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The Relationship Between Parental Academic Background And Primary School Pupils’ Academic Performance
[A CASE STUDY OF SAKI-WEST.]
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In addition to the studies discussed above, many other studies (Balli et al., 1998; Baker & Stevenson, 1986; Poston and Falbo, 1990) have acknowledged parent’s education level as one of the important indicators that determines parental involvement. As stated by Lockheed et al. (1989), the higher the standard of the parents’ education level, the higher would be the parent’s academic aspirations for their child.
Shaver & Wall (1998) and Desimone (1999) went a bit further to investigate the impact of parental involvement on children’s academic performance. According to Shaver & Wall’s (1998) study on reading and mathematics achievements of eighth grade students, they found that the children from the higher socioeconomic background achieved academic success in reading and mathematics due to effective parental involvement.
On the other hand, Desimone’s (1999) study on eighth-grade students indicated a positive and significant relationship between student’s socioeconomic status, parental involvement and student’s achievement. The higher the parent’s family income, the higher would be the parental involvement. Hence, the students gain high achievement in reading and mathematics. Lockheed et al. (1989) who carried out a study on grade eight students in Thailand also reported that a child whose mother is highly educated and father is a professional obtained high scores in Mathematics. Another study carried out by Lockheed et al. (1989) on grade eight students in Thailand also reported that a child whose mother who is highly educated and father is a professional obtained high scores in Mathematics.
There were also studies that have been focused on parent’s social class rather than socioeconomic status. For example, Lareau (1987) in her studies on first grade classrooms in a working class community and a middle class community found that parents in the middle class community tend to help their child more due to the better skills, the occupation status, income and time compared to the working class parents.
Reay (2004) in one of her studies found that mothers from the middle class have a good educational background that enables them to inculcate academic values in their child, thereby promoting self-confidence and participation which are transformed by the child into a more positive attitude and behavior of learning towards academic success. In Sewell and Hauser’s (1980) study, a better financial resource among the middle class parents enhances the motivational support to their children; thereby encouraging the children to have high aspirations in education. Although the above studies ascribe parent’s social class to parental involvement, it shares the same indicators as parent’s socioeconomic status.
Using historical and cross-cultural data, several researchers have found that, although parents love their children, their willingness to invest in children’s education (and other aspects of their well being) is affected by the number of children in the family, public expenditures on education, and their assessment of the financial return of such investment to the family. When education must be financed by the family, additional children reduce the amount of investment in each child, particularly in low-income families (Becker &Tomes, 1986; Rosenzweig & Schultz, 1982). However, poor and middle-income parents are more willing to invest in their children if they believe that such investment increases children’s potential for financial contribution to the family and that children can be counted on to care for elderly parents (Becker & Tomes, 1986).
Researchers also argue that nonmonetary factors such as parenting (measured by parents’ educational expectations for their children and the attention parents give to their children’s education) and home environment (measured by the presence of books, newspapers, and other learning materials at home) can be more important for children’s academic achievement than money.
They have found that regardless of family income, high parental expectations and more parental attention to and effort toward their children’s education help raise children’s academic achievement (Bradley et al., 2001b; Coleman, 1988; Mayer, 1997; McLanahan & Sandefer, 1994; Yeung et al., 2002).
In a well-designed cross-cultural study, Stevenson (1992) showed that teaching styles and educational structures also affect children’s academic achievement. He found that on the same mathematics tests, the first- and fifth-grade students in Beijing, China did so much better than their counterparts in Chicago that the average score of only 1 of the 20 Chicago area schools “was as high as the worst†of the ten Beijing schools (Stevenson, 1992, p. 71). On a computation test, only 2% of the Beijing first graders scored as low as the mean for their Chicago counterparts.
Although the variable Family income was not used in Stevenson’s study, the fact that 98% of Beijing children scored higher than the average score of American children means that many poor Chinese students did as well or better than well-to-do American children. Stevenson attributed Chinese children’s higher achievement to China’s educational system; well-prepared, enthusiastic teachers; and academic and social activities that make school an enjoyable place for students. Using my 1999 survey of Chinese eighth graders and the 1988 National Educational Longitudinal Study (NELS) of American eighth graders, the present article explores the relationships among family income, parenting, home environment, and mathematics achievement of children in China and the United States. Although I expect a positive relationship between family income and children’s mathematics achievement in both countries, I also expect that Chinese children in general do better than their American peers. Because Chinese parents have only one child, regardless of income, parents’ expectation for children’s education will be higher in China than in the United States.
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ABSRACT - [ Total Page(s): 1 ]ABSTRACT IS COMING SOON ... Continue reading---
CHAPTER ONE - [ Total Page(s): 2 ]CHAPTER ONEINTRODUCTION 1.1 Background to the Study So many reasons have been advanced for the poor performance of pupils in schools prominent, among them is the role of the teachers and Parents seem to depend only on teachers with the belief to change or transform their children to academic experts overnight and anything that falls below this expectation makes the teachers conduct unacceptable. Few people care to think of other factors resp ... Continue reading---
CHAPTER THREE - [ Total Page(s): 2 ]CHAPTER THREE3.0 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY3.0 IntroductionThis chapter deals with all the activities involved in the collection of all necessary data and information required for the research project. The chapter is set out to describe in full the following:The research designThe source of dataThe characteristics of the population of studyThe sample and sampling techniquesThe method of data collection3.1 Research Design Research design is a detailed plan outlin ... Continue reading---
CHAPTER FOUR - [ Total Page(s): 12 ]Key: SA- Strongly Agree, A- Agree, D- Disagree, SD- Strongly Disagree Pupils Response on Parent’s Attitude to Education SA A D SD ... Continue reading---
CHAPTER FIVE - [ Total Page(s): 1 ] CHAPTER FIVE5.0 SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION5.1 IntroductionThis chapter discusses summary of the findings, conclusions, recommendations, and suggestions for further research following research objectives.5.2 Summary of the findingsThe purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of parental academic background on pupil’s academic performance in primary schools in SWLG, Saki. Data were collected using the questionnaires as the main res ... Continue reading---
REFRENCES - [ Total Page(s): 4 ]REFERENCESAdewale, A. M. (2002). Implication of parasitic infections on school performance among school-age children. Ilorin Journal of science education. Vol.2 Pp.78-81.Alberta Education & Patricia Makenzie . (2003) .Alberta’s commission on learning.Alldred, P., & Edwards, R.. (2000). A Tlogy of parental involvement in education Centering on children and young people: Negotiating familiarization, Institutionalization and individualization. British Journal of Sociology of ... Continue reading---
