This book was a gift from a drear friend. What's really interesting about this book is how it graphically depicts the importance of good parenting and how this alone can mean the difference between a child who succeeds and a child that does not. Schools work very hard to provide all students the opportunity to succeed academically. However, without the support of parental involvement, a child can potentially slip through the cracks as demonstrated in this story.For me, this story reaffirmed my notion that parents play a critical role in a child's education. Yes, there are certain cases in which a child may overcome insurmountable obstacles and go on to become extremely successful in both school and life without parental involvement, but generally, this is not the case. Students who are generally successful in school tend to have some type of home environment which fosters learning. In addition, they may also be surrounded by healthy positive influences.
Providing a great education to all students is critical, but equally importantly, there must be programs in place to help parents become better advocates for their children. Sadly, even if every school had such programs, I don't believe all parents would take advantage. The cycle of poverty as vividly described by Ruby Payne is a huge obstacle which stands in the road to efficacious initiatives and change.
