Pretoria - Parents in Gauteng will pump new life into the old adage 'you're never too old to learn' when they join the provincial Education Department's programme to help them play a more supportive role in their children's studies.
Gauteng Education MEC Barbara Creecy will on Sunday address 650 facilitators of family support workshops, which will offer parents skills to support their children's education.
The workshops, which start this weekend, will run until October 2011 in various locations throughout the province. They aim to look at the kind of support that families can provide in supervising homework, discipline, and participation in other schooling activities such as sports and drama.
Early this year, Creecy launched the family support programme in Diepsloot and made a commitment that the workshops will be run in all 1 183 underperforming primary and high schools.
Department spokesperson Charles Phahlane said families, together with educators and children, play an important role in enabling learners to leave school with the values, knowledge, skills and qualifications that will give them the best chance of success in adult life.
"The department is focusing its academic and infrastructure support on 1 183 underperforming primary and secondary schools in the province. Educators have been receiving in-service training to improve results at these schools," said Phahlane.
School principals will be able to provide more information on workshop venues. Alternatively, parents/care givers can contact 011 355 0000 or log onto www.education.gpg.gov.za for more information.
