Parenting Unit Teaches Students How to be Caregivers
While the ParentABLE On-Demand is available for parents and caregivers to learn better parenting skills and tips, did you know Illinois House Bill 4442 was signed into law in 2018 and require public high schools to include a unit on parenting education?
Topics covered – which can be taught as part of health class, consumer education, family and consumer science (formerly known as home economics) and other courses – include family structure, function, and management, prevention of child abuse, physical, emotional and social aspects of family relationships, childbirth and childcare and parenting skill development. The instruction is a prerequisite for receiving a high school diploma.
According to Kate Mallory of the Regional Office of Education #26, teachers can also use the ParentABLE curriculum as part of the unit. A recent pilot of 4,500 students throughout Illinois used the ParentABLE course. Currently, schools in nearly 40 Illinois counties, including McDonough, are using the Parent-ABLE curriculum to fulfill HB 4442 requirements.
By Darcie Shinberger
There may not be a manual for how to be a parent, but there is a free, self-guided online parenting program through the Regional Office of Education #26.
ParenTEACH, which created the three-hour Parent-Able On-Demand course, is offering the course free of charge throughout the state due to funding provided by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE). According to Kate Mallory, director of Social-Emotional Learning and Support-ROE26, who is a strong advocate of the online program, she reached out to ParenTEACH Institute to receive a link for the free course for parents and caregivers in the ROE26 service area so she could track who was taking the course within the region. The course can be completed in more than one sitting, and upon completion, participants receive a certificate.
'I've taken this course myself to learn more, I've taken this to teachers in our service regions and I've worked with parents here as they are navigating the course. I can't say enough about it. Most parents and caregivers want to raise children who feel safe, loved and supported, but sometimes unintentional, harmful patterns sneak into family life without us even realizing it,' she shared. 'That's why the Regional Office of Education #26 is thrilled to share this incredible opportunity for families across our region. The ParentABLE On-Demand course transforms the way we think about parenting and caregiving.'
Parents, guardians and caregivers can register using the free link available at tinyurl.com/ROE26Parent-ABLE. Since launching in July 2024, more than 40 local parents and caregivers have completed the course and walked away with new tools.
ParentABLE On-Demand is designed to provide practical strategies that parents/ guardians can immediately put into action. Course participants will learn how to break the cycle of unintentional harmful parenting by becoming more aware of behaviors that may negatively affect children; build positive skills that strengthen relationships and reduce stress at home; promote early relational health, ensuring children grow up with the strong, nurturing connections they need to thrive, and grow social and emotional learning (SEL) competencies in themselves as caregivers.
According to Dr. Bruce Perry, who is the Principal of the Neurosequential Network and for the last 30 years has been an active teacher, clinician and researcher in children's mental health, everything that people become as adults has its roots in early caregiving experiences. If a good job is done with that, it's the bedrock of success throughout the rest of one's life, he added.
'No one really teaches us how to be a parent, and we typically parent the way we were raised,' Mallory pointed out. 'I feel as a parent there's always room for improvement, and you don't have to be having an issue at home or with your child to take this course. As parents we can all benefit from learning how to do things maybe just a little bit better or different. At some point, every family might face some challenges, but when parents and caregivers have the right tools, those challenges can become opportunities for growth.'
Modules/content include the effects of unintentional harmful parenting; consequences of adverse childhood experiences in adulthood; power of resilience and positive parenting and caregiving; how to discipline instead of punish; positive parenting and caregiving core competencies and techniques, and how to strengthen the connections with those in our care that can be applied immediately Parent-On-Demand is endorsed by the Illinois State Board of Education. The program is used throughout Illinois school districts and regional offices of education, as well as the Illinois Department of Corrections, she added. Mallory first learned of the program about a few years ago when she was attending a conference, and the founder of ParenTEACH Institute, Katharine Bensinger, spoke about the innovative parenting course she created.
'I was intrigued and excited to learn more, and I saw a need for this in our region to help our parents, caregivers and guardians, so I brought it forward and here we are,' Mallory explained. 'I believe in this with all of my heart. It truly helps you in this amazing journey called parenting.'
In addition to providing the ParentABLE course, ROE26's Family and Resource Center on South Johnson Street in Macomb provides assistance to parents through its Early Beginnings program (pre-natal through age three) and a parenting component in its Preschool for All program, for parents of children ages three-five. ROE26 also provides assistance to parents and families through its truancy program and through LEAP's Student Advocate initiative.
