Is your child a confident reader? Imagine a Samoa where everyone reads, where the children  and adults alike spend as much time reading as using iPads, iPhones and other devices. Do  you enjoy reading? What about your five and seven-year-old and teenager? Boring you say? Eye rolls  even?  

Well, let me tell you something about reading. It has truly allowed me to travel the world, written books, published articles and stories as well as helping so many people, especially a particular sibling who was struggling in school. 

Elizabeth Westerlund, my youngest sister, went to some of the best schools in Samoa. St Mary’s Savalalo and Robert Louis Stevenson. She failed almost every class. I was gobsmacked when she came to live with me during my second year studying in New Zealand. She finished Sixth form a failure, couldn’t even make the marks to UPY or NUS but the most shocking of all was that she did not even know how to write a proper essay!  

Her grammar and reading ability were that of a seventh grader, miles behind. She did not know how to put two sentences together cohesively. Does this story sound familiar? It is because I have had about 50 mothers asking me for help in the last 24-hours. 

Their kids are struggling in school and can you believe some teachers still call children ‘dumb’ ‘slow’ and perhaps ‘dyslexic'? My heart breaks for these kids. It’s sad for all these mothers. What an awful beginning to their learning lives, just starting out. Last week, I decided that I shall use my talents and what I know to teach the basics. It’s easy to criticise from the sidelines but it’s even better to be part of the solution. So, I will start reading programs to help as many kids as I can. 

I truly believe this is the foundation of learning. Without this your child will fail. Guaranteed. If their command of the English language is weak, it will show in their report cards. You might blame the education system and it does play a role. However, the onus is on us, the parents.  

How much time and patience do you actually spend on your child at home? Instead of telling  them off and watching TV at the same time, how much time do we actually spend getting to know our children? If you have one smart child and one not so smart child, how many times have you compared them?  

Comparison is the killer of confidence for a child that is just learning. Let us refrain from that, even though it is such a norm here. Comparing your child to his or her sibling and even cousins is not ideal, if you want to find out your child’s genius. To do this, we must make changes to how we were brought up. It starts with us. 

We are the first teachers and therefore the first to teach our children the alphabet and numbers. Singing is one of the most effective learning tools that we use when we are first learning. It’s what we do at Sunday school and at home.

Is our school system failing so many children? Yes, when it comes to reading and inspiring true learning. Is our school system solely responsible for this failure? No. Parents and educators have so much influence on the way we learn. The way our children learn. 

I can say that the curriculum hasn’t changed much since I was a primary school eager beaver almost 30 years ago. If anything, the need for awesome teachers still exists, and schools shouldn’t use the excuse of limited resources and not enough teachers, to justify the lack of focus on the basics. 

I can easily teach university students and make my life easier but that is not where my heart lies. My passion is in reading and I truly believe that we can change the statistics moving forward if we try a different approach. Start at grassroots level, start with the babies. Then maybe we can see a huge shift in statistics.  

I spent a whole year teaching my sister Elizabeth. Every day, I had additional homework for  her to do on top of her studies. I taught her everything I know, took her to the library and  introduced her to proper research skills. 

Today, she is an award-winning artist, a qualified graphics designer, a builder, owns her own  jewellery business in New Zealand, has graduated more than three times and is currently completing a Civil Engineering degree. She is more qualified than I am and I am so proud of  her. She is also working for Unitec NZ. 

She has surpassed every failure expectation because  she was willing to learn. I am sure she cried many nights because I was tough on her. I strive for excellence and I expect the same from every student I take on. While we enjoy another  peaceful Sunday in Samoa, let us be kind to our children. Inspire them, hug them and tell them they are geniuses. We owe it to them!