Launched in Jan 2024, a signature series of workshops designed to provide parents valuable learning opportunities to support their child’s educational journey. Through these workshops, parents gain insights into the teaching and learning philosophy of GESS while learning valuable techniques and strategies used to support their child’s development. We chat with Chairperson of GESS Parents’ Committee Maxim Timchenko on what he feels this initiative brings for our GESS families.
Hi Maxim, the GESS Parent Academy has been in action for a few months now. Could you share with us how the collaboration between GESS and parents came about, bringing this Academy to fruition?
I wish I could take all the credit for this, but the original idea was the brainchild of Jason Hoppner – our ‘new’ (at the time) Director of Operations and Customer Experience. About the same time last year, he invited me for a meeting and pitched an idea of taking existing school events for parents to the next level. I took it back to the Parents’ Committee and with everyone quickly onboard, we rolled up our sleeves and got to work.
We know the best results are achieved by students when their teachers are working in close cooperation with parents to create a fertile environment for growth and development. So, the main idea behind the GESS Parent Academy (cheekily abbreviated as GPA, no pun intended) is to educate and empower parents to support their children’s school journey, as well as growing ourselves as adults. A healthy family starts with happy and healthy parents. So physical and emotional health of parents are among the top priorities on our agenda as well.
It took us several months working in close cooperation with the school to figure out the framework of how GPA will work, identify potential topics and speakers, and basically start our trial workshops after the Christmas holidays. Since then, we have had a number of successful events and this year, we plan to grow GPA even more.
Families were guided through the various stages of moving and offered practical tips to ease the transition process.
We know there has been a wide variety of topics organised for parents, and more to come. How are these topics determined?
Even before GPA came into existence, GESS has been organising useful and engaging talks and workshops for parents. With GPA, we had to take it to the next level – expanding the reach and frequency of the events, as well as topics covered. So, picking topics which will interest and attract parents is of paramount importance.
We started off performing a comprehensive review of all topics done in the past, to identify which ones are of merit to re-run in GPA. Then, we worked on building the programme to cover additional topics which would be both popular and useful. We always try to make sure there is a healthy mix of topics relevant to individual school sections (like how to deal with your toddlers’ emotions or supporting your teenagers) as well as others relevant to all parents (like healthy lifestyle or how to tackle use of devices by children).
Also, we consulted with the GESS parent community to gather ideas on what topics they would like to see. We even did a call-out for parents with particular skills and knowhow, which they may be willing to share with the community, to come forward and be a presenter or speaker in our GPA.
What are some general sentiments of parents towards this series of talks and workshops so far?
The feedback that I have heard so far has been very positive. I personally attended quite a number of the events myself and enjoyed them all – not saying this because I am the Chairperson!
Do you suggest any areas of enhancements, or topics that parents have expressed an interest to learn about from this series?
The topics which are always in demand include smart and responsible use of devices, communicating with teenagers, preventing bullying as well as how to help students reach their full potential. If there is anything we can enhance further, it will probably be what we are considering – having suitable sessions recorded and accessible by a larger audience of parents, as well as availing notes and materials for interested parents who may not be able to attend some sessions.
What are the avenues through which GESS parents can give feedback about this programme?
Parents can pass their feedback about the events they have attended, give ideas for new events and offer to volunteer to hold an event or workshop in their specialised area by submitting an online form.
A gentle reminder that positive feedback is just as important as suggestions for improvements – so we can concentrate our efforts on things that work best while working on items that can be executed differently!
And for parents, please look out for the next talk or workshop – information is always made available on our Parent Portal!
Also, from Haja Maricar, Head of Events at GESS:
“The GESS Parent Academy workshops allow us to tap into the expertise within the school community to identify content specialists to share insightful and helpful guidance on various topics relevant to parenting in today’s complex world. These workshops foster a collaborative school community while empowering parents with valuable insights and strengthening their engagement in their children’s learning journey. We rely on volunteers from the GESS community, including teaches and parents to share their knowledge and experience. If you are interested in conducting a workshop, fill up our online form (above) or email events@gess.edu.sg and tell us about your qualifications and your suggested workshop topic.”
