Education onus is on all of us

This week marks yet the beginning of a new academic year. For our children it can be a wonderful adventure or an arduous chore. The educational experience that we have in our formative years forges our perception of the value of learning. Paramount in that experience is the need for those around the student to constructively encourage their endeavours.

Winston Churchill wrote, "I am always willing to learn, however I do not always like to be taught." There are times that we in our zeal to impart wisdom that we forget the value of discovery and seek to stifle imagination. "Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world," Albert Einstein.

There is a fine line here and fortunately we as parents have our children’s educators as a resource. Yet our educators need us as well. Education in the 21st Century is a very demanding role. Resources are scarce and they are required to assume an ever-increasing load. As much as we need them they need us.

Each year with the first introductory note home, every school expresses a need for volunteers for the Home and School and the School Advisory Council. Each has a dynamic, important role in ensuring the quality of our children’s education. The fund raising by our Home and Schools goes a long way to ensuring the acquisition of sufficient resources to access much-needed enhancements.

The School Advisory Councils were created for the public to have positive input into the development of a stronger community/school relationship. You need not have a child in school to be part of these associations. All that is required is a desire to help our younger citizens become the best that they can be. At the very least, spend time interacting with your child’s teacher so that you can collaboratively nurture your child’s quest for knowledge.

Another aspect of the return to the classroom is one of security and safety. Several times a day, these buildings become a hub of activity with children excitedly entering or leaving. Often they forget that cars are large and cannot stop for them to see their best friend who is walking the other way. Motorists must be aware that the slow to 50 kilometres when children are present is not a suggestion...it is LAW.

One thoughtless push on the accelerator or a missed cue can spell tragedy. Because we live in a rural area and buses are the norm, drivers need to be aware of the clusters of young people standing at the road side are not as predictable as we would hope. It would be prudent just to stay very alert and slow down.