Hi MindSwitchers,

This past few weeks I have been thinking about the role of us, parents, in our kid's education. This role looks different from parent to parent, but one thing I did realize was I want to be an EduParent. Let's dive into what this means!

“Education Is What Remains After You Have Forgotten Everything You Learned In School”- Albert Einstein ​

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Pandemic hit disrupting many aspects of life. A global reset happened in education. Homes turned into schools and schools turned into desolated deserts. Every educator became a “first year” distance learning educator.

The way education was delivered changed to take on the form of how work was responding to the pandemic. Remote. Most teachers had to relearn how to teach. Screens became the new whiteboards. Zoom rooms became the new classroom. But how would a five year old learn to read on screen? Or a teenager learning advanced chemistry on zoom?

At that time, I didn’t want a pandemic to hit the brakes on my kid’s education. Having been a teacher, I innocently unboxed every teacher supply that remained in my home. I put everything up on the walls: the Alphabet, the calendar, and the morning meeting visuals. I wanted my kids to feel a bit of normality in their life.

But the Pandemic also disrupted parenting. Parents, who once delegated the responsibility of “education” to schools, became active participants in the process. We became front line responders in a tug of war between school and home:

Who is responsible for our kids' education?

Parents? Educators? There are different points of views.

But EduParents are the ones who truly have their “skin in the game.”

Having been an educator and now a parent, I coined the term EduParent. This new concept arose from my desire to maintain my kid’s quality education at home during the pandemic, but knowing that my priority was to be their parent. My mind turned to education, but my parenting heart remained.

I defined this term as:

EduParent: (n) Parents who teach their children how to respond to emerging life situations and technologies by laying foundations of curiosity, critical thinking, planning, research, and learning.

EduParents research new education methods to support the life-long education for their children.

EduParenting: (v) Creating the conditions for your kids to learn from practice to theory.

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EduParents know that value lies in reversing the traditional order of learning. In schools, learning usually starts with books and turns into practice. But there is much value in starting with practice. It is in the practice that you learn theory and skills, making learning more efficient.

Alexandra Zamora @AnaAlexandraZ 🔥 When kids start their learning in the practice, they learn both theory and how to apply it. Efficient learning. twitter.com/shl/status/145… Sahil @shl The best way to learn theory is practice. November 8th 2021 0 Retweets 5 Likes

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Homes shouldn’t be schoolified. But the magic lies in creating the conditions for the learning process to start from practice. Kids can develop math through grocery shopping, science concepts through gardening, or writing skills through journal writing.

Learning often happens outside of school when kids have the freedom to try out new things, create, explore, and make mistakes without feeling judged. When parents become EduParents, they lay the foundations for a life-long relationship of curiosity and reflection.

EduParenting your kids is all about getting to know them to guide them through their learning. EduParents get to understand the gaps in their kid’s learning to search for options, learn about new methods of education, and strengthen their kids' education.

Schools in my country reopened to in person mode after a year of running a distance learning program. Our world was returning back to “normal,” but my EduParenting mind remained, and it wasn’t going anywhere.

What are your thoughts on who is responsible for a kid's education?

Ready to join us, EduParents!

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Until next week!

Alexandra
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Follow me on my social media adventures as education evolves!