I, along with 880,000 other Detroiters regularly lament the fact that the state of education in Detroit is dire. Certainly there are a number of contributing factors not the least of which is parental apathy. But Wayne County prosecutor Kym Worthy’s controversial proposal to jail parents who neglect to attend parent teacher conferences is over
zealous and borders on lunacy. Prosecutor Worthy assumes evidence not in fact.
“Some parents or guardians never set foot in a school. I would like to look at this as an incentive to encourage those responsible to take an active interest in their children’s education. The thrust of my proposal is not to lock parents or guardian[s] up; that would be done only as a last resort,” Worthy said in statement.
First, parents who don’t attend parent teacher conferences aren’t necessarily negligent. The truth is some of the most doting parents miss parent teacher conferences. Reasons range from being dog tired at the end of the day to scheduling conflicts. While schools work to accommodate parents and reschedule conferences, there are times when it just isn’t feasible for either the parent or the teacher. But many of those same parents are though at home helping with homework and seeing to it that they provide loving stable homes to foster their children and young charges.
I found myself, after moving to Georgia from Detroit to enroll my teenage daughter in a better school system, facing a similar dilemma. While I made it a point to attend one-on-one parent teacher conferences, and even though my job afforded me the time off work to do it, it was at times a Herculean effort. My daughter’s school was 30 miles from my job and was not accessible by bus. I did not have reliable transportation at the time, and although I even set out on foot walking along the interstate and catching a ride to as close as I could get to walk the rest of the distance to the school — it was more than a notion. And that from a dedicated parent.
Secondly, the assumption that parents’ and guardians’ schedules permit them to attend. While there are a number of fortunate working parents who are able to leave work to attend to school matters, there are an equal number — if not more — of those who don’t have the luxury. And for those who are not working, there are a plethora of pressing issues that may prohibit their participation, namely the struggle of getting from one day to the next with some semblance of sanity. How they accomplish this feat, especially when there are multiple children in the home and little hope on the horizon, is beyond me.
Thirdly, and of greatest concern — mandating that negligent parents attend school conferences will enhance their parenting. Sure getting parents to the conference is an accomplishment in and of itself, but what happens after that. Do they suddenly take a real interest in and a more active role in their children’s education. Hardly. They may be made aware of their child’s in-school progress, but for parents who are negligent or distracted by larger more looming issues like drug and alcohol addiction there is no quick fix. I’m not so sure that a crack addicted parent at the parent teacher conference is a good thing.
Finally, in the event that a parent is jailed for failure to make these school functions, what in the hell happens to the child who is already plagued and suffering at too young an age with real world problems? Imagine the damage that locking up Mom or Dad would do.
Worthy’s proposal if passed will only serve to burden an already overburdened and overwrought population, and could potentially harm the children it is designed to assist. –roz edward
