Overview
The Bilingual and English as a Second Language (ESL) program provides opportunities for families and schools to work together to ensure that children succeed both academically and socially regardless of the language they speak. Within the program is the Bilingual Parent Resource Center, a place structured to support both parents and students with their educational and professional development. Here parents can get ideas about how to work with their child's teacher, support their child’s learning at home, and work on ways to improve their schools.
Goals
- Provide parents with information and resources in their native language
- Increase parent participation in schools by helping parents develop their leadership skills
- Provide parents with opportunities for self-improvement
Program benefits
- Provide opportunities that will help parents get involved in their child's learning process
- Provide information about the Chicago Academic Standards, the CPS Discipline code, health, nutrition and child care
- Help parents work together to improve schools
- Offer parents an opportunity to develop strong, productive relationships with educators and the community
- Assist parents in building leadership skills to enable them to become active members of their school's Bilingual Advisory Committee and LSC.
Resources
The Bilingual Parent Resource Center provides the following to support parents' personal development:
- A lending library consisting of a variety of resources and instructional materials
- Information on community services in the native languages represented in CPS
- Workshops on topics such as parenting skills, gang and drug prevention and CPS policies and practices