Should I Go To The Teacher? Developing a cooperative relationship with your child’s school community by Susan M. Benjamin, Ed.D. and Susan Sanchez. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 1996. 151 pp. $12.00.
As parents of young children, many of us have already spent time agonizing about the best child-care setting and/or the most appropriate educational environment for our children. Entrusting our children into the care of others is an inevitable part of life, and it plays an increasingly large role as our children approach the elementary years and beyond. Since we have such a big emotional investment in these arrangements, most of us approach this task with at least some trepidation and ambivalence. The more informed we are, the better prepared we can be to make the most of relationships with teachers and schools, and to advocate effectively on our children’s behalf should the need arise.
Susan Benjamin and Susan Sanchez would not win any prizes for exciting writing. However, Should I Go To TheTeacher? provides its readers with a wealth of practical information. The authors have painstakingly described how the school system functions. They outline the roles of all professionals employed by the school and take an inside look at the procedures, policies, and appropriate channels of communication. This knowledge helps us avoid certain pitfalls when approaching the school with questions or concerns.
This book is written for parents who have children in the elementary school system, but many of its recommendations about how to communicate and resolve conflict apply to parents who have children in nursery school, day care or other child-care settings. The authors’ careful consideration of both parents’ and teachers’ perspectives enables us to see both sides of the coin, a necessary prerequisite for successful relationships in any situation. Their emphasis is on ways to foster effective parent-teacher communication. This involves helping parents learn how to voice opinions and concerns, and assert their rights respectfully. They stress that understanding what makes teachers tick is an important first step in establishing empathy, and that seeking out opportunities for meaningful volunteering shows our willingness to be committed partners in our children’s education. All of this, paves the way for us to maximize the chances for a healthy school experience for our children and have satisfying interactions between parents and staff.
Susan Benjamin, Ed.D., has worked as a classroom teacher and as a consultant in the clinical supervision of teachers. She has also served as the educational columnist for a newspaper in her community, offering practical advice to families. Susan Sanchez holds a master’s degree in education. She has taught children for more than twenty years in both suburban and inner-city schools.
Parents navigating the elementary school system for the first time would find this book particularly enlightening, especially if the last time they were in this setting was for their own schooling. This book educates our minds so that we can act responsibly on these issues of the heart– the nurture and support of our children as they grow.