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Many parents don’t realize that they can have an impact on their children’s school simply by being involved. It does turn into a bit of a political game play, but ultimately the parents have a vested interest in their child’s education. Throwing a hat into the local school council ring can start a poorly performing school on its way back to good scores.
There are any number of reasons as to why a school is doing poorly. It could be that the teachers are having to parent instead of teach, budget cuts has eliminated certain programs, or the administration is just plain incompetent. Parents can do much to ensure that changes are made by exposing the problems.
Employees of any school district are paid by tax dollars. Therefore, they are employed by the public to do a job. And it is a parents right to demand that the job is performed to par, if not better. Start by attending the open school council meetings and obtain any literature that shows the breakdown of where dollars go to. If a school district has a top heavy budget, IE the administrative staff gets paid the most, and the schools test scores are poor, it’s time to demand a change.
The unfortunate part of trying to get a school out of the doldrums is that political games have to be played. Getting anything accomplished may require the assistance of the local government. However, the effort is well worth it when the schools and your children benefit from the work of parents.
