Choosing the right kind of children education program is not just about the education quality, but also about the relationships between educators and parents. The quality of the education and the social and emotional skills that are taught to the children are important. Choosing the right children education program can be easy, if you know what to look for and what to avoid.
Relationships between educators and parents
Educators and parents work together to help students achieve educational goals. However, there are many differences in their behavior. Some of the most successful teachers are the ones who collaborate with their parents. In addition to helping students, parent involvement also enhances the teacher’s own morale.
The relationship between parents and educators is affected by several socioeconomic factors. Some parents are intimidated by teachers. Others are unwilling to support distance learning programs. However, most parents are doing everything they can to minimize disruption to learning.
According to previous research, male educators and fathers have different interactive behaviors with children than female educators and mothers. Male educators are more creative and promote more physical activities. Similarly, fathers challenge their children to explore. They are also less attentive than mothers.
Social and emotional skills
Boosting social and emotional skills in children’s education is crucial to a child’s success in life. Using these skills is also important for teachers and educators. These skills help children deal with stress and other obstacles in their lives. They also help kids achieve their academic and social goals.
Social and emotional skills in children’s education are important because they lay the foundation for future cognitive development. Explicitly teaching social and emotional skills can help kids build resilience, overcome trauma, and deal with adverse events.
Social and emotional skills in children’s educational programs can also boost the graduation rate, reduce chronic absenteeism, and prepare kids for the workforce. They also help kids build self-esteem. Social emotional learning programs can even increase student collaboration in the classroom.
Noncognitive skills
Historically, education has focused on cognitive skills, but it is important to consider noncognitive skills as well. They include social skills, emotional health, and personal relationships between students and teachers.
Researchers have found that noncognitive skills contribute to later life success. They have examined the relationship between noncognitive skills and school achievement. They also have found that children with poor noncognitive skills are more likely to drop out of school. Harsh disciplinary measures, such as out-of-school suspensions, are not conducive to nurturing noncognitive skills. They also correlate negatively with school achievement, school climate, and dropouts.
There is an increasing interest in noncognitive skills. Recent studies have found that the ability to manage emotions, problem solving skills, and social competence can improve a child’s performance in school.
Quality of education
Despite record inflation-adjusted spending per student, there has been a dramatic drop in educational quality. SAT scores, for example, have declined over the past three and a half decades, despite improvements in the test’s grading criteria.
Quality is not a unitary concept, but rather a complex set of factors and practices. It includes factors such as the educational offer, school organization, strategies at the national, regional, and local levels, and the values that are promoted in the society. It is an obligation of all actors involved in the education of children.
The American Research Association on Child & Adolescent Development (ARACIP) defines quality in education as a set of principles, practices, and results. It emphasizes that quality is a complex of factors and practices that meet the needs and expectations of the beneficiaries.
Barriers to accessing education
Across the globe, children are denied access to quality education. This is especially true for children with disabilities, who are often removed from mainstream schools and forced to attend residential special schools.
Children with disabilities are also denied access to speech therapy, sign language courses, and important community services. These children are more likely to fall behind their peers and have adverse health outcomes. In addition, they are less likely to participate in decision-making and earn a good income later in life. The Global Partnership for Education estimates that less than 20% of educational aid goes to developing countries.
The Global Partnership for Education is working towards ensuring quality education for all children by 2030. In countries with low incomes, less than 5% of children with disabilities are enrolled in school.