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DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

 

9A Education and School

• What did you find helpful or interesting in this section of the film?
• How did you make decisions about your children’s education and schooling?
• What are the best things about your school or educational programme?
• What are the difficulties that children can face at school? What can help you or your children to work through these difficulties?

 

9B Children and Young People with Special Education Needs and Disabilities

• What did you find helpful or interesting in this section of the film?
• What are the special challenges faced by children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities, and by their parents?
• How can individuals, schools and churches better support children and young people with special education needs and disabilities, and their parents?

 

SOME KEY IDEAS FROM THE SESSION

School is a big thing for a child! It’s a huge part of their life. It’s a big thing for parents too, and you can spend a huge amount of time worrying about what is the best school for your child, how they are getting on at school; teachers, friends, homework, exams, results – the list goes on and on.

This is not the place for detailed advice about choosing schools. But here are some simple thoughts.

A Catholic school where the faith is really valued and lived will give your child an invaluable foundation. Not just for their religious knowledge, but for their whole life. It will give them a vision of God’s love, revealed in Jesus Christ, and an experience of Christian love through the teachers, priests, and other members of the school community. It will help them to know the support and love of the Church. It will give them an ‘ethos’, a set of values, a way of looking at the world that will sustain them for the rest of their life. But there may be different reasons why, all things considered, you decide that another school would be better for your child.

And if your child has special educational needs or a disability, this can be an extra challenge. How can you get all the advice and support that you need? How can you care for yourself as well as for your child? Sometimes these needs are diagnosed, and your school is able to offer extra support. For other families, there is no formal diagnosis, and parents are often feeling unsupported or misunderstood.

Every child is a gift. How can parents best care for their children, and also for their own needs? It’s a big question!