The Parent Voice

Mind the Gap: Inequality in Ontario Schools

Collating data mined from their annual school surveys and from the Education Quality and Accountability Office, People for Education (P4E) has examined the relationship between family income levels and student achievement. Their findings are contained in their 2013 annual report, Mind the Gap: Inequality in Ontario Schools. As the title of the report suggests, P4E concludes that disproportionate streaming of lower income students into applied courses, especially math, has far-reaching effects on their academic achievement in secondary school and beyond. Is this conclusion valid? Are there other factors affecting student academic achievement? What strategies could/should be employed to “level the playing field?” Let the discourse begin!

Here is an excerpt from the P4E report to get us thinking:

“Demographics make a difference

Using data from EQAO, People for Education compared schools by average family incomes, looking at the 10% of schools with the highest incomes and the 10% with the lowest. The results show significant gaps:

• Students in high income schools are more likely to be identified as gifted.
• 26% of “high income” schools have French Immersion programs, compared to 7% of low income schools.
• High income schools fundraise five times more per year, on average, than low income schools.
• Students in high income schools are much more likely to have the chance to participate in a choir or band.
• High income secondary schools have a much higher proportion of students in academic courses. Students in academic courses in grades 9 and 10 have more course choices in grades 11 and 12, are more likely to graduate, and more choices open to them after graduation.
• 85% of high income secondary schools charge athletic fees, compared to 45% of low income schools, which may mean they are more likely to offer more costly sports such as hockey, and more likely to have the late buses needed to ensure all students can participate.”

Click on this link to read the full report:  Mind the Gap: Inequality in Ontario Schools

Revolving around the theme Pathways to Success, the 2nd Edition of Ignite Parents, held on Wednesday, April 10, 2013 at the Listowel Golf Club was an evening of enlightening but brief presentations aimed at helping parents gain a better understanding of their student’s education. Presenters focused on such topics as apprenticeships, college, university, school to work, tech and skilled trades for men and women as well as student re-engagement.

Following the Ignite format, each presentation is only 5 minutes long utilizing 20 slides timed to advance after 15 seconds. If you missed the evening or attended and would like to watch the videos again here is the link to the Ignite Parents website: http://igniteparents.ca/

The First Ever Earth – Space Music Monday Concert

Is your family following the exploits of Canada’s Commander Chris Hadfield in the International Space Station? Classrooms and family rooms all across Canada are enthralled by Commander Hadfield’s easy communication style as he explains what it is like to live up on the space station and the purpose of the many experiments being conducted during his stay. He even took time out from the “official business” of the space station to collaborate with Ed Robertson (of Barenaked Ladies fame) in writing a song called “Is Somebody Singing,” the official theme song for 2013′s Music Monday. A very special treat is coming up for us on Monday, May 6, 2013 at 12:00 pm EDT as Commander Hadfield will take part in the nation-wide live webcast of this event together with earth bound participants located at the Ontario Science Centre in Toronto. For more information including the full line up of performers  check out Music Monday’s website at http://www.musicmonday.ca.

This event is especially timely in light of People for Education’s recently released report on The Arts in Ontario Schools which examines the availability of arts education to Ontario’s student population. The final recommendations of this report note that:

“there is strong evidence that arts education provides a key foundation for developing the students’ creativity, engagement and academic achievement. Arts education both supports individual learning and development and builds students’ capacity to communicate and work in teams.”

The full report with all it’s findings and recommendations is available through this link on the People for Education website: http://www.peopleforeducation.ca/pfe-news/students-missing-essential-arts-education-and-enrichment/

To enlarge the event poster click here: 2013-04-10_IgniteParentsEventPoster

The second annual Ignite Parents event is shaping up to be an evening of quick and enlightening presentations in the field of education from educators, parents and students within our school board. This year’s Ignite Parents theme is “Pathways” where we will explore the diverse routes our students follow upon graduating from our secondary schools.

The idea to organize an Ignite Parents event came from the Ignite concept itself. Ignite is a community building speaking event hosted in communities all across the world where people gather to share their passions and ideas using 20 slides that auto advance every 15 seconds for a total of just 5 minutes. The motto of an Ignite event is: “Enlighten us, but make it quick!” We loved that idea and the unique format, so we decided to adapt the Ignite concept and narrow the focus and theme to education.

Ignite Parents promises to be a fun and exciting evening with inspiring presentations by passionate people. The event is free and open to all, there will be displays, refreshments, door prizes, live music, a cash bar and of course, some fabulous presentations!  Even more information can be found on our websites: http://www.yourschools.ca and http://igniteparents.ca. We hope you’ll join us at the Listowel Golf Club on Wednesday, April 10, 2013 from 6:30 to 9:00 p.m. And prepare to be engaged…prepare to be enlightened!

People for Education recently released a Parent Involvement Toolkit. This toolkit is for principals, teachers and parents about doing what matters most. You can download the toolkit for free from their website here plus you can watch an accompanying video, a recent webinar with University of Toronto Professor, Carl Corter, entitled, “Parent Involvement That Makes a Difference”.

Surprisingly, findings show the kind of involvement that makes the biggest difference in students’ chances for success in school isn’t what most parents might expect. More important than limiting TV time, volunteering on the school council, or even monitoring homework, there are four things that lead the pack:

• Letting your child know you have high expectations for him or her
• Talking with your child about school
• Focusing on students’ attitudes, more than their marks
• Reading to and/or with your child

In addition to the download for the Parent Toolkit, you’ll find handy tip sheets to share and download for parents, principals and teachers.

It’s about this time of year that I begin to look ahead to next year. I know, it sounds crazy. After all, March Break has just ended. But if you look at your calendar right now, you will see that there are only 12 weeks left in the school year. Specifically, I begin to think about next year’s school council. Who will “graduate” in June and move on with their child? Will we be able to fill those vacant positions? How do we get more parents involved next September? What will next year look like?

Lately, I’ve begun to question the effectiveness of our current “recruiting” practices, knowing full well that there’s always room for improvement and that there’s got to be better ways to connect with parents. It’s one thing to advertise in the school newsletter, embrace technology and social media by posting here on this website, tweeting or putting it out there on facebook. But are we really connecting with parents? Or is this dissemination of information (and requests) more one-sided? Gulp. I’m thinking that despite my best intentions and efforts, it’s been the latter.

I came across this article in PTO Today by Liz O’Donnell. Although based in America, I think the message is very much the same. There’s some good information in here that I think all school councils can relate to, apply and learn from and why I’m sharing this here today. I know I’m learning more and more, and I’m being reminded, that it’s not about the volunteering itself…it’s about the relationships.

As always, I invite your comments and would love to hear from you.

9 Steps To Recruit More Volunteers

A common lament among PTO leaders is “We just can’t get volunteers.” And while it certainly might feel that way to an overcommitted, overtired board, it’s probably not completely accurate. By redefining your idea of a volunteer and changing how you respond to “I’d love to, but,…” you can tap into a wider group of parents than you might have thought were available and accomplish more than you imagined. Here are nine steps to build your volunteer base and enlist an army of unstoppable parents.

1. Set Expectations—Your Own

You’ve made the choice to serve on the PTO and you’ve thrown yourself into the role. Not everyone is going to share your energy and enthusiasm, and that’s OK. Accept that other parents may not be willing or able to log the hours you do, and be appreciative of the time they can give. The last thing you want is to send the message that a mom doesn’t care about her child because she can’t staff the book fair. Maybe she can make reminder calls or provide supplies for the event. Remember, most people start small before taking on the big tasks. The person who volunteers an hour this time may end up running the entire event in the future.

Read more…

I’ve been coming across several articles and research papers lately about play based learning. The research continues to show that environments promoting play-based learning ultimately promote healthy brain development and that literacy-enriched play settings help children learn about the functions of writing and increase their ability to recognize play-related print (Play’s Potential in Early Literacy Development, 2009).

In 2011, the theme of Family Literacy Day was Play for Literacy. I’ve taken these “Play for Literacy” tips from the ABC Life Literacy Canada website and you can find many more tips and resources here. So go ahead, break out the Bingo and board games, plan a scavenger hunt, or do a crossword together and have fun keeping those mental skills sharp and growing…mom and dad included!

Here Are Some Play for Literacy Tips:

1. Count at every opportunity. Example: “Can you get THREE spoons from the drawer, please?”
2. Have a fun alphabet chart on the kitchen wall and make up your own games to play. Example: What starts with “P”?
3. Kids read when books are at their fingertips, so put them everywhere! At the kitchen table, in the bathroom…
4. Encourage your children to teach or show you what they learned in school.
5. Challenge children to learn a new word every day, based on their age and grade level.
6. When grocery shopping with small children, name and spell out each item as you put it in the shopping cart.
7. Play lots of word games: Upwords, Balderdash, Pass the Bomb, Mad Libs, crossword puzzles, Scrabble.
8. Take the whole family to the library, have everyone pick out their favourite childhood story and take turns sharing them with each other.
9. Lead by example – read and have books in the house.
10. Listen to music of different genres – melody, tone, rhythm, pitch, etc. helps with sound recognition, which is necessary in early reading

On behalf of the Avon Maitland Parent Involvement Committee, I would like to invite you to attend the first Ignite Parents event ever held in Canada. Ignite Parents is an evening of quick and enlightening presentations in the field of education from educators, parents and students within our school board. Ignite Parents is our parent engagement initiative of the year and our goal is to engage, inspire and enlighten parents.

The idea to organize an Ignite Parents event came from the Ignite concept itself. Ignite is a community building speaking event hosted in cities all across the world where people gather to share their passions and ideas using 20 slides that auto advance every 15 seconds for a total of just 5 minutes. The motto of an Ignite event is: “Enlighten us, but make it quick!” We loved that idea and the unique format, so we decided to adapt the Ignite concept and narrow the focus and theme to education.

Ignite Parents promises to be a fun and exciting evening with inspiring presentations by passionate people. The event is free and open to all, there will be displays, plenty of great food, refreshments, door prizes, live music, a cash bar and of course, some fabulous presentations! For more information and to register for Ignite Parents you can visit our website at IgniteParents.ca  I hope you’ll join us at the Arden Park Hotel, Wednesday, May 2^nd from 7 to 9pm. And prepare to be engaged…prepare to be enlightened!