Education Law

Respecting our elders

While many schools around the country are off this week for spring break, and others were off last, we thought we’d share this feel-good story to kick off spring. 

Students in Baltimore, MD and 22 other cities are getting some help from a group of people that is often overlooked in education circles, mostly because they are not teachers, principals, or education experts, even though they have tons of experience to share.  These helpers are often more than 60 years old and are part of a nationwide “Experience Corps” that is giving a boost to students academically and socially.  What’s even better than providing academic help is the fact that the Corps members are helping students in many ways their classroom teachers can’t.  And the elder statesmen and stateswomen get a lot out of the program as well.  According to the article:

There has been extensive research in recent years suggesting that mental exercises such as crossword puzzles could help elderly people slow the deterioration of their brain. But Carlson said it’s possible that tutoring children might be even more effective by integrating cognitive, physical and social activity.

“How many crossword puzzles can you do before you get bored with them?” she asked. “This tutoring gets people engaged in doing what the brain is supposed to do ? the brain is a social organ.”

“The message to them is to take all their accumulated wisdom of a lifetime and give it back to help other people,” Carlson said. “They get out of bed in the morning, even when they don’t feel great, because they have a social contract with the kids at school. They know a child is waiting for them.”

So take a look, and if your city isn’t on the list of 22, think about how you can use the resources in your community to help everyone work toward bettering education.

Full post as published by BoardBuzz: NSBA's Daily Weblog on April 05, 2010 (boomark / email).