Teachers at hundreds of schools and early childhood development centres (ECDs) have presented the Billion Child Foundation Win-Win Parenting programme to over 200,000 parents in South Africa. Following the presentation the Northern Cape Department of Education reported at 109 schools, homework completion, attendance, marks, and progression rates were all up while the dropout rate was down. And, the Sasolburg SAPS commander reported that over a two-year period after Win-Win Parenting had been presented that callouts to family violence had declined by 50%.

Mrs Ndhlovu describes how she inspired her daughter Monica to complete her daily chores.

Why this programme is a winner
Most parents copy the parenting skills and styles used by their parents – or do the opposite. Not exactly the best way to raise children in the 21st century!

Up to now there has been no shop at which parents could buy highly effective parenting skills. Now there is – at their local school. Teachers who have been trained by BCF can teach parents how to manage children who are cheeky, have joined a gang, are carrying a knife, refuse to do homework and observe boundaries their parents set, etc.

Through Win-Win Parenting teachers teach parents cutting edge practical parenting skills needed by parents in the 21st century. The Programme was designed in South Africa for South Africans by proud South Africans. It recognises the realities of living in rural areas and the townships and the breakdown of family life and respect and builds on African traditions. it has a proven track record in making a massive impact on harmonious family life, entire communities and to enable parents to raise their children to be confident, self-reliant individuals who will succeed in future life.

It also teaches parents the importance of talking up education in the home, ensuring their children attend school daily, do homework every day, do not drop out of school/remain in school until they matriculate, participating in daily reading with each child, becoming fully involved in the education of their children and why, when the child complains about his/her teacher, not to take the side of their child but to first consult the teacher to find out what is really going on.

Because teachers present the Programme they build respect for teachers and build relationships between teachers and parents.

The final reason that this programme is a winner is because teachers love presenting it to parents.

How Win-Win Parenting works
District Directors, or groups of principals from several schools, commission BCF to train teachers to present the programme to parents at schools within their district. The principal of each schools selects two teachers from his/her school to attend a three-day train the trainer workshop at which teachers are taught facilitation skills and how to facilitate the Win-Win Parenting Programme to parents. They are also taught the marketing skills they need to successfully market the programme to parents.

Teachers present Win-Win Parenting to parents at their school in the language selected by the principal at three two-hour workshops usually after school or on Saturday mornings on three consecutive weeks. Programmes have been presented in N and S Sesotho, Setswana, isiZulu, isiXhosa, Pedi, English and Afrikaans.

Principals of each participating school are encouraged to form a Community Parenting Forum at their school to keep parent training alive throughout the year and to develop projects to create a child-safe and child-friendly community.

Initiatives launched by Community Parenting Forums include

• ‘Walking taxis’ to ensure children can commute to and from school safely,
• Identifying drug addicts in the community and sending them to drug rehabilitation centres,
• Using churches as a venue to complete homework
• Persuading food chain stores to donate soon to be out of date food products to deliver feeding programmes for street children and from indigent families
• Working with the SAPS to reduce noise emanating from shebeens which prevent older children completing homework at night and younger children getting 10 hours of restful sleep each night.

The Programme was designed for semi-literate parents and relies on mini-lectures supported by case studies, simulations, role plays, group discussion and demonstrations.

Parenting skills taught

View the Programme in action
In Sesotho, in isiXhosa, in Afrikaans.

If you would like to present Win-Win Parenting at your school contact
Alan J. Whitaker, CEO, BCF, on 079 225 4732 or 012 310 9167 or [email protected].