Being a parent is the most important occupation in the world.
What the majority of people want when they plan having a child is to show the love for their significant other and get the fruit of that love in the form of their own project – a child. However, what those people forget is that having a kid comes hand in hand with many obligations.
Not only are you responsible for your kid’s actions (until a certain age), but you are also responsible for instilling moral and ethical principles, and you play a significant role in your child’s education. A recent study which examined the influence of parents’ education level on their kids’ achievement in school and later in life suggested that economic and educational capital of parents has a massive influence on kids’ subsequent success in life.
In simple words, this means that you as a parent have the responsibility to educate yourself and have enough assets to help your child during school years. Here is how you can help your child improve results in school with the help of modern technology and online resources.
Standard methods and restrictions
Traditional methods of learning imply the usage of calendars, time schedules and agendas which enlist all the homework and organise school projects that need to be done. You can show your child how to manage time (time management is crucial for learning, and the sooner your kids understand how it works, the better), and introduce some basic learning techniques, such as reading out loud, repetition, making your own notes, drawing formula charts, mind maps, making lists, etc.
Another aspect of learning is discipline, and it is closely connected with time management. Your child needs to understand that in order to learn something, it needs to be well focused. This does not imply turning the TV on or playing computer games. Those things are allowed only when the child wants to make a break (but, it would be best to go outside and rest for a while rather than spending half an hour in front of the computer screen).
Modern techniques
On the other hand, since our kids are living in the IT era, when we see the emergence of the newest gadgets every day, it is hard not to ask ourselves if our kids learn and comprehend new knowledge differently. Kids born with all kinds of tech devices see the world differently and their attention span is shorter than in older generations, which is why it is important to help them find focus and use the technology as means of learning. Here are your options.
Visit the school website – You can start your research by visiting the school website. There, you will find all the necessary information about your child’s school calendar, contact numbers of school staff, information about homework expectations, testing dates (this probably interests you the most), and it can also include information about additional resources.
Online libraries – The Internet is one of the most important factors in your kids’ lives, and the sooner you accept that, the better. Since kids only know how to misuse it, it is your role as a parent to help them out find useful resources, which they can access in online libraries, such as OpenLibrary, WorldCat, GoogleBooks, and VLib.
Online notes – Another thing you can find on the Internet is a plethora of school subject resources which can help your kid in learning, such as algebra notes, chemistry notes, foreign language notes and other kinds of subjects that come to your mind.
Wikipedia – Even though many people forget about this website, it is, in fact, very resourceful and you can rely on it being accurate in the majority of cases. The only problem
Learning apps – The expansion of smartphones and applications also made room for the development of great learning apps, such as Duolingo, a platform for learning foreign languages via smartphone (or desktop PC); online dictionaries; Google Helpouts; Udemy, etc.
MOOC – Another novelty in the world of online learning are MOOCs, that is – Massive Open Online Courses, which offer a wide variety of free courses, such as programming, astrology, philosophy, logic, teaching methodology, and the like. This platform is special because it offers space for productive learning which knows no boundaries. This practically means that you kid can learn from home, while its teacher is on the other side of the planet, which is, when you think about it, a really cool product of the Digital Age.
Remember that even though this Age is progressive, and even with all the resources the kids have at their disposal, their biggest enemy is procrastination. It is your role as a parent to control them and guide them through the learning process. Talk to them daily, help them search for additional resources, and limit their usage of the Internet as much as you can. Let not the amount of information they have at the palm of their hands be destroyed by negligence. They are your responsibility.
Shared byhttp://thinkswap.com/
