The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of parental educational involvement, acculturation and self-esteem on the academic performance and academic aspirations of Mexican American adolescents.

The purpose of the study was to examine Mexican-Americans values and attitudes toward education and further explore some of the reasons Mexican-Americans drop out of school at such high rates.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the current practices of school and community partnerships in five North Texas elementary schools. In addition, the study focused on the influence community partnerships have on at-risk students based on at-risk indicators data. The literature revealed that when schools, parents, and families work together, students tend to earn higher grades, attend school more regularly, stay in school longer, and enrolled in coursework beyond high school. The target population included approximately 350 administrators, teachers, and paraprofessionals from five North Texas elementary schools. Also included were the respective partners from each of the five elementary schools. This research included online survey instrument and data were gathered and analyzed through a combination of statistical procedures and descriptive and inferential statistics. The results may provide other schools with a profile of school and community partnerships that can be implemented as a method to help their at-risk student populations. Findings included a descriptive analysis of factors that contributed to the success of community engagement efforts as well as those factors that limited those efforts. A secondary purpose of this study was of continuous improvement in developing these approaches through a goal-setting approach. Schools included in the study provided a next steps plan by describing their major goal(s) for improving existing school and community partnerships over the next 3 years.

Limited research has been conducted about the involvement of parents in the education of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in South Africa. The main aim of this study was to explore how involved parents and teachers are in the education of learners with ASD in a special educational needs school in Emalahleni. The research investigation was rooted in Epstein’s model for parental involvement. Situated in the interpretivist paradigm, the study adopted a qualitative approach. Data were collected through interviews, document analysis and observations with four parents and four teachers in a special educational needs school in Emalahleni, accommodating learners with ASD. Only parents of learners with ASD and teachers working with children with ASD were included in the study. The findings of the study highlight the importance of parental involvement, benefits and barriers that are associated with parental involvement in the education of children with ASD. The researcher also reported on ways in which parental involvement in the education of children with ASD can be enhanced. The recommendations concluded that in order to promote academic success, the teachers and the parents need to work together. Lastly, the data obtained in this study can be used as a baseline for future research on the parental involvement in South Africa. Future research is needed in order to determine the barriers and benefits of parental involvement in the education of learners with ASD in South Africa. / Inclusive Education / M. Ed. (Inclusive Education)

Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree Master of Education in the Department of Educational Planning and Administration in the Faculty of Education, 2007. / The South Africa Schools Act, (Act No. 84 of 1996) which came into effect on 1 January 1996 and the National Education Policy Act, (Act No. 21 of 1996) introduced a new approach to the South African Education system. These acts, and many policy documents produced by the National Department of Education, provide for the active participation of parents, educators, learners and other members of the community in the governance of schools. Whilst policy mandates stakeholder participation, in practice parent participation is problematic. This study therefore, investigates the role of the principal in facilitating the effective participation of the parent component of the SGB in the provision of quality education in public schools. A review of national and international literature was conducted to establish strategies principals use to facilitate the effective participation of the SGB. An empirical study was also undertaken. A questionnaire with closed-ended and open-ended questions was utilized with the aim of accessing the level of interaction between the SGB and principals of schools. Data from the questionnaire revealed the following key findings, namely: • There is a lack of effective management of parent involvement in school governance. • Limited communication exists between the principal and SGB regarding planned school activities where the SGB is supposed to have an input. • As leaders, principals are grappling to secure effective parent participation in the provision of quality education. Some recommendations are as follows: • Principals should develop orientation and on-going training programmes to capacitate parents to participate effectively in promoting quality public education • Principals should develop an invitational environment at the school • Principals should promote a climate for sound conflict management • Principals should provide sufficient information to SGB members and communicate these timeously to them It is hoped that through this study, principals will be inspired to identify then-limitations relative to the facilitation of parent participation and subsequently adopt one or more of the recommendations offered to armour themselves with strategies to facilitate the effective participation of parents in the provision of quality education for all learners.

Personal handheld mobile technology represents a growing topic of interest for K-12 educators. Devices such as iPads, tablets, and smartphones, in particular, are becoming more ubiquitous in society and prevalent in classrooms of children of all ages. The ease of access, combined with growing functionality and capacity of these devices creates opportunities that were previously unimaginable. Professional educators are beginning to recognize the value such devices offer for enriching and expanding opportunities for learning both inside and outside of the classroom. The views of educators and students regarding mobile technology have been well documented in existing literature. What is less clear is how parents view personal mobile technology when applied to formal and informal learning opportunities. Using quantitative analysis, this study examines the views of parents when mobile technology is utilized in Singaporean third grade classrooms. This study represents a pioneering effort to better understand the evolving role of parents and serves as a foundation for future research to explore the role of parents as partners when personal mobile technology is used for learning. The constructs identified in this study reveal that parents do believe technology skills are important in the modern age of learning and working.

The objective of the project was to develop an online educational technology tool based on research from multiple disciplines to improve effective communication between students, counselors, teachers, parents, and school staff. The website developed for the project aims to increase the involvement of parents in their child's academic progress. The project also includes discussions concerning the website's field testing at a middle school in Rosemead, California, its evaluation through participant surveys, and final revision. The field test participant instructions, survey questions, and a computer disc of the website accompanies the project.

In Namibia, parents are mainly responsible for the establishment of preschools in their communities. However, many preschools in rural areas are beset by problems such as poor basic infrastructure and a shortage of trained staff. In light of evidence that parent involvement in Early Childhood Development (ECD) programmes is beneficial, this study includes a literature review of parent involvement in rural preschools as well as the place and role of parents in BCD provision in Namibia. A qualitative investigation of parent involvement in four rural preschools in the Kavango region was conducted. The data were analysed, discussed and synthesised. Among others it was found that preschools do not have a clear policy on parent involvement and that both parents and teachers lack knowledge on home-school partnerships. Poor socioeconomic circumstances and a lack of leadership exacerbates the problem. Based on the findings, guidelines for improving home-school relationships are proposed. / Educational Studies / M.Ed (Comparative Education)

The purpose of this study was to investigate the functioning of the SGB's in public primary schools. For this purpose, the researcher collected data from both past and recent literature and three public primary schools in the Ekurhuleni South district in Gauteng regarding how effectively SGB's are functioning. Observations of the proceedings were undertaken during SGB several meetings. Unstructured interviews, with a small purposive sample of informants, supplemented the data obtained from the observations. All the data collected in this way were analysed, discussed and synthesised. The major findings of this study are: The efforts made by the DoE to provide training; this was regarded as inadequate to address the complex problems experienced by SGB's. It is therefore recommended that the DoE should provide more intensified SGB developmental training programmes for SGB's and that further research be undertaken regarding the effectiveness of SGB's in public primary schools in South Africa. / Educational Studies / M.Ed. (Education Management)

This study explores the management of parent volunteers in secondary schools in the Limpopo Province. A literature study was conducted to investigate the existing theories and models of managing parent volunteerism in secondary schools. The literature revealed how parent volunteer programmes are conducted in countries, which have developed successful programmes such as the United States. The present state of parent volunteering in secondary schools in South Africa is also investigated to reveal the current situation. A qualitative investigation in two secondary schools in the Limpopo Province was done. Data was gathered by means of semi-structured interviews with principals and deputy principals. Analysed data revealed that there are no volunteer programmes which are implemented in secondary schools in the Limpopo Province and school managers do not have the necessary skills to implement and manage parent volunteer programmes at secondary schools. / Educational Studies / (M.Ed (Education Management))