.
Parents, please STEP OUT and be parents, not pals, to your children. Their teachers will thank you. And you may even begin to think that you could and should be the one to experience the joy of teaching them!