Letter: It also takes a village to teach a child

Sunday, May 28, 2006 | 7:38 a.m.

This is written in response to Rita Flores' May 21 letter, "It's time to base teacher pay on merit":

As a former kindergarten teacher for 10 years in the Clark County School District, I am pleased that Ms. Flores recognizes the necessity of parental involvement in student success. However, I believe she missed the mark by stating that teacher pay should be based on "how many parents a teacher can convince to show up on open house night."

The lack of parent involvement goes much deeper than merely showing up at an open house. Just as the "merit" of teachers goes much deeper than simply cajoling parents into attending an open house.

Teaching children requires commitment, determination and a desire to meet the individual needs of each child. These characteristics need to be shared by every adult in a child's life. It does take a village, after all.

Finally, let us not forget the responsibility of learning that each child should have. Children need to want to learn in order to learn. Ms. Flores wrote that involved parents + kids + teachers = success. Maybe a more appropriate equation would be this: Involved parents + motivated kids + caring teachers = success.

Kate Estrada, North Las Vegas