This week we focus on the role of parents as part of our overall philosophy of education and practice. You can follow this link to the full document which is on our website:  Link: PoEP

The Christian Scriptures teach us that God places children in families as a means to nurture and grow them. Parents are in fact given priority in Scripture as those who have responsibility for teaching their children and helping them to grow to maturity in accordance with God’s design.

Schools are a late development in human history.  They came about largely due to the growing specialisation in societies that placed the scope of learning required by children beyond the ability of most parents.  A Christian school in particular seeks to work as a partner with the parents (and preferably, also the Church) in the education of a child.  It remains the prime responsibility of a parent to choose a school wisely and then to work with the school in the education of their child.

Parents should not abdicate their responsibility but fulfill it as best they can, using the resources of the school to support them.  Any partnership like this is bound to involve some differences of opinion at times as to what is best for the child.  Mutual respect for each other’s roles and a commitment to working together to find a positive solution, a good dose of humility and a willingness to try new things can all lead to a successful partnership.

The school, through its teachers and staff, commits to its role to provide a service in the development of the learner and seeks to work co-operatively with parents to see this goal accomplished.’

We live in an increasingly individualised society that tells us we should put our interests first and seek our "rights" above the needs or concerns of others.  I am sure we have all experienced hurt as others seek to push their interests over ours and none of us find this pleasant.  It forces us to become aggressive ourselves in standing our ground and for many of us, this is not our natural or a comfortable stance to take.

At GPCC we are looking to teach students a different way.  This is a way of life that seeks first, to please and honour God in all we do and then to serve others before ourselves.  Sometimes this means we get the bad end of the deal, but usually this approach sees us finding a way to reconciliation and agreement.

In working with the school, I encourage you to take this approach. ,From time to time you will need to raise a difficult issue with us.  We are working to respond to that, not with defensiveness but with an open ear and heart to fix anything we have done wrong and to find a good way forward. This is what constitutes a strong working partnership between home and school.

Phillip Nash

Principal