I put those in quotes because what is a better education? I can further expand on this question with follow up questions but then my essay would never end. I will ask one more question instead: Why can’t we, in our Cree communities offer the better education?
Instead of the exodus I see here from all the families that put education on the top of their list of important goals for their children, I want to see these same families work hard with our schools to ensure top quality education right here in our own community!
It starts with us parents actually working right now with the school and ask “what are you doing to give my child a top quality education?” and better yet follow up with “what can I do as a parent to help make this happen?”
Because the hard lesson I am constantly learning from this is that I have my role to play in this as well. I can’t leave it all up to the school. Despite me being done with my own grade/high school career, I am still learning what needs to be done for my own child to complete her career in high school. I’ll admit right here that I sometimes flake because of the exact reason I stated here. You are done with the hardships of grade/high school and you want to put that behind you. The thing to remember is that it is now your child that is going through those same hardships of school and we as parents have the responsibility to help guide them based on our own experiences.
Yesterday was a blessing in disguise dealing with a difficult person from the board. It made me realise that it’s worth sticking your neck out and speaking up about things that matter. It’s the only way of getting things done.
Allow me to add that speaking up is not the only thing that needs to be done here. It is very easy to stand there, complain and make excuses as to why you didn’t know about the things you are complaining about. Another key component to making a difference is to also be open to listen to what is offered and find a compromise in all of this. Hence the whole premise of this essay; working together.
A piece of advice to help tie this all together is that you need to remember that’s it’s ok to admit you don’t know everything and need help. NO one is perfect. Not you, not your child, not the teacher with 25 years of teaching experience and certainly not the administrators with years of experience in education! We all are constantly learning. The wise ones know this already (and I had the fortune of meeting quite a few at the CSB and JBES). The foolish ones like the lady I spoke with yesterday are afraid to admit this and instead antagonize you to avoid such an admission.
I am sticking with my community and its schools. I am making the commitment to work with the schools to ensure my kids are getting the best possible education here. That they are being properly prepared by me, the teacher and school for what’s out there after they are done here. I hope the schools and the CSB will work with me as well and with the prompt reply to my complaints about the unfortunate soul who tried to bully me, I think that they are.
Isn’t it enough that we all have to make the sacrifices to leave the comfort and security of our community for post-secondary education? Do we really have to do that for our elementary and secondary education as well?