Theoretical Background
According to Soans and Stevenson (2004:831) cited in Dipontsheng (2010)
the word literacy is often used to indicate that a person is able to
read and write, and also illustrates that a person possesses knowledge
and certain competences within a specified field. This implies that a
literate person is aware of the changes that take place around him or
her, and that he/she is able to contribute and make informed decisions
with regard to political, economic, and social issues. Matjeke (2005:23)
cited in Dipontsheng (2010) maintains “literacy is a powerful force in
the economic (and political) empowerment process; it is also of
particular importance for alleviating poverty that prevails amongst the
largest proportion of the disadvantaged communities in South Africaâ€.
According to Manganyi (1997:3) cited in Dipontsheng (2010), “illiterate
people are those that cannot read or write; some individuals who can
read and write may be classified as undereducated because their skills
are so basic that they cannot function as productive and employable
citizensâ€. Some people in disadvantaged communities, especially those
that are illiterate find it very difficult if not impossible, to
understand simple written materials that require only basic proficiency
in reading. Malale (1996:19) in Dipontsheng (2010) states that literacy
is not only about reading, writing and numeracy; it involves having the
ability to critically evaluate information as well as creating a
critical consciousness of the society in which an individual lives.
According to de Beer (2004:291), “literacy is about functioning
properly, coping and dealing with matters at hand, coming to terms with
one’s situation, and acting in situations. Briefly it is about coping
not only with letters, with text or documents but, more so, about coping
with oneself and one’s world and signs in the world, especially through
languageâ€. De Beer (2004:291) cited in Dipontsheng, (2010), further
indicates that what is desperately needed for the sake of human future
is the development and cultivation of a comprehensive literacy that will
enable people to not only perform necessary skills but enable them at
the same time to live full, meaningful human lives. Machet (2002:4-7)
cited in Dipontsheng (2010) points out that due to the high level of
illiteracy in South Africa, some children grow up in an illiterate
environment and this affects their exposure to books, it is therefore
difficult to encourage children to read if there are no books in their
home environment, and if the few which are available are not in their
home language. This impact negatively on the children’s lives in all
spheres (health, social life and economic status). Matjeke (2005:23)
cited in Dipontsheng (2010) goes on to indicate that not only can
literacy be regarded as a basic human right but also as a basic human
need in so far that it can contribute to improving the development of
the majority of people who find themselves in poor socio-economic
situations. It is difficult for illiterate members of communities to
effectively and efficiently take part in different activities of their
daily lives. Illiterate members of the community find it difficult to
contribute in decision making processes that affect their lives, and
even in the education of their children.
Impact of Parental Education on Children’s Academic Performance
This
section of the literature review discusses the impact of parental
education on their children’s academic performance. It is important to
note that many studies done have indicated that the education of parents
greatly affect the achievement of their children (Kimaiga, 2014). It
has been found out that parents who are educated do influence their
children positively while the uneducated parents have a negative
influence. In regard to this, children of educated parents do post high
scores in school as compared to children of uneducated parents. Some of
the examples of the studies are discussed in the section below.
First,
Juma et al. (2012) cited in Kimaiga (2014) in their study in Kisumu
East found that parental level of education influences academic
achievement of girls and that the way the parent perceives his
daughter’s capabilities would motivate the girl to do better in school.
If the parent feels that she is able to score highly then she will work
hard to meet the parent’s expectations.
Similarly, Okumu et al (2008)
cited in Kimaiga (2014) in a study of Socioeconomic Determinants of
Primary School dropout in Uganda found that high academic attainment are
higher among girls in urban than rural areas. It was established that
educated mothers had the ability to manage time well and hence getting
time to be with her children as compared to uneducated mothers. Also
educated mothers were found to be more effective in helping their
children in academic work. They also monitored and supervised their
children’s academic progress; this alone served as an impetus to enable
the child to better in school.
On the other hand educated fathers
were found to be very vital in guiding their children to do assignments
apart from helping them to access necessary information required for
them to achieve good grades in their academic work. It is therefore
clear that from this that level of education of parents are very
instrumental in determining the academic achievement of their children.
A
study by Alisa (2010), in Malaba, cited in Kimaiga (2014) Kenya, found
that the gap in attainment between children from the poorest and richest
backgrounds grew particularly fast during the primary school years. By
age eleven, only around three-quarters of children from the poorest
families reached the expected level at Stage 2, compared with 97
percent of children from the richest fifth. Poorer children who
performed well in Key Stage tests at age seven were more likely than
better-off children to fall behind by age eleven, and poorer children
who performed badly at age seven were less likely to improve their
ranking compared with children from better-off backgrounds – an
important factor behind the widening gap in academic performance of
children. Valencia and Renald (1991) cited in Ozurumba, et al (2007)
also observed that the level of parent education is related to English
test of children. From their study, they concluded that parents who are
relatively higher in levels of education tend to transmit to their
children more culture of the academic they acquired than parents who are
illiterates or semi-illiterate. The investigation further revealed that
parents positive values attach to education is a function of their
educational achievement. As can be observed from the studies done by
various scholars, the education of both parents has a positive impact on
the academic achievement of their children. This is usually achieved
through helping children in their home, allowing children to have humble
time for studies as well as providing them with all the academic
materials necessary required in order to improve their achievement.
The
education that children receive is very much dependent on the education
that their parents received when they were children. Research shows
that the literacy of their parents strongly affects the education of
their children. One of the reasons why parental education strongly
affects their children’s education is because parents who have gone
beyond a high school education are found to be more involved with their
infants and children than those who did not finish high school.
