Are parents finding their range?

THE EDITOR, Sir:

YOUR EDITORIAL of January 4 made no mention of parents' responsibility to the performance of students, yet placing the poor performance almost entirely on the backs of teachers. This seems unreasonable! Even the Jamaica Teachers' Association President Nadine Molloy, perhaps not wanting anymore flak, chose to use the fancy term 'stakeholders'. She missed an opportunity to send an important and direct New Year's message to all parents!

Does the ministry and school system know and appreciate the factors which have an impact on the performance of students entering high school? An often overlooked important area, but less highlighted, is parental diligence. Simply put, if parents throw up their hands when the student starts high school - as if to say "my child has arrived" - then it is unlikely that even Confucius, Einstein or the late great Jamaican teacher, Ms Joyce Baxter, could make much improvement in their progress if these studens are barely average, waste time and 'warm the bench'. Indeed, some students do make good teachers look lazy and incompetent and average ones, even worse!

There are so many distractions: the ubiquitous cellphone, iPod, iPad, BlackBerry, Facebook, Twitter, and the usual TV but now with a huge listing - all competing for the student's time. They all encourage long frivolous talk and texting at the expense of sufficient time to review and understand the day's teaching. Teachers don't live with the students and, therefore, it is the paramount duty of parents/ guardian to ensure that the student put in the time to, at least, keep up with the matter. Parents in my era - and many only passed by the high-school gate, and so could hardly help with homework - knew that learning and education was key; they instilled that as our first duty on the path to becoming responsible law-abiding citizens. If parents neglect this important aspect of their paternity, then the ministry must step up - hardly the teachers, whose main function is to teach students who are predisposed to learn and achieve!

substandard nutrition

Another factor that may be pervasive in Jamaica is the accumulative effect of substandard nutrition from early childhood. It "gets into the brain and interferes with achievement", according to Dr Gary Evans of Cornell University, writing in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences in 2009. Poverty affects a child's memory and the learning potential. Students' nutritional needs must be adequately met to maximise learning.

So, regardless of all the improvements in the other aspects of the school system, by neglecting to deal with these aforementioned areas, we are "just wasting powder pon blackbird".

I am, etc.,

Norman Lee

namronlee@rogers.com