Letters: Can We Encourage Parents to Volunteer in their Own Children’s Schools? I read Linda Thomas’s intriguing articles, "North Mom, South Mom" (Nov. ’07) and "South Mom, North Teacher" (April ’08), about the discrepancy in academic achievement between Seattle north-end and south-end schools. Nationwide surveys have shown that the single biggest factor in the success of a school is the degree to which students’ families are involved with the school. In short: it’s parental volunteering, not money, that makes the difference. (Our district proved this recently when the Gates Foundation reduced its prior $26 million dollar grant to a mere $850,000 because of lack of results in the south end, especially. South-end school T.T. Minor proved it in 2001 when millionaire Stuart Sloan's adoption of and generous funding for the school worsened already abysmal test results.)
Recent district surveys, and Ms. Thomas’s anecdotal evidence, show that north-end parents volunteer much more than south-end parents.
Ms. Thomas encourages us to follow her lead: if we are among the few who have time during the school day to volunteer in a classroom, she asks us to volunteer in a south-end school instead of with our own child. I disagree that this is helpful either to individual families (isn’t a primary purpose of school volunteering to learn our own children’s needs and school environment, so as to support schoolwork at home, as well as to enjoy the company of our children?) or to the schools. Schools succeed by the students’ parents, not just any parents, volunteering in and committing to the school.
But I have another proposal. Ms. Thomas implies that south-end families do not volunteer as much as north-end parents for at least three reasons: (1) cultural difference in whether the parents feel they can or should be usefully involved with a child's school (perhaps paralleling their attitude toward their own past schooling), (2) perception that "involvement" means "monetary contributions" only, which might be difficult for poorer families, and (3) parents’ working traditional hours, making volunteering in the classroom with students difficult.
The first factor might be difficult to change, the second (I argue) is a red herring, but the third seems ripe for a marketing effort aimed at all parents, including working parents and south-end parents, on how to contribute to our children’s schools in the off-hours (and how to be involved with other children alongside, since single parents, at least, don't have a built-in babysitter at home).
I happen to be a solo parent who works full time, and I volunteer at my child’s daycare in ways and at times that don’t conflict with my job. I videotape the Christmas program, paint classrooms on weekends (with my child), help plan fundraisers, locate and transport equipment, etc. My child enters a north-end kindergarten this fall and I’ve already asked the principal how I can volunteer. She had wonderful ideas: PTA attendance, coaching, Xeroxing and making poster boards, cleaning up playgrounds, after-school club leadership…
Perhaps Seattle’s Child can poll teachers, principals and active parents, compile a comprehensive list for publication in the magazine, and distribute the list (perhaps translated into various languages and with a preface about how vital parental volunteering is to school success) to all schools. Of course south-end parents love their kids and want to improve their schools; perhaps they simply don’t know how.
