Vanessa White is a hands on parent. She also believes the future of our region's education requires that we all roll up our sleeves and get to work on building a public school system that answers the needs of all our children. This week she shares what she has learned as an organizer of the Parent Leadership Institute including her belief that it takes not just parents and teachers, but an entire community to build a strong future.
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SoapBlog 3 - Teacher Involvement
Posted By: Vanessa White
3/26/2009
I will never forget the note that one of my third-grade teachers from Bond Hill Elementary wrote on her personal stationery to my Mom boasting about my abilities. That one gesture really made a marked difference in raising my self-confidence. It helped spur me on to academic success at Walnut Hills High School, then the University of Cincinnati, and, most recently, at Xavier University where I earned my MBA.
Now that I have five children in three different Cincinnati Public Schools, I have become even more keenly aware of the impact that teachers have when they show students that they are cared about. By developing positive, supportive relationships with their students, teachers create an environment where learning can flourish.
My older son has benefited from such support more than my other children. On a recent Sunday, I received a call from a teacher who has taken initiative on my son's behalf. The teacher wanted to make sure that my husband and I would be keeping the appointment that we had scheduled. The meeting was to discuss my son's academic standing and class-time escapades. I showed up the next day expecting a negative conversation.
It turns out that the teacher was equally concerned with knowing about issues that might have been affecting my son's behavior and academic performance. He wanted to know how he could help beyond the classroom. Before we had left our meeting, I told my son that he owed a world of thanks to this teacher.
Most teachers care about imparting knowledge to students. But the best teachers also care about the relational aspect of teaching. They take time to establish a trusting and caring connection with their students, who in turn become more receptive to what is being taught. They get to know their students' interests and talents as well as their needs, which helps them prepare lessons and helps students feel invested in the learning experience. They work with parents to show interest and concern for their children, which in turn motivates parents.
Fortunately, my son's teacher is not an exception in our local schools. There are dozens of teachers in the Cincinnati Public Schools and other local districts who take their jobs just as seriously. But such professionalism is not exactly the norm either. We need more teachers like my son's – and fewer who are not willing to go the extra mile.
More is at stake than just the welfare of a few struggling students. The quality of life of the entire region requires that we have great schools to educate our young people and serve as hubs of community activity. A strong student-teacher-parent triad, when supported by community stakeholders, makes that possible. I trust that one day, when my son is accomplishing great things in the world, he will recall our meeting with his teacher and its importance to his success.