To the Editor:
We wholeheartedly agree that the teaching profession and our children will be best served if teachers are as diverse in race, ethnicity, and culture as the general population.
And we support an affordable credential process, higher pay, and better working conditions so that teacher-credentialing programs and school districts can recruit the best of our young people to the field of education.
In public schools, teachers of all races and ethnicities must be equipped to make connections with their students across inevitable racial, ethnic, linguistic, and cultural differences.
One simple and inexpensive way to do this is by engaging families through home-visit programs that train school teachers and staff members to deepen understanding and trust between communities and their schools.
Studies show that, with home visits, teachers can differentiate their instruction, and academic test scores improve. Student attendance and behavior improve. And families become more involved with their children’s education. All because school staff and families replace their assumptions about each other with connections to each other.
Across the nation, we are far from achieving the diversity we need in the teaching profession. Today’s teachers need the tools to connect to their students and families. Home visits are proven to build relationships no matter the differences between school and home, because the success and well-being of the student is something everyone can agree on.
Carrie Rose
Executive Director
The Parent Teacher Home Visit Project
Sacramento, Calif.
