This counts as a base hit for the parenting education team, I think! I got a letter in the Boston Globe Ideas section today June 23, 2013 Ideas section, p. K6 OpinionExtra / Sunday Forum. The link: http://b.globe.com/123GOTv and the text:
In discussing the problem of gang violence (Joan Vennochi, June 20, Op-Ed “Boston’s Gang Wars, 2013” http://b.globe.com/120sCe9) it seems that no one wants to say the p-word: parents. Vennochi quotes Gov. Patrick’s shoulder-shrug of a comment on the “business about rebuilding community and rebuilding family” but she concludes only that “troubled schools turn out troubled kids.”
It is the other way around: troubled schools are filled with troubled kids and even the best schools in the wealthiest communities have their share of kids with problems. Everyone acknowledges that parenting is the most challenging job any of us take on, no matter where we happen to be on the socio-economic ladder.
While I do not discount the effects of poverty and the value of social-emotional learning for children, I have to ask: When will we recognize that parenting support and education should be made universally available and accessible to all adults raising children? [end of letter appearing in the Globe]
My postscripts, here only:
- Who’s up next! We need more advocates to speak from and write on parents’ and parenting educators’ perspectives.
- Sad to say, the Globe editors left off the line after “Founder, Parents Forum” where I identified myself as a member of “SAM” SEL4MASS / Social Emotional Learning Alliance for Massachusetts: http://www.SEL4MASS.org . With Rachael Thames, Parents Forum board secretary, I presented our mini-session “How To Tell Somebody Something They’d Rather Not Hear” at SAM’s sold-out conference June 12 in Wellesley, Mass.
I urge readers in the Bay State to join “SAM” the Social Emotional Learning Alliance for Massachusetts — it is free — and those of you in other states, look for a similar organization, or start one, in your area, why not? - The letter was titled “In face of violence, where are parents?” — I would rather that have been “…where is parenting education?”