Parenting 101 02/23/2011
 
Hi everybody!  I apologize for my delay in posting.  This Monday marked the beginning of a dreaded week at Boston College that I’m sure everyone remembers from the good old college years. It’s that time when every single professor decides it is the right moment to assign a plethora of essays and exams all due within a very short five days- midterms. So far, all of us on the Heights are surviving, with the help of coffee and the promise of quickly approaching weekend. 

I would first like to thank all my readers for their comments and support.  It’s so great to hear from you, and I appreciate your enthusiasm and kind words.  

The rush of midterms has left me doing a lot of thinking about the practical application of what I learn in my courses in the special education classroom.  How does what I'm learning affect the way I will run my classroom?  What will I remember from the text books, and how will I chose to use the information I memorize for exams?  Today in ED386 Introduction to Sign Language, my professor highlighted an important topic that is often missing from the college course load: how do we, as special educators, work with parents?  

In all my years of school, no one has ever said, "Let's sit down and talk about parents."  The topic is missing from my text books, syllabi, and lectures.  In fact, the issue is even omitted from the realm of student teaching.  If you are "lucky" your teacher will excuse you from parent-teacher conferences because she knows you are busy with "college things."  Or, if a parent shows up during the school day, you might be assigned the task of running class while the teacher deals with the situation.  

But, student teachers will someday become teachers.  They will walk into the classroom and be expected to know how to deal with parents, but they have never been explicitly taught what to do.  They will rely on their experience, or lack thereof, and commonsense.  

Today, my professor recalled a complicated situation he encountered as a teacher of the deaf.  Once, he had a student whom I will call Joe.  Joe was addicted to drugs and suffered from alcoholism.  One day, his father showed up to school with a pink slip, indicating that he had admitted Joe to the hospital.  If Joe refused to be admitted, he would be escorted to the facility by the police.  Joe needed help; this was clear.  But, he did not want help, and it took several hours of conversation (in sign language of course) for Joe's teacher to convince him to go.  Joe agreed on the condition that his teacher accompany him to the hospital and stay with him until an interpreter arrived.  Several hours after Joe's admittance, the interpreter arrived and the teacher's job was complete.  Joe remained in the hospital for ten days; the interpreter stayed for only one.  Joe was unable to communicate with his doctors for the following nine days.  

Unfortunately, no one ever tells you how to handle a situation like this.  What do you say to the policeman and the father when they walk into your classroom?  What do you say to Joe and his parents when he comes back to school? How do you communicate with them?  Do you keep in touch during his hospitalization or give the family space?  Do you reach out to his father or do you wait and see if he contacts you? What do you do?  Don't bother skimming your old notes... you won't find a solution.  No one ever taught you. 

I hope that as families become increasingly diverse and parents continue to become advocates for their children, the subject of working with parents will become an important part of college course work because the ability to work effectively with parents is an integral part of teaching.  But, in the meantime, I encourage professors to incorporate parenting into their lessons, teachers to get students involved with parents during their practicums, and students to ask questions about how to handle situations they might encounter.  

Best of luck to those taking and administering midterms!  And, I wish a great week to everyone else.  Thanks for reading!   

   

 


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