Two schools are inviting parents of students of pre-primary classes once a month to introduce them to the teaching methods followed by the institutions.
Parents often tend to stress how much a two or three-year-old can read or write, but are seldom keen to understand the importance of learning daily activities.
In one school, parents are engaged in activities with their children that are introducing them to ideas that can be replicated at home, instead of making a YouTube video to babysit their children.
Teachers also sense a false sense of pride among parents if their child picks up an accent from a video.
Mahadevi Birla World Academy and BD Memorial are inviting parents once a month to attend these sessions with teachers.
At BD Memorial, parents are encouraged to do activities like solving puzzles or reading with their children.
Teachers at Mahadevi Birla World Academy have been telling parents that it is not enough for a child to read or write well. They also need to be confident and independent, too.
Parents should ask the child to stack up their toys or give them some clay to make a figure out of it, instead of opening a video for them.
“The parents and the teachers have to be on the same page and parents need to be aware of today’s learning system, which does not rest on reading and writing alone, but also on developing critical thinking skills,” said Anjana Saha, principal, Mahadevi Birla World Academy.
“Parents cannot keep the phone away from their children since they are born in an age of devices. We tell parents to limit the screen time of the children. When we introduce them to simple activities, they get an idea of what they can do at home with them,” said Suman Sood, director, BD Memorial.
Showing a YouTube video to children is permissible, but parents need to monitor what and how the children are watching, said teachers.
“We, too, show them videos, but we pause… and explain (the content) to the children. We ask them questions and make it an interactive session,” said Daisy Chhajer, a pre-primary teacher at Mahadevi Birla World Academy.
Chhajer said that at home parents usually switch on the TV while the child eats. Parents are happy to believe that their child is picking up language and accent.
“There is no pride in picking up an accent which is not yours,” said a teacher.
Once they get introduced to the activities, parents will realise how much their child is learning. Else, they would think that their child is merely playing.
“Play is not merely play but work for the child. For example, tracing letters on sandpaper, solving puzzles or even pouring a liquid or knowing how to zip,” said Sood.