Families

By TIM MCDONALD
Local Columnist
New Albany Tribune

— “Education is an ornament in prosperity and a refuge in adversity.” — Aristotle

• • •Last week, Suzette Wright wrote an excellent column regarding a longitudinal study which supported the benefits of early childhood education. It supported what educators have known for years, which is that the first three years of a child’s life are the most crucial for success.

The benefits of a nurturing environment in those first three years when a child is read to and is supported in learning new words, identification of objects and colors support a growing vocabulary. A parent must make a commitment to that developing young mind and it must remain the first priority until that child reaches adulthood. Of course there are situations that include divorced parents, single mothers, and other reasons that leave only one parent in the home. This is where that one parent must create and develop a support system that assures learning in those first critical years.

My mother, who is suffering with Alzheimer’s, made sure that she created such an environment for my sister and me. After my parents were divorced, with great humility, she moved back home with her parents who gladly took us all in and helped raise my sister and I. My mother and I have had our ups and downs over the years (don’t get me started about her throwing out my baseball card collection), but she gave my sister and me such a gift of devotion and self-sacrifice that I can never repay. That gift was her humility of living at home and my grandparents always there when we came home from school.

It was my mother sacrificing her personal life, effectively placing it on hold and not even dating for another seven years. Her life was dedicated to giving us the best possible environment she could to make sure we could succeed I life. She worked hard and made sure that we took golf, tennis, and swimming lessons when we were off from school in the summer. She made sure that we were in the library’s summer reading program.

My mother even quizzed us on current events and historical figures. She made us watch the news in the evening and encouraged us to ask questions. We were her priority. While my father was rarely heard from, my mother and grandparents made sure lessons were completed and checked.

My mother realizes that I am working on a doctorate degree, but has to be reminded every time that I visit her. I could not have attempted it had it not been for her devotion.

As part of my doctoral work, I was interviewing various leaders in education, consulting, and public life. There were five individuals whom I interviewed and when speaking about education all voiced the same concern. How do we get families to take education more seriously?It is a challenging problem in a day and age when interest in self seems to take precedence over sacrifice. There is only so much that educators can do in the limited time that they are with students. Educators cannot motivate, and inspire without solid support on the home front.

Those critical three years are becoming more and more critical as we are be challenged by the two fastest growing middle classes in the world, China and India. We as a society cannot afford to lose pace in education. More attention needs to be given to those young lives in early childhood. Support must be given to those young parents who find themselves for whatever reason, without a support network or the skills to create one.

For the last few months, our daughter, son-in-law and granddaughter have been living with us while they finish building a new home. At just under two years old it is amazing how much she wants to learn and how interested she is in having books read to her. I think how fortunate she is to have two parents who care so much about her to spend time reading. We as grandparents enjoy reading to her and hearing her learn new words almost hourly.

Bravo to Suzette Wright for illuminating the Hart and Risley study. In this election year, I urge our congressional candidates to speak about programs to help young parents devote quality time to their children. The only thing at stake is our economic future.

Tim McDonald is a local educator and president of the Institute for Global Studies. He is also pursuing a doctorate in organizational leadership. He can be reached at tmcdonald@globalstudies.us or www.globalstudies.us

Comment: I go through hundreds of stories every week choosing only the ones I think readers would enjoy. I bypass stories on abuse, accidents, and stories about failure. When working with children it's not the failures that should be focused on, but the successes, the things that bring a person up.

What I liked best about this column is the idea of families taking their places as the primary educators. When children come to the Garden School from families who shirk that first duty to educate, it's evident. Thinking it's someone else's chore is the first mistake. Taking a child to a place where the care providers are not educated is the second. What investment in education is there when a so called teacher has no interest in teaching?