Browsing by Subject "Parental involvement"
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Item Bilingual education : a history of family and community involvement in schools(2016-12) Herrera, Christopher Lee; Callahan, Rebecca M.The demographics in today’s schools are undergoing large transformations and it is imperative for schools to keep up with this change. In the face of accountability, schools with high minority or ELL populations are not faring as well as others thus they are subject to school reforms that intend to transform the school into one that produces comparable results to higher performing schools. In this review of the literature, I highlight key elements that schools can adopt, specifically those with high minority or ELL populations, to better meet the needs of at-risk students. I elaborate on bilingual education and the relationship it has on academic achievement for ELL and monolingual students. I also elaborate briefly on the importance of community schools as a school improvement strategy and more formally on the important role that the development of strong community-school relationships have on at-risk students. In the third section of the review, I focus heavily on parental involvement and engagement and the role that this has on academic achievement and overall school reform. The findings highlighted in the literature review are promising further intensifying the necessity to consider these strategies as a means for promising school reform. Implications for practice are included at the conclusion of this literature review.Item Does parental involvement increase student achievement? How, why, and for whom?(2010-12) Haldeman, Jennifer L.; Osborne, Cynthia Anne, 1969-; King, ChristopherIncreasing the amount and quality of parental involvement as a means of increasing student achievement has been an important policy focus for the last half century, and is especially true today as the United States is faced with an increasingly diverse student body in its public school system. This report examines what parental involvement and student achievement are, the impact of parental involvement, which groups receive the most impact, and factors that affect parental involvement. The focus is the elementary school level, using literacy level as the primary means of student achievement. Of particular interest are schools with diverse student populations that tend to be linguistically diverse and are identified under the federal Title I program. Current research indicates a positive relationship between parental involvement and its effect on student achievement. The most important factor for quality parental involvement that results in improved student achievement is not the type of activity, but how interaction occurs and the intensity level. Parental involvement programs should provide targeted activities that are curriculum related and culturally sound; they must also have the capacity to be practically implemented in the increasingly busy lives of parents and students. While current studies do support this relationship, parental involvement operates within a complex web of interrelated contexts; further quantitative research using more experimental methods and controlled studies could provide results that would strengthen the evidence of using parental involvement as a policy or program choice for increasing student achievement. Policy recommendations are directed primarily at school teachers and administration. Those recommendations are to 1) ensure a welcoming environment through invitations by teachers and students; 2) increase parental self-efficacy; 3) develop extended family resources; 4) highlight the different avenues of parental involvement; 5) allow time for teachers to plan and develop relationships; and 6) ask the parents.Item Elementary school administrators' perceptions of parental involvement : from espoused theory to theory-in-use within school improvement efforts(2011-05) Garcia, Maritza Fuentes; Young, Michelle D.; Olivarez, Ruben; valenzuela, Angela; Barrera, John; Guthrie, HalThis qualitative study explored the perceptions and practices of elementary school administrators regarding parental involvement in three urban elementary schools. Particular attention was given to understanding the connection between the beliefs that school leaders shared about parental involvement and its role in school improvement (i.e., their espoused theories) and to how they supported parental involvement in their school community (i.e., their theories in use). Using Argyris and Schön’s (1978) theories of action framework, face-to face interview data and school and district documents were collected and analyzed to explore how well administrators’ practices relative to parental involvement (theory-in-use) aligned with their beliefs and perceptions (espoused theory). As such, data analysis focused on understanding both what administrators believe and what they do to use parental involvement to support school improvement efforts.Item Empowerment/disempowerment issues in immigrant parents’ school involvement experiences in their children’s schooling : Korean immigrant mothers’ perceptions(2012-05) Kwon, Yi Jeong; Reifel, Robert Stuart; Schallert, Diane L.; Salinas, Cynthia S.; Suizzo, Marie-Anne P.; Urrieta, LuisUsing Delgado-Gaitan and Trueba’s (1991) empowerment/disempowerment definition as a framework, this dissertation investigated how Korean immigrant mothers perceived and practiced parental involvement in their children’s schooling, and how an empowerment/disempowerment process occurred during their involvement. To inquire into the research questions, this study used the qualitative case study method, and five Korean immigrant mothers were the cases. The interview method was used to gather data, and an unstructured interview protocol, as well as a semi-structured interview protocol, was used for the interviews. Each mother was interviewed three times. From this study, I found these things: For the concept of schooling, all the Korean mothers in this study agreed that schooling is all activities relevant to acquiring abilities related to having a better school life, and that the concept of parental involvement includes all the activities to support their children’s schooling, regardless of activity types. In a comparison of their beliefs and their practices for involvement, they show accord in terms of the comprehensive nature of parental involvement. However, there were also discrepancies between their perceptions and practices of involvement. To get an understanding of the discrepancy issue, their involvement experiences were explored, based on an empowerment/disempowerment framework. The Korean immigrant mothers showed distinctive features in empowerment and disempowerment while they were involved in their children’s schooling. First, they felt contradictory feelings—guilt and pride-- toward their identity, and this influenced their empowerment and disempowerment. The second feature was the struggles that the Korean immigrant mothers reported: cultural differences, exclusion, and a lack of English skill for involvement. Last, the most salient feature to influence their empowerment/disempowerment was the standard they were using to evaluate their involvement. These findings were discussed in terms of the features of empowerment/ disempowerment and the factors that influenced their empowerment and disempowerment. The Korean mothers’ standard of evaluation was discussed in depth, since it was determined to be the most basic issue to impact their empowerment/ disempowerment experiences. Based on the findings, this dissertation concluded with presenting implications for teachers, educational administrators, and Korean immigrant mothers themselves, and with suggestions for future research.Item The experience of African American parents with the special education system : a review of literature(2015-05) Akinola, Olayemi Ajibola; Bryant, Diane Pedrotty; Linan-Thompson, SylviaThis study is a review of literature on the experiences of African American parents of children with disabilities in the special education system. The reviewed works span between 1990 and 2014, and the purpose of the review is to understand (a) the experiences of African American parents of children with disabilities with the special education process, (b) the factors impacting these parents participation in their children’s education, (c) their experiences with special education professionals, and (d) their perspectives on the factors that hinders or facilitate their relationship with special education professionals. Thirteen studies met the inclusion criteria of being published in peer-reviewed journals or dissertations and investigating the experiences of African American parents of children who receive special education services. The findings suggest that parents' participation in special education processes and parent-professional relationships are influenced by factors such as communication issues, cultural difference, support from the system, knowledge of special education law and procedures. I conclude this study by proposing recommendations for improving the experiences of African American parents in special education process.Item A meta-analysis : the effects of parental involvement on Asian American children's academic achievement(2015-05) Zhou, Lisha; Adair, Jennifer Keys; Brown, Christopher P.A meta-analysis, based on 13 empirical studies, was conducted to investigate the relation between parental involvement and Asian American students' academic achievement. Parental involvement was divided into three types: school-based involvement, home-based involvement and community-based involvement. Home-based involvement was divided into three subtypes: parent-child communication, educational aspiration, and home supervision. The results showed that parental involvement had only slight positive effects on Asian American students' academic achievement. For the types or subtypes of parental involvement, only community-based involvement and educational aspiration consistently demonstrated slight positive effects. Home-based involvement and home supervision tended to exert a positive influence, while school-based involvement and parent-child communication tended to exert a negative influence. The reasons for the results are discussed, and the limitations for this study are also noted.Item Parent autonomy support, academic achievement and psychosocial functioning : a meta-analysis of research(2014-05) Crowther, Ariana Christine; Borich, Gary D.In a synthesis of research on parent autonomy support, meta-analytic results indicated that parental autonomy support was related to greater academic achievement, autonomous motivation, and psychological health. A meta-analysis of 20 studies correlating parent autonomy support and achievement-related outcomes revealed that parental autonomy support had a positive relationship with achievement outcomes. A meta-analysis of 8 samples from 6 studies correlating parent autonomy support and autonomous motivation revealed autonomy support had a stronger relation with motivation for school in general than motivation for non-school domains. A meta-analysis of 11 studies correlating parent autonomy support and well-being revealed that parental autonomy support had a stronger relation with non-school related self-esteem than in academic self-esteem. Implications for future research and practice are discussed. A suggested intervention program is also analyzed.Item The role of parents in early sport specialization : a grounded theory of soccer parents(2011-05) Ozyurtcu, Tolga; Green, B. Christine; Todd, Janice S.Sport specialization is defined as a year-round, highly structured commitment to training for and competing in a single sport. Children who begin the process of specialization at an early age are potentially susceptible to several undesirable outcomes, including an increased risk of orthopedic injury, psychological burnout, and limited social development. Despite these inherent risks, the practice of early sport specialization has become prevalent in the United States. This study uses a grounded theory methodology to examine the role of parents in early sport specialization practices. Drawing on in-depth interviews with twelve parents of adolescent soccer players, the study finds that parents are drawn to early sport specialization because of multiple perceived benefits for their children. The two most prominent of these benefits are positive socialization and the use of the sport as a lever for higher education. Parents act on limited information when making decisions regarding early sport specialization, relying on advice and information from coaches, soccer clubs, and other parents to make their decisions. In this manner, the parents themselves are socialized into the culture of early specialized sport, adopting the established values and beliefs of the practice, and furthering the advancement of the practice of early specialization in youth sport.Item The effects of individual and familial factors on mathematics achievement for young women(Texas Tech University, 2008-12) Baykina, Marianna; Burley, Hansel E.This study investigated the interaction between dimensions of individual student differences, familial factors, and parental involvement in their children’s academic education as accounting for female high school students’ achievement in mathematics and persistence in classes of advanced mathematics. The study utilized secondary data from the National Educational Longitudinal Study 1988. Individual student differences were assessed as differences in locus of control and math self-efficacy. Familial factors included the presence of older and younger brothers in the family. Parental involvement in their children’s schooling was assessed based both on parents’ reports and students’ reports. Statistical analyses included factor analysis and multiple regression analysis. Obtained results demonstrated that student individual factors had more impact on achievement in mathematics and in persistence in classes of advanced mathematics than parental involvement did, thus supporting the theoretical model of Bronfenbrenner (1999) with regard to proximity of influences. Presence of brothers in the family appeared not to have an effect on respondents’ mathematics achievement or mathematics-related choices.Item The relationship between teachers’ self-efficacy beliefs and parental involvement practices: A multi-method study(2013-05) Krizman, Charlotte; Siwatu, Kamau O.; Coward, Fanni; Lan, WilliamThis study was designed to explore the relationship between teachers’ self-efficacy beliefs and their use of family involvement practices. Bandura’s concept of self-efficacy and Epstein’s typology of family involvement provided the theoretical framework for examining this relationship. The study employed both quantitative and qualitative data collection methods, justifying a two-phase sequential multi-methods study. In the first phase of the study, self-reporting instruments were used to discover the nature of the relationship between teacher self-efficacy, teacher’s family involvement self-efficacy, and the teacher’s use of family involvement practices. Teacher self-efficacy and family involvement self-efficacy were measured, respectively, using the Teacher’s Sense of Efficacy Scale and the Family Involvement Teacher Efficacy Scale. Family involvement practices were self-recorded using the Teacher’s Family Involvement Practices Survey. In the second phase of the research, qualitative data was collected via interviews with a purposeful sample of teachers to further investigate the relationship between the two constructs. Participants in the study included 49 teachers from three different school districts along Mississippi’s Gulf Coast region. Of those that participated, eight agreed to provide qualitative data in a follow-up interview. The findings of the research indicate that a moderately strong relationship exists between teaching self-efficacy and the use of parental involvement practices. In other words, higher levels of teaching self-efficacy were associated with more frequent use of parental involvement practices. Teaching self-efficacy in student engagement and instructional strategies were significantly associated to teaching self-efficacy. The research findings also revealed that communication is by far the most frequently used parental involvement practice. Other practices were largely neglected, which may be due to a variety of reasons, such as lack of appropriate training in the various methods available for parental involvement; variables within the school atmosphere that make parental involvement difficult, and logistical obstacles that teachers face as they try to involve parents. Finally, despite having been significantly established in previous studies, the relationship between teacher family involvement self-efficacy and the use of parental involvement practices was not found to be significant with this study. The instrumentation used in this study may play a role in this phenomenon and should be considered carefully before employing it in future research.