Balancing Parental Involvement and High Schooler Independence

When parents are involved in their child’s education, the child’s performance improves. This occurs even when students are in high school; parents can still exert enough influence to ensure their child arrives at school on time, completes their homework, and is a productive member of their academic community. Parental involvement also helps children to manage their anxiety, learn how to communicate effectively, and helps them remain grounded through the ups and downs of their educational careers.

At Wye River Upper School, we encourage our parents to remain lovingly aware of their high schoolers’ progress. We believe it is imperative for the parents in our community to allow their children to test the waters of self-advocacy and independence. For example, when a WRUS student has a question, comment, or concern about a course, program, or teacher, that student is encouraged to speak to or email that teacher directly. Self-advocacy is a skill we train students in and expect them to practice regularly. The teacher will, in turn, direct their message to the student and share that correspondence, or notes from those conversations, with parents.

We understand that high school is the place where children become young adults. At WRUS, we are dedicated to helping our students gain the skills needed to be productive, independent citizens.