Chapter 2

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE AND STUDIES

This chapter discusses the related literature and studies which provided the

researcher’s direction, guide, and references in the conduct of the present study.

This study draws from the family stress model (FSM; Conger & Conger, 2012).

According to the FSM, economic challenges adversely affect parents’ disposition and

behavior. Parents in poverty have been found to have elevated risks for depression, anger,

distress, and sadness (Schofield et al., 2011). In turn, these are linked to less supportive

and more conflicted parent-child relationship. This, then, puts the children’s health and

wellbeing at risk. In the same vein, parents who experience economic difficulties may not

have enough psychological and economic resources to be involved in their children’s

schooling. This lack of involvement and support may result to children’s discouragement

in school and poorer academic performance, among other problems. Given the dearth of

parental involvement literature in the Filipino context, this research will draw from

Western-based empirical studies, as well as parental involvement and poverty research in

other collectivistic cultures and developing countries.

Parental Involvement: Definitions and Dimensions

Parental involvement refers to the parent’s interaction with the child and the

school to promote educational success (Hill et al., 2004). It is a multidimensional

construct that includes cognitive, affective, and behavioral facets of parenting which are

related to children’s education (Clarke, 2015). To cite some examples, measuring

parental involvement includes looking at parents’ educational aspirations for their child,

24
how much they feel welcomed in their child’s school, and how often they read to their

child. Broadly, parental involvement includes educational beliefs, academic expectations,

and parental practices at home and in school (Seginer, 2016). It is also commonly divided

into three categorizations: home-based involvement, school-based involvement, and

academic socialization (Eccles & Harold, 1993; Seginer, 2006; Wang & Sheikh-Khalil,

2014).Home-based involvement includes monitoring schoolwork and providing time for

home work and other enriching activities. School-based involvement includes parent

teacher communication, attending and/or volunteering at school events. Academic

socialization refers to parenting strategies which communicate importance of education,

expectations, and encouragement to the child (Wang & Sheikh-Khalil, 2014).

Given the breadth of the parental involvement construct, there is no consistent or

single definition of parental involvement (Alvarez-Valdivia et al., 2012).

Furthermore, there are different terms used to refer to how parents help their

children and how schools help parents to become more involved in school. Aside from

parental involvement, scholars have used the terms family-school partnership (Epstein,

2017)

Parental Involvement

Most children have two main educators in their lives – their parents and their

teachers. Parents are the prime educators until the child attends an early years setting or

starts school and they remain a major influence on their children’s learning throughout

school and beyond. The school and parents both have crucial roles to play. There is no

universal agreement on what parental involvement is, it can take many forms, from

25
involvement at the school (as a governor, helping in the classroom or during lunch

breaks) through to reading to the child at home, teaching songs or nursery rhymes and

assisting with homework. This can be categorized into two broad strands: Parents’

involvement in the life of the school. Their involvement in support of the individual child

at home. The present study is focused on the second of these, as there is consistent

evidence of the educational benefits of involving parents in their child’s learning at home.

Because of the complex interaction between a number of factors (and only some of which

have been taken into account in the analysis) it is difficult to prove that one causes the

other, the research instead demonstrates that a relationship exists between parental

involvement and achievement.

The vast majority (92%) of parents surveyed in 2017 reported that they felt at

least ‘fairly involved’ in their child’s school life. Around half felt very involved, which

has increased from 2015, when 29% felt very involved. Women, parents with young

children, parents who left full-time education later (i.e. those who left at age 21 or over)

those from Black or Black British backgrounds and parents of a child with a statement of

Special Educational Needs are all more likely to feel very involved (compared to men;

parents who left education at a younger age; and parents from White or Asian

backgrounds respectively).

Lone parents and non-resident parents are both less likely than average to feel

very involved. Parents are more likely to see a child’s education as mainly or wholly their

responsibility (28%) in 2007 compared to previous years, and nearly half (45%) of

26
parents believed that they had equal responsibility with the school. Parents also now

participate in a wider range of activities with their children. These include: doing school

projects together (83%) making things (81%), playing sport (80%) and reading (79%).

Studies suggest that fathers’ involvement has increased since the 1970s,

particularly with children under the age of 5.7 There is evidence, however, of great

variation in levels of fathers’ involvement, so that even though levels have increased on

average, a substantial proportion of fathers recorded no daily direct interaction time with

their children.8 This is likely to reflect, in part, changing family structures. When

surveyed in 2007, mothers are more likely than fathers to say that they felt ‘very

involved’ in their child’s education (53% compared to 45%).Nearly 70% of fathers want

to be more involved in their child’s education and even higher proportions of non-

resident parents (81%), who are predominantly male, are also keen for greater

involvement.

Importance of Parental Involvement

Parental involvement with children from an early age has been found to equate

with better outcomes (particularly in terms of cognitive development). What parents do is

more important than who they are for children’s early development – i.e. home learning

activities undertaken by parents is more important for children’s intellectual and social

development than parental occupation, education or income, (Melhuish, 2014)

The Effective Provision of Pre-School Education (EPPE) project is a large-scale

longitudinal study of 3,000 children, which has followed the progress of these children

from the age of three. Parents’ involvement in home learning activities makes an

27
important difference to children’s attainment (and social behaviour) at age three plus

through to the age of 10, when the influence of other background factors have been taken

into account (such as family socio-economic status, mothers’ education, income and

ethnicity) (Sammons, 2017).

The EPPE research has found that a range of activities are associated with

positive outcomes at age 3 and 7 including: playing with letters and numbers,

emphasizing the alphabet, reading with the child teaching songs and nursery rhymes,

painting and drawing, and visiting the library. This study also found significant

differences in the types of home learning activities that parents undertake with boys

compared to girls. Significantly more girls’ parents reported activities such as reading,

teaching songs and nursery rhymes etc. Differences in this aspect of parenting may

account for some of the variation in cognitive and social behavioural outcomes of boys

and girls when they enter primary school, (Melhuish, 2014).

Predictors of Parental Involvement

Parenting involves a system of relationships within and out of the family, personal

beliefs and resources, and the societal context of the parent ( Belsky, 2017). Thus, it is

important to explore and examine multiple factors in order to understand what influences

parental involvement.

Hoover-Dempsey et al. (205) put forward a model that explains three elements

that contribute to parental involvement. The first is parental motivation which includes

role construction and efficacy beliefs. Role construction includes the parent’s perception

of responsibility regarding the child’s schooling and efficacy refers to the belief that

28
personal actions will effectively help the child. The second element is invitations to

involvement from the school, teacher, and student. Invitations from these three sources

are important as they suggest that actively participating in the child’s schooling is

welcome and valued. The third element pertains to the parents’ life contexts such as

socioeconomic status and parent’s knowledge and skills, and how these resources, or lack

of, influence practices related to their children’s education. The succeeding sections

discuss these elements in more detail.

Parent Demographic and Intrapersonal Characteristics

Societal factors such as demographic and economic characteristics are implicated

in the nature and extent of parental involvement (Eccles & Harold, 1996). First,

household income is an important predictor of parental involvement, with children from

high-income families receiving greater parental support. This is a consistent finding in all

the studies which accounted for income (Balarin & Santiago, 2017). There are

explanations behind this trend. Adapting Bourdieu’s perspective on different forms of

capital, Lee and Bowen (2016) purported that parents from the lower socioeconomic

stratum may not possess the appropriate social and cultural capital to feel comfortable

connecting with the school. The concept of social capital includes relationships and social

networks that provide resources or access to resources (Bourdieu, 1987) and cultural

capital with regard to education refers to the parent’s ability to promote their children’s

academic success (Grenfell & James, 2015). The low income and working-class context

also implies that parents are not able to provide resources which could enhance their

children’s learning. On the other hand, better-off families have more time and access to

information that helps them in assisting their children in school (Balarin & Santiago,

29
2017). Research has also noted, however, that professional, busy working parents also

reported not having enough time to communicate with their children’s teachers (Share &

Kerrins, 2013).

A parent’s educational level is also correlated with parental involvement, with

those having more years of education being more involved in their child’s education

across numerous studies. For instance, in a mixed-methods study conducted in Japan,

they found that highly-educated mothers put much effort in researching and selecting

which preschool is best for their child. Those with fewer years of education (e.g. high

school graduate), on the other hand, were likely to choose a school based on convenience

of location and information from family and friends (Yamamoto, Holloway, & Suzuki,

2006). Among Chinese sample, parents with lower educational attainment may solely

rely on teachers because they have less knowledge about educating their children (Lau et

al., 2012).

In Norway, parents with lower levels of educational attainment attend parent-

teacher conferences less often (Paulsen, 2012). Going back to the social and cultural

capital perspective, parents may be limited by their low level of education (Clarke, 2001)

and may not be able to provide the academic support their children need (Eccles &

Harold, 1993; Trumbull et al., 2003). It is also plausible that parents with poor

educational background may not understand the significance of their role in their

children’s learning and progress (Karsidi et al., 2014).

Parent gender is also commonly treated as a control variable in many quantitative

studies. It is significantly related to parental involvement in different countries (Baeck,

2010), with mothers being more involved than fathers across all the studies.

30
 Parent gender, employment status, and social class also interact to influence

parental involvement. For example, although fathers in general are less involved

compared to mothers, middle-income fathers demonstrate greater involvement compared

to their working-class counterparts in China (Sheng, 2012). Also, it was mentioned

previously that employed parents have less time to directly participate in their children’s

schooling. Yet, both working and non-working mothers in Singapore and Bangladesh

were found to show greater involvement than fathers (Clarke, 2014). This pattern can be

attributed to traditional parenting roles where mothers remain to be the main figure in

childrearing and the fathers are in-charge of financially providing for the family (Hawke,

2017).

The parent’s own psychological resource also impacts their involvement. Parent’s

efficacy in helping their children learn, for example, was found to impact various types of

parental involvement in different countries – Japan, China, Greece, New Zealand, United

Kingdom, Thailand (Daungkaew & Glascock, 2005) and across cultural groups in the

United States (Caucasian America, African American, Latinos, and Asians) (Kirkbride,

2014). High levels of stress also negatively influence the parent’s capacity to be involved

(Hornby & Lafaele, 2011).

A study on Latinos in the U.S. found that financial stressors impinge on school-

based parental involvement (Camacho-Thompson, Gillen-O’Neel, Gonzales, & Fuligni,

2016) and that family life stressors (e.g., major life events) limit parents home-based

involvement. The negative effects of increased stress due to poverty on parental

involvement were also found across studies on European American and African

American parents (Hill & Taylor, 2014). Lastly, depression has also been linked to

31
parental involvement. Parents who experience depression often have a less positive view

of their role as a parent, and may have less motivation and confidence which translate to

lower involvement (Kirkbride, 2014; Kohl, Lengua, & McMahon, 2010; Valdez et al.,

2013). Overall, parents with higher levels of well-being have greater inclination to be

involved in the school (Baeck, 2010).

Child factors. Children take an active and evocative role in the parent-child dyad

in which their own characteristics affect how parents interact with them (Caspi, 2000;

Scarr, 1992). Scholars have examined several child characteristics that predict parental

involvement. A common finding across the studies is how child’s age and grade level are

related to parental involvement. Parental involvement and participation decline as

children entered middle and secondary levels (Edwards & Kutaka, 2015). Researchers

offered possible explanations for this downward trend. First, Seginer (2006) suggested

that as children age, they become more independent and more capable in doing academic

tasks, therefore, there is less need for the parent’s direct supervision. Aside from that,

Seginer also mentioned that adolescents are less keen in having their parents show up at

school. In connection to parent’s educational background, as academic lessons become

more demanding as students move up in grade level, parents may not have the necessary

skills to assist their children academically (Trumbull et al., 2003). It is also plausible,

however, that parental involvement does not actually decrease but only evolves to subtle

forms of parental support such as engaging children in conversations which still support

literacy (Hartas, 2015).

A meta-analysis of 25 studies affirmed that students’ grades and academic

performance also predict parental involvement (Fan & Chen, 2001). Having said this, it is

32
crucial to note that parents who are involved due to the child having academic and/or

behavioral difficulties in school should be differentiated from the type of parental

involvement on benign issues (Hill & Taylor, 2004). According to Shumow and Miller

(2001), academically struggling students, by default, need more educational support at

13 in home and in school compared to more successful students. For example, in

Germany, researchers found that students who displayed more reading efforts at fifth

grade have parents who are more involved (in the form of parental structure and

responsiveness) in seventh grade, whereas those who have low reading achievement at

fifth grade receive less responsiveness and more parental control with regard to

homework in seventh grade (Dumont, Trautwein, Nagy, & Nagengast, 2014). A study in

Norway also found that parents of children with higher grades are also more inclined to

attend more parent teacher meetings (Paulsen, 2012). These findings assert a systematic

biased distribution in social and cultural capital, with those who already have resources

receiving more (Matsuoka, Nakamuro, & Inui, 2015; Paulsen, 2012). Altogether, the

existing body of research acknowledges that child characteristics either drive or reflect

parental involvement. This strengthens the lesser known effect-of-the-child on parenting

behaviors and supports the notion that parenting is not only a product of a parent’s

characteristics.

School and teacher factors. Schools and teachers can also contribute to low

parental involvement. In a multi-ethnic sample in the U.S., researchers found that when

schools do not take on genuine efforts to make parents feel that they are welcomed

partners (Park & Holloway, 2013), parents are less inclined to be involved. According to

Sukhbaatar (2014), when teachers possess negative attitudes and show discriminatory

33
behavior toward children from deprived backgrounds, parents are less likely to engage in

school-based involvement. On the other hand, Epstein (1991) asserted that when teachers

initiate and try to improve communication with parents, parents become more involved.

Specialized programs offered by the school can also increase parental

involvement. For example, in Colombia, schools offer an English language training to

parents of children who are learning English as a second language. Helping parents learn

English, in turn, made parents more able to help their children in English homework

(Castillo & Gamez, 2013). Likewise, in Singapore, parent training programs are well

attended because training sessions are conducted in two languages – English and the

parents’ mother tongue. Additionally, trainings are held at times when parents are not

working. These effective school strategies lend support to the assertion that efforts of

school to involve parents is a better predictor of involvement than household income or

parent’s educational background (Jeynes, 2005, as cited in Westerman, 2012). Challenges

on the teachers’ part can also hinder parental involvement. Teachers and school staff are

often overloaded with teaching and administrative tasks (Colley, 2014), leaving them

with little time to reach out and engage with parents. Although teachers are expected to

initiate communication between the school and the home, their regular work

responsibilities limit their time and ability to encourage parental involvement and

partnership (Park & Holloway, 2013). A news article reported that teachers in public

schools in the Philippines are overloaded (Arcangel, 2015), and this possibly limits their

intention and efforts to invite involvement from parents. Teachers’ beliefs also matter.

For example, a study in Turkey found that teachers think that parents do not want to get

involved. As such, they do not exert effort to involve them (Hakyemez, 2015). In

34
Denmark, although parents are recognized to be involved in informal school functions

(e.g., social meetings, excursion trips), many teachers have expressed that it is difficult to

engage and involve parents in formal education decision making mainly because they are

not used to doing so (Ravn, 1998). The same study suggested that teachers need to

develop creative and effective communication with families and communities in order for

parents to be more involved. A study in Canada also mentioned that teachers and

principals are hesitant to share their authority and decision-making power with parents

(McKenna & Willms, 1998), leading to a decline in parental involvement. This is similar

to findings in the Middle East where schools operate in isolation. Al-Gharaibeh (2015)

argued that some officials in Middle Eastern schools do not believe in parental

involvement, and so they operate in isolation and reject any external involvement from

homes or communities.

Cultural factors. Culture exerts a major influence on parental involvement and

provides a context that helps explain why parents parent the way they do. Culture

influences parental cognitions which include goals and expectations for the child, beliefs

about childrearing and education, and perception of what the child needs (Harkness &

Super, 2016).

Educational policies. Parental involvement is also affected by larger contexts

such as district and/or state policies on education (Trumbull et al., 2003). Government

mandates and educational policies, such as the “No Children Left Behind” program in the

U.S., promotes greater parental involvement (Dumont et al., 2014). Similar trends were

also found in other countries. For instance, all Thailand schools are now required to

include parents and community members in the school board (Daungkaew & Glascock,

35
2005). Government programs in Australia were also put in place to promote parent-

school engagement to help reduce the achievement gap among the indigenous population

(Lea et

al., 2011). Recently, with a mandate from the Education Law of Magnolia, more efforts

are put into getting parents to be more involved and teaching parents how to help their

children academically (Sukhbaatar, 2014). This is also similar to the case of Gambia

where the government has a mandate on establishing strong community ties to promote

parental involvement (Colley, 2014). To date, there is no program or policy in the

Philippines that specifically advocates parental involvement.

Outcomes of Parental Involvement

Parental involvement has been found to play a profound role in children’s well

being, particularly in academic performance and cognitive development. For example,

children displayed improved reading skills when parents encourage reading time at home

(Crosby, Rasinski, Padak, & Yildirim, 2014). A meta-synthesis of nine meta-analyses

also showed that children perform better in mathematics, reading, and spelling when

parents tutor them (Wilder, 2013). Parental help with homework benefits numerous

learning outcomes, especially when parents are emotionally supportive and encourage

children’s autonomy (Litwack, 2017).

Researchers have also found that parents’ attendance in parent-teacher

conferences and school events in U.S. public schools is a positive predictor of students’

academic progress (Palmer, & Xia, 2014).

A meta-analysis of 25 studies also showed that parental expectations and

educational aspirations are the factors most highly related to children’s academic

36
achievement (Fan & Chen, 2001). Finally, in a U.S. sample, parental involvement has

been found to positively affect children’s intrinsic and extrinsic motivation to school,

perceived competence, and academic goals (Gonzalez-DeHass et al., 2015).

How Parental Involvement Influences Child Outcomes

The literature also underscores how the different types of parental involvement

can impact child outcomes in different ways. In a comprehensive review of related

literature, Pomerantz et al. (2017) asserted that parental involvement does not simply

have a linear relationship with positive child outcomes, that more involvement does not

always mean better outcomes for children. Rather, the effectiveness and benefits of

parental involvement depend on how (style) parents become involved.

The parenting style influences the effect of parenting practices by providing the

emotional climate in which the involvement is expressed (Darling & Steinberg, 2017).

The role of parenting style is affirmed by Darling and Steinberg (1997) in this

statement: parenting style moderates the influence of parenting practices on the child’s

development in at least two ways: by transforming the nature of the parent-child

interactions, and thus moderating the specific practice’s influence on child outcomes, and

by influencing the child’s personality, especially the child’s openness to parental

influence.

When parents are controlling and coercive, rather than supportive of children’s

autonomy in their involvement, they inhibit the opportunities for children to initiate and

to solve problems on their own. They may also deprive the children of feeling capable

and independent. Parental involvement can also be described as process- versus person

focused.

37
 Process-focused involvement considers the context of skill and motivational

development as a process, whereas a person-focused involvement concentrates on the

child’s personal characteristics (e.g., intelligence) and overlooks the child’s efforts to

develop (Pomerantz et al., 2007). With the latter, children may form negative perceptions

of themselves and their abilities, especially when receiving criticisms directed to who

they are as opposed to what they do. Parental involvement that is characterized by

negative affect is also not conducive for children’s development. When parents are

always annoyed, hostile, stressed, or overly critical, rather than supportive and caring,

their involvement may send a message that school is taxing and frustrating. This, in turn,

may affect the child’s attention and enthusiasm around school work. All these findings

imply that examining the quality, and not just quantity, of parental involvement is of

utmost importance in understanding how involvement affects the child. For example,

instead of simply asking close-ended questions such as if anyone helps the child with

homework, constructed-response questions such as how the parent checks the homework

can provide more insights on parental involvement (Balarin & Santiago, 2017 ). In sum,

the effects of parental involvement on children’s development rely heavily on the nature

of parental involvement and how it is expressed.

The Filipino Family and Education

The traditional Filipino family is characterized by strong cohesion among

immediate and extended family members. Obedience, respect for elders, fear of God, and

meeting familial obligations are highly valued and are taught to children at an early age.

Hiya (shame) and utang na loob (debt of gratitude) are also pivotal values in the Filipino

culture. With these values, children are expected to care for their aging parents, as a way

38
to pay the parents back for rearing them. Traditional Filipino parenting roles are distinct

for mothers and fathers (Alampay & Jocson, 2011). Fathers serve as the protector and

primary financial provider of the family (“haligi ng tahanan” or “pillar of the home”)

whereas mothers are considered the primary caregiver in the household (“ilaw ng

tahanan” or “light of the home”), in charge of the children’s everyday needs, discipline,

and school management. In all, Filipino parents are described to be nurturing and

supportive ( Yacat, & Francisco, 2016), and one of the Filipino family’s primary and

important functions is to educate the children (Reyes & Resurreccion, 2015). Filipino

parents view education not only as an investment for their children, but also for the whole

family (Blair, 2014; Medina, 2001; Ying & Han, 2008). Correspondingly, a study among

Filipino college students showed that they value education as a way of fulfilling familial

obligations (Reyes & Galang, 2009). Reyes and Galang (2009) also maintained that

parents and family contribute positively to students’ motivation in school.

An extensive search of the literature, as well as direct communication with several

prominent Filipino scholars in the Philippines and other Southeast Asian countries

resulted in finding only one published empirical study focusing on parental involvement

among Filipinos (Blair, 2014). Blair’s (2014) findings revealed that middle- and high

income Filipino parents scored high in involvement with homework and in volunteering.

Another local preliminary study, using univariate analyses, found that Filipino parents

always remind their child of the importance of going to school (Fetalvero, & Suatengco,

2014). The same study also found that parents believe that they are their children’s first

teacher, especially in learning how to read. Given that children from disadvantaged

backgrounds do not get enough support (PIDS, 2012) and many parents are not equipped

39
with skills to support their children’s education, it is essential to investigate this topic and

explore how Filipino parents can help and contribute to their children’s academic

success.

Education and Poverty in the Philippines

According to the 2010 Annual Poverty Indicators Survey conducted by the

National Statistics Office, lack of personal interest in school and the high cost of

education are the top two reasons why Filipino youth do not attend school. Despite

government efforts to improve the access and state of education in the country, such as

participating in United Nations’ Millennium Development Goal and allocating the

biggest portion of the national budget for the Department of Education ( Ramos, 2012),

36 million of the 6 to 24-year-old population is out-of-school. That is one in every ten

Filipino children and youth (FLEMMS, 2013). The low quality of education in Philippine

public schools manifests in the students’ poor performance in national and international

assessment tests. For example, in the National Achievement Tests, the students only

scored 68% in school year 2009 – 2010. The Philippines was also one of the worst

participating countries in the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study

(Yap, 2011). In the hope of addressing this problem, the Philippines is currently

transitioning from a 10-year basic education curriculum – the only country in Asia to still

adapt this – to a 12-year cycle (K-12 program). However, many educators believe that the

country is not well equipped for this transition to be successful. In fact, the current

secretary of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) commented

that many public schools still do not have enough classrooms, teachers, chairs, and books

(Ibon Foundation, 2016).

40
 The negative repercussions of low-quality education and limited educational

resources are more pronounced for children in poverty. Data from 2002 to 2010 from the

Department of Education show that in both private and public schools, children in

poverty showed lower participation (enrollment) rates compared to non-poor children.

Even more children in poverty drop out when they reach high school, with 89%

participation rate in elementary school dropping to 65.1% in high school (Yap, 2011).

Critics are especially wary that this problem will be solved by the K-12 program, mainly

because government resources are not yet guaranteed and additional school years entail

extra cost on the part of the household (Yap, 2011). It will be helpful to know then what

parents can do, despite these challenges, to effectively support their children to stay and

perform in school.

This review of literature summarizes findings on what constitutes parental

involvement, the various factors that facilitate or inhibit involvement, and how the

different types of parental involvement influence children’s academic outcomes.

The Impact of Parental Involvement for School Age Children

Evidence indicates that parental involvement continues to have a significant effect

on achievement into adolescence and even adulthood.

Research using data from the National Child Development Study (NCDS) to

explore the effect of parents’ involvement on achievement at 16 in English and Maths

(and average grades across all public exams) found that very high parental interest is

associated with better exam results compared to children whose parents show no interest.

41
 Parental involvement has a positive effect on children’s achievement even when

the influence of background factors such as social class and family size have been taken

into account, (Desforges, 2013).

Parental behaviour has a bigger effect than school quality on pupils’ attainment at

Key Stage 2, however this research also found that a child’s ability on entry to school is

the most important factor in predicting Key Stage2 attainment across subjects (followed

by socio-economic background factors including income and parental education),

(Desforges, 2013).

Evidence suggests that for boys parental behaviour and family relationships have

a greater influence on attainment for all Key Stage 2 subjects, whereas for girls parental

education and social and economic background has a greater influence on attainment in

English and Maths at Key Stage 2, (Desforges, 2013)

According to Garcia and Thornton (2014) current research shows that the

involvement of family in learning helps to improve student performance, reduce

absenteeism and restore parents' confidence in their children's education. Learners with

parents or care givers who are involved in learners’ education, earn higher grades and test

scores, have better social skills and show improved behaviour. This is something that we

as a community and the world at large are in need of, as it would highly contribute in

reducing crime and poverty. Ideally it would help to have a greater percentage of parental

involvement in their children’s education. The study looks at parental involvement in

depth by focusing on: the concept of parental involvement, its benefits, the disadvantages

of not involving parents and how parents can be involved.

42
Conceptualization of Parental Involvement

Parental involvement refers to a situation where parents are directly involved in

the education of their children, they involve themselves and are involved by the school

and teachers in the learning process of their children, and they fulfill their duties as

parents in making sure that the learner is assisted in the process of learning as much as

they possibly can. It does not just refer to parents enquiring about the performance of a

learner in schools, but also in them taking a role in communicating with their children

with the aim of having a healthy relationship with them, so that the process of

encouraging, mentoring, leading and inspiring may be genuine (Clinton & Hattie, 2013).

How can parents be involved? Parents can be involved in their children's

learning through becoming part of school boards, being concerned about their children's

academic performance, showing dedication in their children's learning through availing

themselves during parents meetings, in order to gain a better understanding of the

performance of their children. Parents can also be involved by means of follow-ups

with their children's subject teachers in order to identify areas where the children are

facing challenges (Clinton & Hattie, 2013:324). Where children fail, parents go to the

extent of contacting their teacher, thus, building and strengthening the teacher and parent

relationship which would show their commitment towards their children's learning.

According to Hornby and Lafaele (2011) parental involvement is a significant

element in education and can also be achieved through home-based parental involvement

like listening to the child as they read, helping them in completing their homework as

well as school-based activities, which include attending parents meeting and education

43
workshops. According to Labahn (1995) parents should also be involved in children’s

sports activities, as this would improve achievements and serve as motivation.

Benefits of Parental Involvement

Parent-teacher partnership makes tremendous impact on children's education.

According to Llamas and Tuazon (2016:59) parents become comfortable when the

education system requires their involvement in school activities. The strong collaboration

of parents with school authorities can lead to increase improvement in both physical and

academic performance of the school. Hence, school administrators have to encourage

parents to get involved and make contribution towards helping the school achieve its

missions and goals (Sapungan & Sapungan, 2014).

Seeing parents involved in the education of their children is a good thing because

it improves academic performance. Learners become more focused in their school work

(Kwatubana & Makhalemele, 2015:315). This motivates learners not to give up easily

when they do not understand a particular topic and will not bunk classes because they

know that their parents are always monitoring their school attendance (Lemmer, 2017).

Learners whose parents are involved, are active and ready to learn, they learn to be

punctual from young age, they learn to be persistent as the parents would be continuously

enquiring about their progress and they would not want to disappoint them. Taking

responsibility becomes a part of the nature of such children as they plan ahead and are

able to do their work according to their schedule, which is the quality of being organized

(Sapungan & Sapungan, 2014:45). Through this parents can be able to make sure that

their children succeed in school (Hornby & Lafaele, 2011)

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 According to Labahn (2015) parents are within their rights by insisting that

children focus on their school work, because some children are lazy and come up with

meaningless excuses in order to avoid doing their school work.

Other benefits include those that are highlighted by Lemmer (2007:218) which

include improved self-esteem, high rate of school attendance and positive social

behaviour. Sivertsen (2015) adds that parental involvement is linked to improved

behaviour, low levels of absenteeism and optimistic attitudes.

Effects of Parental Involvement

The relationship between parents and leaners deteriorate because parents are

always insisting that learners must always focus on their school work (Mc Neal, 2017).

Some parents always call the teachers to check whether their children attended their

classes. These make learners feel untrusted by their parents (Llamas & Tuazon, 2016)

Challenges of parental Involvement in Learning

According to Singh, Mbokodi and Msila (2014), one of the challenges that

hampers effective parental involvement is low income that some receive per month,

which leads them to working more jobs and not to spend enough time at home helping

their children with their school work (Chavkin & William, 2016). The above causes a

burden to the teachers because they are expected to produce good results yet they are no

receiving any support from parents (Singh, Mbokodi & Msila, 2014).

Another reason for parents not to be involved is the fact that schools sometimes

fail to create strong links between homes and schools or an environment where parents do

not feel welcomed in schools more especially low income earners. This situation is made

worse by the fact that some parents are unable to read and write and they can only

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communicate in their mother tongue, which makes it difficult for them to assist their

children with their homework (Lemmer, 2017).

Strategies for Encouraging Parental Involvement in Learning

There are varied strategies that the schools can use to get the parents involved in

their children's learning. This could be done through going out to the community, or by

encouraging parent participation by publicizing through traditional means

(announcements, flyers) and non-traditional methods which include the use of television,

phone calls and sending emails. The use of only traditional measures could tend to be

ineffective in such cases where individual parents rely on non-traditional methods. In a

study conducted by Kwatubana and Makhalemele (2015), some schools did not use

sound recruitment strategies that motivated parental involvement in school activities. In

the same study schools in the Free State decided to use a raffle to select parents that were

to be food handlers. This strategy can work well in situations where the school wants to

eliminate discrimination or favouritism by choosing individuals based on their status in

the community. The use of effective strategies for encouraging parental involvement will

enable the parents to be able to see the importance of being involved in their children’s

learning, and to be able to see the benefits that might result afterward.

Also reaching families whose home language is not English by sending them

information about their learners in their own home language in order to break the

language barrier (Lemmer.2017) is important.

Thus, Parental involvement is associated with a wide range of positive child

outcomes in primary and high schools, such as good academic skills, positive attitudes

and social competence (Lau, Li & Rao, 2019). Parental involvement in learning acts as a

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gel that helps to make learning for children pleasant and encourages them to work even

more as they seek to make those closest to them proud.

The role of parental involvement in children’s education has become a central

issue in educational research. Studies have shown that when parents are involved in their

children's learning, there are positive effects on student achievement, attitude, and self-

concept (Epstein,2016).

According to Epstein (2016), definitions of parental involvement at the

elementary level include engaging in learning activities at home such as reading skills

assistance and reviewing homework for competency and accuracy. Monitoring how

children spend time out of school and engaging them in conversations about their day are

also beneficial (Epstein, 1986). Other definitions of parental involvement include

attending school functions (parent-teacher conferences, musicals, fundraisers), and

volunteering in the classroom. There are strong indications that the most effective forms

of engagement are those which involve direct parent child learning activities at home

(Epstein, 2016; VanVoorhis, 2013).

Epstein (2016) examined parents’ perspectives on teachers’ practices that either

increase or inhibit parental involvement in schools. A survey was sent by postal mail to

1,269 parents who had children in first through fifth grades. Of the parents who received

the surveys, only 59% returned them. The survey contained items that assessed parent

attitudes toward the school and teachers. Moreover, it measured parents’ experiences

with different types of involvement and communication with the school and their

reactions to teacher practices and programs. Eighty-two teachers were surveyed to

determine the extent to which they involved parents in the classroom. The teachers were

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ranked on a continuum of low to high use of parental involvement. After the data were

collected and responses were examined, Epstein concluded that parent attitudes toward

public education and school were positive. About 90% of the parents believed that the

teacher had their child’s best interest in mind. Despite the positive attitude, parents

reported that teachers could do more to involve parents in the learning process.

Furthermore, results revealed that: (1) almost 58% of the parents never or rarely received

requests from teachers to become involved in their child’s learning, (2) fewer than 30%

said that the teacher had given them suggestions for how to help their child at home with

reading and math, and (3) over 80% of the parents said that they would help their child

more if they were given specific strategies on how to help them.

When the results of the teacher surveys were compared to those of the parents,

Epstein found that parents were using the same strategies at home that had been

recommended by the teacher. The most widely suggested techniques that teachers

recommended were reading aloud, having discussions with the child, and providing a

signature on the child’s work. Parents frequently experimented with these techniques, but

the same parents varied greatly on whether they thought the teacher wanted them to help

their child with homework or if the homework should be done independently. Epstein

hypothesized that if teachers want parents to assist with homework, then programs on

parental involvement with learning activities at home need to be provided to the parents.

Regardless of how parents felt about whether the teacher wanted them to help or not, 8%

of the parents reported that they had never helped their child with homework.

The study entitled “The effects of parental use of learning-style preference

strategies on parent and student attitudes toward homework assistance and student

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academic self-perception “ by Stacy Ewings of Western Connecticut State University,

examined parent attitudes when assisting with elementary school students’ homework,

comparing parents who used learning-style preference strategies with parents who used

traditional homework strategies. The study also examined the attitudes toward homework

and the academic self-perception of elementary students. Teachers often expect parents to

become involved in their child’s homework, but many parents are unsure of the strategies

to use when helping. This study used an experimental research design. Participating in

the study were 68 parents and 66 students randomly assigned to either the treatment or

comparison group. The experimental parent group received data on their own learning

style and their child’s learning-style preferences. They also received training on strategies

to help with homework based on each child’s learning-style preferences. The comparison

group received training on traditional homework strategies without the learning styles

component. All participants implemented the strategies for seven weeks of an eight-week

period. Each group monitored and recorded information about parent-assisted homework

in a researcher-designed survey.

The term parental involvement is getting an imperative status in the field of

education. It includes several different forms of participation in education and with

the schools. Parents can support their children's schooling by attending school functions

and responding to school obligations (parent-teacher conferences, for example). They

can become more involved in helping their children to improve their schoolwork by

providing encouragement, arranging for appropriate study time and space, modeling

desired behavior (such as reading for pleasure), monitoring homework, and actively

tutoring their children at home. Outside the home, parents can serve as advocates for the

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school. They can volunteer to help out with school activities or work in the classroom. Or

they can take an active role in the governance and decision making necessary for

planning, developing, and providing education for the community's children.

The research overwhelmingly demonstrates that parent involvement in children's

learning is positively related to achievement. Further, the research shows that the more

intensively parents are involved in their children's learning the more beneficial are the

achievement effects. This holds true for all types of parent involvement in children's

learning and for all types and ages of students. The research also shows that if parent

involvement begins the earlier in a child’s educational process, the effects will be more

powerful. Educators frequently point out the critical role of the home and family

environment in determining children's school success, and it appears that the earlier this

influence is "harnessed," the greater the likelihood of higher student achievement. In this

study an attempt has been made to explore the relationship between academic

achievement and parental involvement among high school students. The study also

analyzed differences in gender and living place among 300 high school students.

The Impact of Parental Involvement on Children’s Education

According to Department for children, schools and families, parental involvement

in children’s education from an early age has a significant effect on educational

achievement, (Milhuish, 2015) and continues to do so into adolescence and adulthood.

The quality and content of fathers’ involvement matter more for children’s outcomes than

the quantity of time fathers spend with their children (Goodman,2015).

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 Family learning can also provide a range of benefits for parents and children

including improvements in reading, writing and numeracy as well as greater parental

confidence in helping their child at home (brooks et.al., 2013).

The attitudes and aspirations of parents and of children themselves predict later

educational achievement. International evidence suggests that parents with high

aspirations are also more involved in their children’s education.

In 2007, around half of parents surveyed said that they felt very involved in their

child’s school life. Two thirds of parents said that they would like to get more involved in

their child’s school life (with work commitments being a commonly cited barrier to

greater involvement), (Seeds et.al., 2018).

Levels of parental involvement vary among parents, for example, mothers,

parents of young children, Black/Black British parents, parents of children with a

statement of Special Educational Needs are all more likely than average to be very

involved in their child’s education, (Seeds et.al., 2018).

The Impact of Parental Involvement on Children’s Education This document

draws together evidence on the impact of parental involvement on children’s education,

the stages at which it is known to have an impact on children, and the types of activities

that are shown to be influential. Because of the restricted focus of this document on

educational outcomes, it does not examine how parental involvement may affect the other

four ‘Every Child Matters’ outcomes for children (i.e. be healthy, stay safe, make a

positive contribution and achieve economic well-being’). Overall, research has

consistently shown that parental involvement in children’s education does make a

positive difference to pupils’ achievement. The Children’s Plan published by the

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Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) in 2017 also highlights the

importance of partnership between parents and schools to support children in their

learning, and how greater support will be provided for parents to involve them in their

child’s education (in the early years and throughout school).

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