Now that the kids have been back at school for a full month, it is time for parents to assess how things are going for their children. If any problems are being experienced, now is the time to address them before it is too late to make changes.
The key factors to assess are the teachers that the child might have and the courses that are being taken. If there is already a serious personality clash with a teacher, then the parents should go in to the school immediately to look for a remedy. Kids are not able to make the adjustments that an adult might be able to make to a difficult boss. If they are uncomfortable with their teacher, then their learning could be affected. It might even be necessary to request a class change if the problem cannot quickly be resolved through a meeting with all involved. Parents should not let themselves be convinced by the school that changes cannot be made. They always can be with a little effort by the counselor and the principal. Naturally school authorities do not like to make changes once the classes are set, but these are certainly possible when necessary.
The same is true if the course the child is in is wrong for them. Generally these are the core courses, such as English or Mathematics, but occasionally even an option could prove to be difficult for some children. If the course is proving to be too hard (or even too easy) for the child, then once again a change should be requested. To let the situation progress any further than this month would make changes very difficult in a school and would then invite potential failure of the course.
If a change in teacher or course is necessary, then parents should be calm but firm in their approach to the school. Do not march into the school with guns a blazing. This will only invite defensiveness on the part of the school authorities and perhaps defeat your purpose. Principals work hard at balancing their classes and prefer not to change them when they are set. However, when a child’s potential academic success is on the line, parents must do their best to resolve the situation.
There is one important factor in resolving school problems that should also be mentioned. This is that in order to solve a problem, parents must know it exists. This requires that they keep in close communication with their children so that they know what is happening at school. This may seem to be just common sense, but it is amazing how many busy parents fail to pick up on their children’s’ clues about their unhappiness. If the child becomes unusually quiet or irritable, then there may be a problem. If the child continually complains about a certain subject or teacher, then parents should not trivialize these concerns. Delve into the situation to see if parental involvement is necessary. If it is then now is the time to effect any changes that need to be made. Waiting longer could be disastrous.