Making progress

Allison Gerro

Parents in action for education is very important because it gives people a chance to find out what’s going on at school. It is also important for children to be encouraged to stay in school.

I’ve been involved with the project for two years now and I’ve learned a lot! We’ve been talking about issues like the cost of school, violence at school, the school board and how we can help parents who cannot afford school fees.

We organized meetings and I personally enjoy greeting the parents, making them feel comfortable and confident. I also keep in touch with the organizers, so I always know what’s going on.
As a parent, I noticed that the principal is always sitting in his office and I get the feeling he’s not listening to what parents have to say. So we have to keep convincing more and more parents to get involved in school matters, so that we can form a strong group.

Anne-Marie Mitchell

I first found out about Parents in action for education when I saw stickers in my building. At their meetings, I realized there were so many things I didn’t know about. For instance, many parents of English kids who go to French school complained they couldn’t communicate with their kids’ teachers. So we suggested that those parents find other parents in the building who speak French to tutor their kids in exchange for a little money.

I also realized that many teachers are afraid to talk to parents when their kids do something wrong because some parents get mad at them. For instance, one teacher told me she had to disagree with parents who wanted to work with their child at home using a particular math book. Of course she thought it was good that they were willing to help their kid, but she knew this book was very complicated and was not meant to be used by parents. She knew it would confuse the kid and asked the parents to trust in her 15 years of teaching experience. But still, the parents were angry with her. The same thing happens when teachers suggest to parents that their kids repeat a grade. Parents don’t understand that it is for the child’s good, especially if the child is not ready for the next grade in terms of their social skills.

As a parent, I say: “You’re the teacher, you know more about teaching than I do. This is your kingdom. I can’t tell you how to teach and you can’t tell me what to do when I’m in my home with my kids”. It’ s important for both parents and teachers to make efforts! Once you’ve built good relations with teachers, it makes it easier to talk with them, get information from them and ask for things like more computers, more music programs and extra language programs for the French immersion kids, so that they can compete at the same level with the other kids who speak French at home.

Frances Waithe

Most of my issues with my children’s school involve the manner in which the school deals with them. After all, teachers spend an equal amount of time with my children, so I expect them to respect my kids and to give them a quality of education. For instance, I don’t think it’s fair to embarrass or to ignore them. I also started to look at my children’s curriculum and I realized they were not being taught about their own history, black history, at least not to the same extent as other cultures. Based on my particular concerns, I offered my services to help change certain things that I felt were lacking.

Becoming involved with Parents in action for education has given me the opportunity to share my experiences, to hear about other experiences and to work with others to find effective solutions together. The project is a good mean to let parents know they’re not alone. I was able to gather a lot of information from initiatives carried out by the team that coordinated the project in Cartierville. Attending the Leadership Program on Education and sharing in the experiences of others who have done similar work, enabled me to acquire skills to help me to address these issues. Now it’s a question of applying them!

I’m very glad to see that my involvement has had a very good effect on my children. It helped them to realize the importance of school and it has given them the confidence to say what they truly believe. It also keeps them in check because I can’t be advocating for them if they are misbehaving at school. If they did, I would look pretty stupid. Kids realize there are ways to bring about change while respecting certain rules.

Perpétue Muramutse

In 1976, back in my country, I started working with other parents to found kindergarten, primary and secondary schools. Our objective was to improve the quality of teaching in overcrowded schools. As a parent, I played an active role in my children’s education. It was quite a major shift in mentality.  We were the first to create parent associations in schools.  Since then, I have been a member of three parent committees.
As a community organizer for Parents in action for education, I would like to share my experience with parents who feel powerless with regard to their children’s education.  I would like to support them in their involvement and in their children’s development and success.

I firmly believe that parents bear the responsibility for their children’s physical and moral well-being, and this is a universal notion.  Immigrants to Quebec often encounter difficulties in performing their role as parents, whether due to language, culture or the absence of parent bodies within the school system to allow them to express their ideas and concerns in a meaningful way.

I would like to play an active role in finding creative ways to enable parents to express themselves and be heard, and to support them in developing the skills they need to preserve their pride and dignity as parents.

Roxana Mispireta

At the beginning, I worked for an organization that helps with homework. Spontaneously, I suggested meeting parents to discuss specific issues in a group setting as for instance how to help kids more effectively with their homework. It was interesting, but I noticed that many parents did not come: some placed the responsibility on the teachers and the principal. Others didn’t have time or didn’t feel comfortable in French. Furthermore, there was no solidarity among ethnic communities. It was very difficult to get parents involved!

Then, through Parents in action for education, I took part in the training sessions during the Leadership Program on Education. It answered my need to acquire tools to help and encourage parents to work together and, also, to insist that the school better inform them about how to get involved.

Recently, I joined the governing board of my child’s school and I must admit that I find it difficult. It’s hard to understand the inner workings of the board and I had to assimilate a lot of new information. Also, the vocabulary that they are using is very complicated and not easy to understand. Parents give up because they are told that they do not understand the system, that they shouldn’t get involved in issues that concern education professionals, and that they don’t have time enough! I think the school is afraid of losing control and humiliates parents in an attempt to defend its position. The result is that parents are afraid of being humiliated so they keep their mouths closed!

Salene

I’ve had such a negative experience with school!  Mostly, it’s been due to language.  Since my child has to be educated in French, I should be able to help her but I only studied French at high school. Because I work, I have no time to improve my French. It wouldn’t be such a big issue if the school was ready to help but every time I go to school meetings, teachers and the principal refuse to speak English to me and to all the other English parents. They say it’s illegal for them to speak English. We couldn’t even get information about the new curriculum!  We all sat there staring blankly! I tried many times to say that it wasn’t fair but they wouldn’t change their attitude.  I remember at one meeting, I was so mad, I left!
I don’t mind my child going to school in French, but I want to know what’s going on. There has been no room for me to express my concerns. I never received any information in English. I don’t think it’s fair.  Because of this situation, I’m not involved in anything, even though I would really like to be.

At least, now I speak up! Before, I used to keep my mouth shut because I was afraid of the consequences that they would be mean to my child.  I used to just stay home and mull this over and over.  It’s only when I talked with people and parents from Parents in action for education that I became more confident in myself and my ability to find solutions. It really helped me!  Also, through the training sessions during the Leadership Program on Education, a bus tour about the history of education in Montreal, and different meetings, I gathered a lot of information about the school system, school boards and the parent participation organization. There were so many things I didn’t know about!

Susan Jeremiah

I have always been very active in my children’s school or in different community organizations. Even though my kids are older now, I still continue to be active because I feel the community helped my children a lot when they were younger, so it’s a way of giving back! One of the first initiatives I participated in with Parents in action for education was to protest against the closing of the elementary school’s library. We felt it was crazy to eliminate the libraries when so many children are in crisis, having difficulties with literacy. Thanks to the information being passed around through the network we created, we gathered so much support, mainly from the parents, that the library was not closed after all!

We also discussed the Zero tolerance politics which has children expelled from the school if they are involved in fighting or are found with a weapon. Bringing that issue made us see that many teenage children have serious problems with education and social behaviour. Some have great difficulties coping with the stress of everyday life. We found out that elementary schools are now introducing anger management programs to help kids deal with difficult situations. Just a few years ago, who would have ever thought that this would be necessary?

All these issues have made us want to work with the project so that we can communicate important information to parents, informing them about the specific resources available to them within the community!

Wendy Bonair-Cyrus

I have a very good relationship with my children’s school.  I have always been involved, so I feel at ease with the school. Since I work at night, I decided to go to the school from time to time during the day, while other parents are working, to see how the kids are doing. And we created a kind of network with the parents in the neighbourhood.  It was a spontaneous thing.  Eight families who were friends and neighbours decided to get together.  I’m there for them and they’re there for me!

I heard about Parents in action for education when it was created about two years ago.  I went to the meetings and various workshops during the Leadership Program on Education.  At Parents in action’s meetings, I found out how I could support parents actions and make a contribution inspired by my own vision and ideas.

For instance, I suggested that parents take part in activities organized by the school, such as parent-teacher meetings and school assemblies.  Based on my own experience, I could help create a network or suggest that parents write things in the agenda, which is a perfect link between school and parents, if they could not attend school activities.  The meetings also made me realize that I was very lucky because my children’s school encouraged parents to get involved.

In the Leadership Program on Education I was given a lot of information, how to use certain tools and where to find them.  Often, it confirmed that I was on the right track or reinforced my approach.  I think Parents in action for education has managed to gather a great deal of information, resources and people.  Now, the most important thing is to apply what we’ve learned.