Talk Autism by Debbie

Bridging Visions: Enhancing Education through Parent-Teacher Partnerships

Debra Gilbert

Have you ever considered how a simple conversation could transform your child's education? Our heartfelt episode unravels the intricacies of the relationship between teachers and parents, exploring how their combined efforts can significantly enhance the learning experience for our children. We tackle the real challenges both educators and families face, such as the demanding workload, behavioral issues in classrooms, and the essential need for mutual respect and support. This isn't just a discussion; it's a call to action for stronger, more effective partnerships in our schools.

Join us as we shine a light on the pressing issues within educational environments, from the overwhelming paperwork burdening our teachers to the societal shifts affecting discipline at home. We delve into the critical role of open communication, not just for resolving conflicts but for building a foundation of cooperation that benefits everyone involved. Expect to walk away with insight into how every child's needs can be met through a harmonious educational journey, and how we, as a community, can improve the synergy between our schools and homes to support the well-being and growth of our youngest members.

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Speaker 1:

Hi, everyone, hope you're having a blessed day today. Today I'm going to talk about teachers and parents and working together. I'm going to talk about first what you have in common you both are overworked, you both have too much on your plates. Both are trying their best and trying to figure out what's next. What should I do to help my students or my child? Neither of you have all the answers and both need each other's help and support. I know at times with teachers you don't always like an avid parent or it can be annoying at times, but they can really be beneficial to your room If you connect with them and work together. They can help you get stuff for your room that maybe you're not able to do, and they're just trying their best to figure out what their child needs and try to give them the very best that they can. It's difficult when you've got a parent that is an advocate and thinks you're going to cure them. That's not going to be the situation. Each year we lose between 150 to 280 teachers, and that's per district, not statewide or even national wide. That's per district. It is a hard job and it's not for the faint of heart by any means.

Speaker 1:

I want to explain to parents and teachers why are some of the reasons we're losing teachers and why can't we connect. One of them is the paperwork. It used to be years ago it would be just special education teachers that would have a mountain and we just would lose a lot of them in special education because of the paperwork that's involved. Nowadays it's not. It's general education teachers too, and they're overworked with now paperwork too. Behavior problems in the schools we're seeing a lot of that, and as a teacher, you can only do so much. You can't force the kid to work. There's just no way that you can. Your recourses are just limited what you can do, and even with the district, other than if they get so bad, they get kicked out or expelled, and that's not the answer then for our kids either. They need to be in school.

Speaker 1:

I think that one of the reasons is a couple different reasons. Actually, there's no discipline in the house. Parents are becoming more afraid of their kids. We took prayer out of the home and we've taken it out of the schools, and I'm sorry, but I think that's a big, big component that we need to be brought back in. And dinner at the table. Electronics should be off and parents should be sitting down with their kids and having that 15 minutes of dinner time eating and talking about your day. The other reason we're losing teachers is the pay. I know they, you know every year they try to up it and try to do this and do that, but for what you do, even with your times off, it's still low.

Speaker 1:

We need support from parents and the district and we need to support our parents also within our school system as much as we possibly can. Some of the things that parents will do will say it's not my kid, it's the other kids, or it's the teacher's fault, or you don't like my kid. Those are some of the things that when we're dealing with discipline, we're trying to talk to the parents that that happens and stuff. So we need to sit down and, just you know, open up ourselves and say, hey, let's work together. This is what I'm seeing. What's going on. You know it doesn't have to be you against the teacher or the teacher against the parent. We can work together to find out a solution for our children. We need to get the behavior under control. That is a must, because if you don't have that, it's just a struggle to try to get them to do anything.

Speaker 1:

Let me see what else. I know that with parents and this is more to teachers you got to remember that they're trying to work. It takes the two people to work. They may have other kids and they may be trying everything they can too. So it's not just you know. They're not trying. They could be trying, but maybe don't have the skills or the resources that they need to be able to do what they need to do for your child. And I am talking on the spectrum too. But there's other kids that are in that classroom that we need to look at too.

Speaker 1:

Now, when you're in special education, you can have anywhere from six to 19 kids and they keep loading them up and loading them up, and you've figured 19 of the kids that are on some kind of spectrum or disability, and you are one person and maybe you have one aid and that's it, and I've seen that happen many, many times and it's just not doable. You can't do it. You cannot provide the sound education that you need to do with that child with those two people. If you've got 16, 17, 18 or whatever kids in your room, you need a couple of more adults in there too, and even if it's just floating in and floating out you come in for a couple hours here or an hour there just something that will help you through the day, that you can give what you need to give for those children. Parents, you too, you know you need to be able to make sure you have all the resources and check in your area what is available for you. I just learned in my area there's a place here that has kids from six days a week, from seven in the morning to seven at night and Saturdays I think it was eight to five and for medical reasons, if they have, if they're on the spectrum or learning disabilities and things like that, so they have a place for them to go every day, which I think is great. I think every area should have that to help our children. So, anyway, that's the little tidbits for today on parents and teachers. We need to work together, we need to understand each other's situation and just help us to become better for our kids. It does take a village and we need to be together in that village and not separated to help prevent our kids not getting the education that they need and help them with their behaviors.

Speaker 1:

Okay, so that's it for today. I just want to do another shout out for Trent. Drawings by Trent. I just ordered a shirt from him for one of my students. It's really cute. He is going to be, I heard, in Missouri, I guess next weekend, so it's a meet and greet. Find him on Facebook and again, it's drawings by Trent. Hope you have a blessed day. Bye now.

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