Editorials
Editorials Archive
Parental involvement essential for students
Staff Writer,
08-20-2008
We’re lucky in Jeff Davis Parish that we get to write a lot of positive stories about our schools. Compared with many of our neighbors, we’ve managed to stay above the curve in test scores, graduation rates and, as of last week, ACT scores, as well.
In Sunday’s edition, we explained that the parish’s ACT scores reached their highest levels in many years, rising even as the nation’s scores dipped somewhat. Obviously, the Class of 2008 is to be commended for their work, as are the teachers who prepared them for the test.
It is, however, important to remember the role that parents play in their child’s academic career. Parental involvement can be one of the greatest predictors of a child’s success. When parents project a positive attitude about school, young children pick up on it. That involvement can come from any number of sources, but if you’re unsure how to get involved, your child’s teacher can let you know.
Thanks to the Internet, parents can also keep close tabs on their children’s work and behavior in school. The Jeff Davis Parish School Board’s Web site, http://www.jeffersondavis.org is a valuable resource. You can find the new Parent Command Center on the Web site on the left-hand side panel. You can also access it directly at http://69.63.165.10/jpweb. If you’ve never been to the Web site before, you can contact your child’s school and they’ll help you register for it. If you have been there before, your username and password is the same as it was last year.
The Parent Command Center is a parishwide feature – if your child changes schools within Jeff Davis Parish, you will still remain registered. Once you’re logged in, you can measure your own child’s performance, and you can do it from the comfort of your own home or desk without having to call the school.
We get to write a lot of positive stories about our schools here in Jeff Davis Parish. As long as parents stay involved in the child’s academic career, we can continue to do so.
Congratulations again on the recent ACT news, and good luck for the new school year.
