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THE INFLUENCE OF PARENTS ON PREPARING A CHILD
FOR SCHOOL
MSc Sonja Velickovic, College of professional studies educators, Aleksinac, Serbia E-mail: sonja_velickovic@hotmail.com
Abstract. Starting school is an important developmental step / task not only for the child but also for their parents and family in which to grow up. The accomplishment of this task expands the boundaries of family / parent and the child's functioning in social, emotional and cognitive sense. The aim of this paper is to highlight the need to educate the parents of the child going to school, which would contribute to parents with awareness and sensitivity to the nature of long-term process of entering the child's entry into school, to a child's socialization process related to school and proceeded in a favorable direction. The author emphasizes the importance of having a separate program prepares parents for the child starting school, as part of the annual program of preschools / schools that educators / teachers should realize and thus improve their educational work with one hand, while on the other hand its value will be reported in a balanced relation between child-school-family, but also to avert the potential emotional difficulties, or, the child's dysfunctional behavior. Participation of professional services and school teachers / teachers in the implementation of such programs can enhance compliance of educational values that are placed in front of the child in the family and in the school environment.
Keywords: Parent, Child, Program prepares parents for the child starting school.
1. INTRODUCTION
Starting in first grade is a very important event in childhood and represents a big change for both parents and children. It involves the willingness of the child to accept new commitments, but also a parent's willingness to put in it to support a proper way. Each transition / transition in the life cycle of the family, including the child's enrollment in school, the family is faced with the emergence of numerous changes of various types (practical,
Corresponding Author
MSc Sonja Velickovic, College of professional studies
educators, Aleksinac, Serbia
E-mail: sonja_velickovic@hotmail.com
Received: November, 11.2014.
Accepted: November, 25.2014.
Review Articles UDK 37.018.26 159.923.5-053.4
emotional and social aspects of changes), or "call" family members to leave the old and build the new scheme of behavior, relationships and functioning to adapt to the new situation. Some of these changes are immediately visible (use a different time, a different calendar of holidays and travel, different daily routines, expanding framework of social functioning) (Polovina, 2009). Although changes are inevitable, the question of its nature and scope will depend heavily on the established forms and styles of family functioning, as well as the attitude towards change.
Important considerations foundations that are built-in the preschool age have a sense of responsibility, a sense of security and independence in children. These properties are developed primarily through contact between parents and children in the family. Parents must hand over the child to ask the different requirements and obligations in accordance with their age, and it will also be the main helpers in the child's education. However, many parents in order to prepare children for school, giving priority to special preparation for the school (which usually boils down to learning some of the content of the curriculum for first grade, making sure it unprofessional and not systematic. In order to prepare the child for schoolwork, most parents intensively encourage children to behavior rules and relations to others, suggest their proper expression and positive communication, direct them to the letter recognition, writing and arithmetic. In cases that do rapid, irregular and untimely as pointed out by Amela Mesic: "can cause the opposite effect, and the child could have some difficulties in the early school days" (Mesic:2013:114). The preparation of the child for school violence should primarily be preparing for its gradual independence. in the family, the child acquires basic hygiene, cultural and working patterns of which depends mostly on how to adapt to school mode. in addition to the previous preparation, attention
should be paid to monitoring and has been in compliance with the school schedule, especially in the initial period of schooling. On the other hand, inadequate preparation can make the school experience is very stressful for the child and lead to various difficulties in adapting, monitoring instruction, motivation and attitude toward learning, and consequently to create a bad image of yourself. Therefore, as stated Radenko Krulj and Zvezdan Arsic "parental involvement in various forms of educational activities and training them for specific help children through joint activities and creative workshops can make a significant contribution in this direction" (Krulj and Arsic 2012: 27).
2. SIGNIFICANT RESEARCH
TO PREPARE PARENTS FOR THE CHILD STARTING SCHOOL
The influence of parents on preparing a child for school is a concept that has not been sufficiently and adequately investigated and it is in the focus of interest to both practitioners and research scholars (Gasic at all, 2008; Klemenovic, 2009; Polovina, 2009; Colic and Nisevic, 2011). In dealing with this problem are in their work dilemmas that practice by teachers and professional teams encountered when developing cooperation with parents within preparing children for school. Although the good cooperation with the family as one of the fundamental principles in educational work with children in the preschool age, recent research conducted on the occasion of the introduction and realization Preparatory Preschool Program (Gasic at all, 2008), which was attended by 192 teachers and 725 parents indicate that this segment should be paid more attention. The results of this research indicate that most parents prepare "understands very closely and is tantamount to literacy. As a leading joint activities in the family, most of people singled out: picture books with children and reading books (71.58%); helping children learn to write (71.17%); and reading (60%); providing assistance with learning a foreign language (22%), learning colors and basic mathematical concepts (4.4%). According to the results of the research, the general picture of the preparations in the family circle of children for the upcoming school activities may be regarded as unprofessional, highly specialized and wholly inconsistent with the
developmental needs of children.
The author of the article "Cooperation preschools with families in preparing children for school" (Klemenovic, 2009: 398-411), particular attention is paid to the promotion of cooperation with parents and provides guidelines for improving collaborative relations and cooperation strategy designing kindergarten with his family in this preparation of children for the school. Among other things, in this paper, and it demonstrates that the biggest problem in preparing children for school are due to different parents expectations mainly concern the literacy of children.
Based on the findings of researchers we can conclude that most parents focused on literacy for children instead of focusing on general psycho-physical preparation, motivating children to learn and improving communication skills, introduction to the new circumstances of school life, play together and socialize that enhance their cognitive abilities, but also contribute to strengthening mutual trust and feelings of security. In this respect, Kamenov says: "Parents are in most cases interested in the success of their children in school, but their contribution in this regard is not adequate, and even the wrong, despite good intentions. Hence, one of the activities of teachers in preparing children for school, should be directed to the family "(Kamenov, 1997: 192).
Stressed the great need for a separate program prepares parents for the child starting school, as part of the annual work program of preschools / schools that educators should realize, and thus improve their educational work. Specific objectives of the program related to the child starting school would be: child support adapting to the school environment and building a positive image of yourself as a learner; improvement of parents in the process of designing and building a parenting role; synchronize the operation of adults (parents and teachers / teachers) and establish a constructive partnership in supporting their child's takeover of the city in the way of education and learning. Addressing the problem of preparing parents for the child starting school prof. dr. Nada Polovina highlights the need for (psycho) educational programs aimed at parents whose value is in the development of various segments of the parental role, as well as the necessary skills and knowledge that have been confirmed many times. However, as pointed out by Polovina: "work to prepare parents for the child starting school as a subject, according to
available data, is not represented in such programs" (Polovina, 2009: 93). We can say that in practice some schools and preschool institutions in order to raise awareness of teaching parents to prepare children for first grade, but with a note that this job does not work sufficiently planned and systematic. Currently, the development of pedagogical culture of parents is done ad hoc, from today to tomorrow. The annual program are not planned programs with them on the "long run", whereby special attention should give educators and teachers, particularly professional services with the aim of improving cooperation with parents would as a key link in the quality of preparing children for school. These programs, which could help to parents with awareness and sensitivity to the nature of long-term processes that enter the child's entry into school, a decision that will have to make related to the child and their own functioning, and make necessary changes in the organization of everyday functioning to a child's socialization process related to school and place it in a positive direction. In this regard it is important to recall the results of research (Redding, 2005, after allegations Polovina, 2009), indicating that some parental behaviors encourage a child's positive school experience and child development associated with the school. Tyler and colleagues, dealing with the influence of parents on children's readiness for school developed the so-called concept of "working model of parents tied to the school," which includes a combination of memories of parents on their own experience of school (creating generalized expectations) and the attitudes, values and beliefs related to the child's learning and development in the school environment. Actually it is a concept, trying to capture and show the importance of the personal aspects of the functioning of parents during the child's education, as well as to point out the ways in which these different aspects affect a child's academic and overall development. Tylor and associates, in addition to the aforementioned concept of shaping the behavior of parents towards the child in the segment relating to the child's development to schools and talk about the relationship between the parents according to the Institution, the school and to their knowledge (Tyler et al., 2004, following allegations Polovina, 2009).
By integrating the results of numerous studies Redding (Redding, 2005), has developed a different concept of parental behavior toward the child and make necessary changes in the organization of everyday functioning to
a child's socialization process related to school and curling in a favorable direction. It is the concept of family curriculum, or how Reding points out, "a kind of extension of the plan, structural and organizational patterns and the value aspect of family functioning, the implementation of which contributes to the child's success in school." (Redding, 2005; according Polovina, 2009: 98). The essence of this multiplier concept is parental commitment and involvement in activities that promote the child's learning, and takes place in the context of everyday family life in the home environment. In particular, it is about creating habits related to learning and creating an environment that highlights and evaluates the acquisition of knowledge. At this age, it is desirable to combine educational strategies that, on the one hand, based on the teaching of a child by an adult, but he on the other hand, it allow for spontaneous choice of activities in a carefully prepared learning environment that includes a supportive adult (Sharp, 2002; according Polovina, 2009).
Taking into account that, as a form of joint activities between parents and children that contribute to the preparation for school can be extracted so-called dialogic reading. The procedure is not focused only on reading the text in a picture book by an adult already includes discussion, questions and answers about what is read, it is seen from the figure, associated with the experience of the child from the real life. I can connect and pictures of objects with their names, to compare differences in the size of the words and the size of objects, recognize similar words, choose "kind words" and come up with a number of other "games" which, at first driven by adults leaving time growing child initiative, but and demonstrating a willingness to support the interest of the child for a new approach or theme. (Bowman et al, 2000: 196-200).
Based on the above conclusion about the need for a special program prepares parents for the child starting school, the question arises what is it, that, school / nursery can do to support and encourage parents to be more constructive in what way deal with the changes that carries the child starting school? How to organize cooperation between pre-school and parents in order to meet the physical, socio-emotional and functional preparedness for school targeting each child involved in the Preparatory pre-school program? These issues are of particular importance given the well known and accepted rule "that good (well prepared) start the basis for the successful development
of the whole process that follows." (Polovina, 2009: 93).
3. CONCLUSION
Bearing in mind the various arguments that derive from the theory and practice of preschool education, we give some recommendations for the development of cooperation with parents whose children attend the first class. The current practice in preschools that boils down to organizing activities for parents of children who attend a preparatory preschool program (PTA meetings devoted to preparing for school / meetings at the group level for exchange of information about the activities carried out with the kids, information for parents on notice panel, individual interviews ...), it is possible to complement and better set up if teachers and educators act as a team. Good cooperation with parents, primarily implies that educators and experts, through various forms of individual and group contacts, contribute to the improvement of pedagogical culture of parents and provide facilities for high-quality physical, socioemotional and functional readiness of children for school. In order to improve parental skills to prepare children for starting school, expert contributor should develop a special program for preparing parents for the child starting school (preschool activities designed to make working at home with the children contributed to their readiness for school). Lack of preparation programs for parents for the child starting school, generally speaking, may reflect a discontinuity institutional links with parents in the transition from pre-school institution to institution. In this sense, as pointed out by one critically important period in the functioning of the family and the child, very important for the functioning in the school environment, it remains to "float" in the institutional vacuum, and the potential that the situation of the child's enrollment in school has to initiate cooperation and work with parents remains unused.
The overall objective of each training parents, including those for child starting school, is to facilitate and promote the overall development of the child, or to provide experiences that promote child development. Specific objectives of the program related to the child starting school would be: child support adapting to the school environment and building a positive image of yourself as a learner; empowerment of parents in the process (educational course directed) designing
and building a parenting role; synchronize the operation of adults (parents and teachers / teachers) and establish a constructive partnership in supporting their child's takeover of the city in the way of education and learning. Although this preventive program aimed at parents, his value will be expressed in a balanced relation between child-school-family, but also to avert the potential emotional difficulties or, perhaps, the child's dysfunctional behavior.
Conflict of interests
Authors declare no conflict of interest.
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