Parents, it’s time to help your kids

STEVE SMITH

The school board member spoke to me frankly last Monday about the

challenges of trying to get non-English speaking parents to become

active in their child’s education.

“It is essential that we improve the learning environment and

parental involvement,” he said. “We need the community to help out in

the education process so that it involves everyone, and it’s

difficult. Parental involvement is central to the whole process. As

an educational establishment, we have to make it possible for parents

to get involved.”

Two days later, the Daily Pilot reported that three schools in the

Newport-Mesa Unified School District “failed to meet federal

standards for English proficiency.” All three schools are in Costa

Mesa and have a high percentage of children from Spanish-speaking

homes.

The parents of these children could have the option to pull their

children out and send them to a better performing school.

The Pilot also reported that “each of the schools will have to

revise academic plans and use funds for staff professional

development. The district must provide technical assistance.”

So, here we go again, chasing our tails while kids go through yet

another round of watching grown-ups try to figure out what’s best for

them. What’s it going to be this time? Should we try teaching by

standing on our heads? How about getting eyeglasses for all the kids

-- glasses always make people look smarter, don’t you think?

What about math? Too much, too soon? Maybe we should try holding

off teaching algebra until the second grade to see if that has an

effect.

Let’s try everything humanly possible and waste more tax dollars

and teacher time trying every politically correct method we can.

Let’s do everything except confront this problem head on and announce

that the parents of these children are failing to provide the

learning environment at home needed to reinforce the importance --

the power -- of the education they’re getting.

We can’t do that because we’d be called racist or insensitive or

both or more. We’d be called anything except honest.

But at least one school board member gets it. “The learning

culture is new to most parents in this district. They are not

familiar with the system. They were not born here, and they did not

go to school here. They don’t realize how hard children are trying to

learn, how competitive school has become and how violent it has

become. They don’t realize the benefits of education and technology.

If they are not aware, then their children miss out. It’s difficult

for children to make it on their own -- they need a partner.”

Plainly spoken, and every word true. Too bad it’s Lan Nguyen of

the Garden Grove Unified School District.

So, Newport-Mesa school board members, which of you is going to

stand up, as Nguyen has in his district, and say clearly and directly

to the parents of these kids that no matter where they transfer their

children, no matter how much training their teachers get and no

matter how much money we throw (away) at this problem, nothing will

change unless they do.

And please, spare me the details of how these parents are working

two jobs and have this or that other challenge. I assure you that

Nguyen can offer you two Garden Grove hard luck stories for every one

in Costa Mesa. But Nguyen is still pushing parents.

How about some teachers coming forward? It’s time.

Here, I’ll make it easy for you. This is what we need to tell

these parents:

1) Turn off the TV and take away the video games. (It’s quite

likely that many of these kids would rather play basketball on a

GameBoy than shoot hoops in a playground.)

2) Make sure your kids have some sort of breakfast before they

leave home. (It’s a common habit among “A” students.)

3) If you don’t already know English, learn it. Classes are at

night, and they are free.

4) Speak more English at home. (I promise you that you won’t lose

your cultural roots.)

5) Read to or with your kid(s) every night. Give them a small

reward when they finish a book -- any book.

6) No perks or play time until homework is done each night.

7) Tell them over and over about Lan Nguyen, who escaped communist

Vietnam and came to America in a dangerous boat journey at age 19

after a year in a refugee camp. He is now a lawyer and a school board

member. I asked Nguyen why America, when he could have gone anywhere.

He said, “In the United States, it is more true than before that you

can be anything if you try.”

So, what’ll it be? Do we try another round of feel-good tactics

and fail our kids once again, or do we make a concerted effort --

from the very top of the district and with something more than

sending a flier home with tips -- to help the parents of these kids

learn how to create learning environments in their homes?

Whatever we’re doing now is not working and has not worked for a

long time. If it did, the numbers would show it. So it’s time to try

something new.

If Garden Grove can try it, we can try it, too.

* STEVE SMITH is a Costa Mesa resident and freelance writer.

Readers may leave a message for him on the Daily Pilot hotline at

(949) 642-6086.