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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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Some negative effects of parental involvement on students’ achievement are also reported for a number of parental involvement indicators: parents’ close supervision of homework and after school activities (Milne et al., 1986; Muller, 1993), frequent contacts with school or Parent-teacher conferences (Ho & Wilms, 1996; Lee, 1994; Muller, 1993) and frequent talks with children (Astone & McLanahan, 1991). Thus, both positive and negative effects are reported by different researchers for parent communications with the student or school, and for parental monitoring of students’ behavior.
In cases where negative effects are reported, researchers interpret them as indicating parents’ efforts to help children with low academic performance or behavioral problems. In the study by Sui-Chu and Willms (1996), some of the negative effect of frequent communication with schools on eighth grade achievement is mediated by students’ problematic behavior and performance. The authors recognize the need to include more detailed measures of behavioral and learning difficulties in order to fully account for this negative effect.
Csikszentmihalyi and Schmidt (1998) argued that the fact that students’ performance was positively associated with parent involvement in their lives highlights a basic understanding about the important role of parents at this stage in their children’s lives.
Parents should not place undue limits on adolescents’ movement and freedoms, nor excuse them from responsibility. Parents should establish expectations for adolescents that are reasonable yet challenging. They should not isolate adolescents from adult role models. Parents need to be available to their adolescent children to discuss issues of relevance and importance to the adolescents themselves. Finally, parents should not look to limit adolescents’ boundaries, but work to expand their horizons.
Epstein, Sanders, Simon, Salinas, Jansorn, and Van Voorhis (2002) draw three key conclusions about parental involvement. First, parental involvement tends to decline across the grades unless schools make conscious efforts to develop and implement partnerships with parents. Reasons for this declining pattern include parents’ lack of familiarity with curriculum at the higher grades; adolescents’ preferences to have their parents stay involved in less visible ways; parents’ decisions to return to the work force once their children gain more independence; and secondary teachers’ lack of awareness of how to effectively involve parents at the higher levels.
Second, affluent parents tend to be involved in school more often and in positive ways, whereas economically distressed parents have limited contact with schools, and usually in situations dealing with students’ achievement or behavior. Schools that work on building relationships with all parents, however, can equalize the involvement of all socioeconomic groups. Finally, single parents, employed parents, fathers, and parents who live far from the school, on average, are less involved in the school unless the school organizes opportunities that consider these parents’ needs and circumstances. Although these patterns are generally observable among schools, they can be overcome if schools develop programs that include families that otherwise would not become involved on their own.
The degree and nature of impact on student achievement is somewhat debated in the literature. Fan and Chen’s (2001) meta-analysis of the literature concerning the connection between parental involvement and students’ academic achievement suggests a “moderate to practically meaningful†relationship. The relationship seems to be more general than specific, indicating that parental involvement has an overall effect on students’ success, rather than a direct effect on any particular subject area.
Their research finds parents’ expectations and dreams for their children’s academic achievement are the strongest factor influencing students’ school performance.
Despite the ambiguity in measuring the academic impact of parental involvement, various in-depth studies have established a relationship. Henderson and Berla (1994) synthesized over sixty studies regarding the effects of family involvement on student achievement. Their work attributes to parental involvement effects that include higher grades and test scores, increased homework completion, improved school attendance, more positive attitudes, fewer discipline problems, increased high school completion rates, decreased school leaving rates, and greater participation in postsecondary education. Importantly, like Epstein, Henderson and Berla suggest parents’ involvement can contribute to these outcomes from early childhood through high school.
Studies conducted among specific grades and subject areas support the contention that parental involvement can influence students’ academic achievement regardless of the student’s age or subject. For example, Stegelin (2003), Wirtz & Schumacher (2003), and Hertz-Lazarowitz & Horovitz (2002) focused on early childhood education and literacy, noting a link between families who engage in literacy activities at home and their children’s success with reading and writing. Strategies such as reading with the child, discussing stories, and creating a book-friendly environment contribute to the development of children’s literacy skills and positive attitudes toward reading.
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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---
