Following children's schooling

Assiah arrived from Algeria two years ago with her husband and her three girls. The eldest, Farah, attends a school in the Toulouse region. Whilst Farah has succeeded in her first year of schooling, her mother notices that her grades have been going down for several months. Her lack of knowledge in French prevents her from helping her daughter with her homework and understanding the notes that her daughter gets her to sign in her notebook.

At the end of the term, Assiah and her husband are called into the school. With the help of a translator, they discover that their daughter almost never does her homework and has many unjustified absences on record. Very worried, Assiah would like to be more involved in the schooling of her daughter but doesn’t know how to go about it…

In this case, what can this mother do to allow her child to go through ordinary schooling? How can she call on help and find solutions?

In numerous establishments, the operation “Open the school to the parents for the success of the children” are specially targeted at foreign parents by getting them involved in the follow-up of the schooling of their children. They offer meetings, training in mastering the language and knowledge of the institution. It is also sometimes possible to participate in classes given by the schoolmaster or schoolmistress. In this way, the children can better understand the work carried out in class and better help their child at home.

Farah’s mother can also benefit from French lessons for foreigners given by numerous associations. A better understanding of the language that her daughter is learning would allow her to better follow her schooling and avoid her dropping out. It is also possible for her to get involved in the life of the school, by accompanying the class outings for example.