It still takes a village

Dr Viviene Kerr was determined to do more than empathise with parents who had to suffer through the frustration and educational gaps that resulted from the COVID-19 pandemic. This was instead the impetus that propelled her to pen the book titled ‘It Still Takes a Village: Help for Parents Dealing with Academic Underperformance’.

Kerr, who is the president of the Caribbean Graduate School of Theology (CGST), believes that her involvement in the preparation process with her child who had external exams, in addition to her role as the vice-chairman of the National Parent-Teacher Association, Region 6 (St Catherine), gave her first-hand knowledge of the overwhelming challenges that were experienced in the education sector.

“My passion to help the education sector was not quenched as I saw parents struggling to meet the demands of online or face-to-face studies. What support can I offer them? The dreaded learning gap created by the pandemic was so overwhelming that I decided to write the book titled ‘It Still Takes a Village: Help for Parents Dealing with Academic Underperformance’, the author shared.

“In September 2020, I recognised the need to get involved in solving one of the problems resulting from the pandemic. I called upon churches to provide Wi-Fi access to students who needed to study online, childcare services to those without adult supervision and an online presence to effectively serve its members and result in millions of followers, among other things,” she continued.

The experienced educator and counselling psychologist is of the view that the book, which will be launched on Friday, will help readers to, among other things, discover real-life success stories of parents and children who overcame academic underperformance and how, with intervention and collaboration, the village enabled parents and teachers to help children excel.

In giving her endorsement, Lorraine Smith, chief executive officer of Solutions for U & Licensed Professional Counsellor in New Jersey, USA, shared “It Still Takes a Village comes at a critical point in our lives to equip and guide parents, educators, counsellors, anyone who cares about the well-being of a child’s educational future. An easy read that provides in-depth resources on how to support a child’s journey, overcoming the challenges of underperformance and rising to success. It also reminds us that it still takes a village, just in case we forget.”

The book will be launched at the Kingston & St Andrew Parish Library in Kingston. It can be purchased on Amazon, Source of Light Bookstore, Kmar Books & Cyberflex in Anchovy, St James, CGST, and other bookstores to be announced.