Parents, are you your child's best advocate?

Did you realize that you are your child's best learning resource? According to Larry Fullerton, Coordinator of Community Relations with Parents Reaching Out in Albuquerque, New Mexico, parents are vital to ensuring their child receives the best educational experience possible.

"Schools are all about data. So, when working with teachers and school administrators, it's important for parents to have as much information about their child as possible." Fullerton says.

Parents have an enormous amount of information about their child that is extremely useful. These records include past academic information, medical records, and other evaluation that can give a teacher a much fuller understanding of your child. He says that "we begin to understand our children by putting all these pieces together".

"We want parents to own their process and make decisions that are right for their family. and, the more information, data and knowledge a family has, the more power they have." He says. "Families are their child's first advocate."

Fullerton recommends putting together a file that includes anything and everything a child has done. Medical records, past report cards, certificates of completion, even information on hobbies and outside activities (like playing a sport or having taken music or art classes). This kind of detailed record-keeping, he says, puts a parent in a position of authority about their child and causes educators to take seriously the individual needs of the child.

This information begins forming the framework for developing an Individual Learning Plan for the child, and provides teachers with a guideline for being a partner in creating the ILP.

For more information on how you can learn more about being your child's first advocate, visit Parents Reaching Out.

Have you taken the survey yet?

PencilHave you taken the Employability Report Card Project survey yet? If not, take it today! The results of the survey will be shared with educators and business leaders across the country. Our intent is to ensure that our children enter the workplace fully prepared for success - and your opinions make a huge difference!

Featured Resource: Free vs. fee learning assessment

People all have different learning styles. Some learn by hearing, some by smelling, tasting or feeling (this is called tactile or kinesthetic) and still others by being able to mentally visualize an idea or concept.

Everyone has all the traits, and we all use them at various times. Our personality and temperament dictate which ones we favor-stressful situations cause an individual to gravitate toward one style, but when one is relaxed and comfortable learning will happen or look differently as the process is perceived to be enjoyable.

That is the important thing about the ILP- learning is life long and for the most part-should be fun, or at least enjoyable. This is especially important if your student is just trying to get a leg up on life in general.

A student's full time jobs are learning how to learn. Knowing how your student learns is an important job of the parent-Having this knowledge helps you continue to advocate and support his or her learning process all the way through school.

Knowing how you and your student learns/absorbs information will strengthen you ability to identify areas of study that are strengths and those that are weak, communicate requests with teachers, and move forward in learning to learn and loving learning!

Two learning style websites are listed on the IEM resource page.
The first is from VIIDA. It includes 30 questions and costs $8.95 to get the results. A student rate of $4.95 can be requested.

A free assessment can be found at the North Carolina State University web site. Included for viewing and downloading are Frequently Asked Questions. The assessment is a 44 questionnaire that can be submitted and automatically scored on the web. A 4-page handout that briefly describes the learning styles and explains the instrument results is also included.

What should be in an ILP?

The Parent-Driven School calls for an ILP for every student. It best ensures that the needs of the student, parents, and ultimately the outcomes for the institution are met. To this end, there are five essentials for ILP success:

1. Every student should have an individualized learning plan that is based on an assessment of the student's interests, abilities and goals.
2. The student should be directly involved in creating the learning plan, and understand the reasons for each component behind the strategies identified in the plan.
3. The ILP should be a working document. Progress should be measured against the contents of the plan. Amendments should be made to the plan on an as-needed basis.
4. The plan should be detailed for the short-term, with specific activities and tasks, while being connected to the long-term goals of the plan.
5. The plan should include documentation of additional support needs and how they will be provided.

The short-term effect of an ILP is to help the student achieve his or her educational goals. However, the lifetime effect is that it teaches the student how to become a lifelong learner. As evidenced by trends in business, the ILP is becoming a more widely accepted tool or strategy to achieve specific results. By teaching the student to use an ILP, he or she will not only already be accustomed to using this tool in a career, but can apply it to any pursuit they may have in life.