Most parents strive to raise their kids well so that they can have a better future. But what happens when parents slowly see the signs that their children are performing poorly academically? More than that, what might cause this to happen? The answers can be more obvious than you think.

You Are Either Uninvolved Or Too Involved

Whether you are a helicopter parent or lean more toward the neglectful side, either of these types of parenting is doomed to affect your child negatively.

Parents who give too much to their children can paradoxically create needy children. — Deb Hirschhorn, PhD

Your child certainly needs your help when it comes to homework, school requirements, or even with making friends or auditioning for a play. Being involved in this part of their life will allow them to be more confident and learn more things from you. However, too much involvement to the point that you force them to be excellent in school might not be for the best. Just the same, if you don’t at all care what’s happening with your child, you will also find that their school performance will suffer.

Parents must find a perfect balance between guiding their child in school while also letting them have their independence. After all, children learn best when they experience things on their own. Assess your role in your child’s life and re-evaluate your actions should you realize that you lack in some aspect.

Stressors

Many factors can contribute to a child’s poor academic performance. An environment drastically affects a children’s mental and psychological health. Family problems, fights, busy parents, empty stomach, and lack of sleep— all these can cause feelings of anxiety and sadness to kids. Apart from this, other factors such as bullies or bad teachers might also affect the way they feel about school.

Previous generations did not have the same access to information that people do today. This lack of access to public information led many parents to simply raise their children in the same way their parents, friends, and neighbors raised children, whether or not these methods may have been ideal. — Ben Ringler, MFT

Figure out how your home affects your kid. If you pinpoint specific triggers, ensure that you take the next steps to create a better home for your child. Otherwise, the stress might be coming from somewhere or someone else, and you might want to investigate further.

Learning Disability

Some kids are cognitively behind. For some, they find that their kids quickly catch on after a few years. But for others, a cognitive disability might be in play, which causes a more severe and long-term effect on the child.

No parent should feel embarrassed about this. If you ever think or find that your child suffers from this, immediately visit your local family doctor to diagnose your child formally or to take specific tests to see what level of ability they are at. What’s essential here is that the parent remains hopeful and persistent instead of feeling discouraged.

So, what are you supposed to do upon knowing these? First, you have to talk to your child. It is the best way for you to know the real cause of the problem. It is wrong to prematurely assume that your child is just lazy. There may be underlying problems that you are not aware of, so avoid being aggressive.

By middle school, educational testing can help students look inside themselves and understand how their disabilities impact their studies and social lives. Knowing what they need from teachers, tutors, counselors, peers, and parents is a foundation for future growth. — Marilyn Price-Mitchell Ph.D.

What’s sure is that you should make changes. It doesn’t necessarily mean becoming stricter with rules, as this is unlikely to discourage them. Instead, try to implement minor changes like allowing some reward after their study time. Most importantly, stay positive. It won’t help if you are even more stressed than your child. Whatever the situation is, you must remain as a beacon of motivation for your child.

With proper help and the right technique, you and your child should be able to make significant changes.