KANSAS CITY, Mo. — As many students across the Kansas City area enter a third week of online classes, parents at North Kansas City Schools are getting some extra help from the district.
North Kansas City Schools launched "Parent University" three weeks ago in an effort to help families navigate the current reality, which can be a chore for parents and students with schools closed during the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Teachers go to school for years to be trained on strategies and techniques and theories behind education, and families don't have that kind of training," Teaching and Learning Coach Britany Harris said. "So I think just being able to provide them little bits of information and strategies that they can try at home, it's helping them to feel more successful."
More than 230 families have joined in on the conversations so far.
There are a variety of sessions families can choose from. Sessions last 30 minutes and are held on Mondays and Thursdays and will be held through May.
Some topics include: Post-secondary planning, partnering with your student during e-learning, tips and tools for building resilience, and a new one this week, called "Fostering Independence."
"I think a lot of parents are finding that their student wants their parent there all the time saying help me, help me I don't know what to do," Harris said. "Well, in the classroom, the teacher's not always there right next to the student, so it's helping the parent to feel empowered in other ways without sitting right next to them."
Tips teachers use regularly in their classrooms, are also shared. Harris said they will hopefully help parents at home. Some of the tips are helping students work towards a positive goal and also giving students limited choice, but still giving them that sense of autonomy.
"We do that a lot as teachers where it's something where as a teacher, I'm okay with either option, but it lets the student feel empowered to where they have more of a say and more of a control in their day ," Harris said.
The live sessions are only available for North Kansas City Schools families. However, after it's recorded, those videos are posted online for any families to view, if they too have questions or concerns with their child.
Sessions are decided based on common questions parents have for teachers or what educational leaders feel would be beneficial sessions for a large audience. Some sessions are repeated if they're fairly popular with families.
