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The Kitchen Round Table

a thought piece from Parent.org

Issue 4.   Parents - in the trough of the knowledge wave

Welcome to The Kitchen Round Table. You have received this because you are on a database of people we consider interested in this area of thought. Unsubscription details are at the bottom. KRT is a short political thought piece from Parent.org, an organisation dedicated to giving parents a voice.

Investing in knowledge - a smart idea.

A couple of years ago we had the Knowledge Wave Conference, from which it was decreed that our economic future was going to be secured by doing everything smarter. Apparently we need to invest in universities, secondary schools, primary schools and early childhood education because higher standards are needed in all these institutes to churn out real smart workers who will give us higher levels of productivity.
It has been known for some years prior to that conference that the absolute critical years for long term intellectual development are the first two years of life. These two, the years of the highest parental involvement, were the only years the government wasn't interested in investing in. Is this irony, habit or the traditional political fear of telling parents how to do their job?

Parent education - as vital as knitting lessons.

Currently parent education has the same value as knitting lessons - it's a hobby that is funded out of the family budget after tax.  Business skills and knowledge has a very different status, because the acquisition of it is tax deductible.  Putting a similar incentive in place would send a powerful message to parents that we value their skills and it would encourage parents to keep themselves at the crest of the knowledge wave in human development and parenting methodology with the end product being a generation of children better connected with education and holding the values necessary to participate fully in society.  Government doesn't prescribe what information and skills businesses need to acquire, they simply have created an environment that demonstrably values those knowledge and skills that will make people more productive.  They can provide that same environment for parents - because it really doesn't matter what they are learning as long as they are learning, becoming curious about their children's development, and wanting to parent better.

Parents - not that scary really...

The government doesn't need to fear parents. Sending messages to parents that the knowledge associated with their vocation is of value to society is not the same as telling them how to raise kids. Offering incentives to become skilled and knowledgeable is not the same as telling parents how to raise kids.  For a fraction of the money needed to boost the quality of pre, primary, secondary and tertiary education, parents could give us everything we need to create a knowledge economy and enduring productivity gains.
What is retarding the quality of our nation's education sector is as much to do with the quality of the students entering it as the skills of the teachers and institutes providing it. If every child was school ready at age five then every classroom would be a thriving learning community, and every child in the class would have an heightened education experience. The only way we are going to make that happen is to encourage and resource our parents to bring that about.

...and the hot investment tip of the millennium

If we want a knowledge based economy we need to invest money where it will be most effective, and without doubt that place is within the group that has been persistently overlooked when it comes to skills and knowledge – parents.

The Kitchen Round Table will come to you every few weeks with some fresh thinking about social and economic issues. Enjoy and share it around.

Parent.org is a national lobby group promoting this common sense approach to building a better society. We are a-political, non religious, non-prescriptive. We simply believe that by creating an environment the encourages successful parenting New Zealand will become a better place for everyone.

Next edition - just who is the minister of parenting?

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