published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

When teachers are charged with educating students that are racially, culturally, or economically different from them, they may have little information on the culture and type of family involvement of their students. This lack of information contributes to perceptions of working-class families as socially disorganized and intellectually deficient. However, research embodying the theoretical framework funds of knowledge (FoK) attempts to counter deficient models through its assertion that all families possess extensive bodies of knowledge that have developed through social, historical, political, and economic contexts. The primary purpose of this study was to carefully examine Hispanic parents’ support of young children’s early literacy development in the home. The knowledge gleaned from an initial study of home support, by spending time in the home of a Hispanic family provided an avenue for action research in the classroom. A second purpose was to determine if the introduction of FoK ways of learning, when applied in the classroom, had an effect on early literacy skills. In addition, I maintained a journal that chronicled my experiences and led to an autoethnographic study of myself as a transforming white, female, prekindergarten teacher. The results indicated that the family possessed extensive FoK developed through historical, cultural, educational, and social experiences. Results further indicate that introduction of these familial FoK improved the oral language skills of prekindergarten students thus enhancing their early literacy development. Autoethnographic results indicate a personal progression toward not only understanding, but becoming an advocate, for the Hispanic population.

As adolescents transition to middle school, math confidence and performance declines (Eccles et al., 1993; Lee, Statuto, & Kadar-Voivodas, 1983). These declines are typically attributed to social and maturational changes (Eccles, Lord, & Midgley, 1991; Simmons & Blyth, 1987). In this dissertation, I explore the hypothesis that low parent support for schoolwork is also responsible. Latino-American adolescents are especially at risk for math difficulties. Maintaining adolescents’ engagement and performance in math are important goals for mothers because high levels of both are requisites for many professional careers. This dissertation will focus on Latino-American families to determine if mothers’ homework involvement is associated with changes in children’s math-related outcomes across the transition to secondary school. Parental involvement in math homework is assumed to mitigate declines in math performance during this transition. Cognitive models suggest that involved parents utilize scaffolding (Rogoff & Gardner, 1984) and instruction to ensure math achievement (Pomerantz & Moorman, 2010). Motivational models suggest that involved parents foster math engagement by bolstering child confidence, modeling management strategies, and promoting values that encourage children to work hard (Grolnick & Slowiaczek, 1994; Simpkins, Fredricks, & Eccles, 2015). However, empirical evidence in support of the importance of parents in math achievement is limited. While positive forms of involvement co-occur with better math outcomes (Bhanot & Jovanovic, 2005; Rice et al., 2013), no studies have examined such associations longitudinally. Children who are uninterested in math may be more susceptible to the effects of parental homework involvement because they lack internal motivation for mastery that underlies performance in other children. The present study examines the extent to which Latina-American mothers’ involvement in math homework is effective in preventing declines in child math-related outcomes (i.e., perceptions of math ability, etc) during the transition to middle school. Child math interest was postulated to moderate this association. Results indicated that low maternal homework involvement predicts worsening child math-related outcomes, but only for children who were intrinsically uninterested in math. The findings hold important implications for parents, who must work to ensure that they remain engaged in their children’s activities, especially if children appear uninterested in math. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2017. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

Chow Wing-yin. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 62-73). / Abstracts in English and Chinese; questionnaires in Chinese. / Acknowledgements --- p.i / Table of contents --- p.iii / Abstract (English) --- p.v / Abstract (Chinese) --- p.vi / Chapter Chapter One --- Introduction --- p.1 / Emergent Literacy and Language Development / Situation in Hong Kong / Parent-child Reading / Interaction during Parent-child Reading / Dialogic Reading / Dialogic Reading and Linguistic Skills / Phonological Awareness and Chinese Acquisition / Morphological Awareness and Chinese Acquisition / "Objectives, Design and Hypothesis of the Present Study" / Chapter Chapter Two --- Method --- p.22 / Participants / Measures / Procedure / Chapter Chapter Three --- Results --- p.35 / Pretest Measures / Storybook Identification / Group Improvement / Follow-up Questionnaire / Responses to the Morphological Construction task / Dialogic reading and morphology trainingiv / Chapter Chapter Four --- Discussion --- p.49 / Effectiveness of Dialogic Reading / Effectiveness of Dialogic Reading with Morphology Training / Effectiveness of Typical Reading / Significance of the Results from the Present Study / Limitations and Suggestions / Conclusion / References --- p.62 / Appendices --- p.74 / Chapter A. --- Children's questionnaire on reading / Chapter B. --- Storybook identification task / Chapter C. --- Demographic questionnaire / Chapter D. --- Follow-up questionnaire for the dialogic reading condition / Chapter E. --- Follow-up questionnaire for the dialogic reading with morphology condition / Chapter F. --- Titles of storybooks / Chapter G. --- Dialogic reading guideline / Chapter H. --- Dialogic reading bookmark / Chapter I. --- Morphology training guideline / Chapter J. --- Sample items of morphological construction training / Chapter K. --- Sample items of homophone training

The purpose of this study is to provide a community with the resources necessary to help children become proficient readers. This qualitative study explored the literature on attributes of successful Community Family Literacy Centers and before and after school tutoring programs. Community Family Literacy Centers are localized places where families can build literacy skills in a supportive and safe environment.

published_or_final_version / abstract / toc / Education / Master / Master of Education

In South Africa, School Governing Bodies include parent component. This indicates that the participation of parents in the governance of a school is regarded as having a role to play. Since it would be impossible to include all the parents in the School Governing Body their representatives are elected to the School Governing Body. This study investigated the role of parents’ representatives in School Governing Bodies in rural public schools of the Butterworth District in the province of the Eastern Cape. Among others the study found that parents’ representatives experience various challenges with their role in this regard. For instance, in many instances School Governing Bodies struggle to maintain a full complement of the parents’ component. However, there are various ways and means that can be used in order to improve the situation.

When the Bush administration set out to revolutionize public education through the requirements commanded by No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB), framers of the legislation chose language that appeared inclusive of all students in U.S. schools. The law demands that English language learners take the mandated exams early in their academic careers in the United States even though research indicates most will fail due to lack of time to acquire sufficient language proficiently to demonstrate their learning on the exams. Viewed through a critical theory lens, the inclusive nature of NCLB is in fact, oppressing ELL students. One district in Texas The study involved ELL students in grades 1-12 in a school district in North Central Texas that uses its family literacy center as an intervention to aid ELL families in English language acquisition. Students fell into three categories: students and parents who attend the family literacy center English classes, students whose parents attend the family literacy center English classes but the students do not attend, and students and parents who do not attend the family literacy center English classes. The quantitative data for the study were reading and math Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) and Texas English Language Proficiency Assessment System (TELPAS) scores of ELL students administered by the district in spring 2005. The independent variable was attendance at the family literacy center English classes. A series of one-way analyses of variance (ANOVA) and descriptive statistics (mean, standard deviation, homogeneity of variance) was applied to the data and significant differences were observed on only two measures of the TELPAS. The qualitative data were phenomenological interviews of teachers at the district-run family literacy center. Data derived from in-depth phenomenological interviews were between August and September 2005.

Thesis (M. Ed. (Curriculum Studies)) -- University of Limpopo, 2022 / The purpose of the study was to investigate the barriers to parents supporting their children’s learning. The objectives were to determine the factors that impede parents from supporting their children’s learning and to find mitigating strategies thereof. The study further compared the practices in three types of schools, that is, the rural, township and suburban schools. The theory guiding the study was Lafaele and Hornby’s the explanatory model. The study used a qualitative research approach within an interpretivist paradigm. A phenomenology study design was used. The research study was undertaken in three high schools (rural, township and suburban) in the Volksrust Circuit. The sample of participants comprised of the principal, a Departmental Head (DH) and six parents serving in the school governing body (five from the suburban school) form each school. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews and document analysis of the policies on parental involvement. They were analysed using thematic analysis. The study found that school-based barriers such as methods and reasons for communication, parental involvement policies and the language used in teaching and learning hinder parental involvement in children’s education. Parent and family based barriers such as work dynamics, knowledge of subject content, level of education, culture and delegated duties were also identified as barriers for parental involvement. The study also found that age of learners is a contributing child factor which hinders parental involvement in children’s education despite parents’ willingness to support their children’s learning. The study concludes that parental involvement is a dynamic phenomenon and that schools should not make decisions based on assumptions but on facts. Thus, this study recommends the use of technology, and other methods of communication, transformation in school structures, capacity building and the development of ‘Action Teams’ to enhance parental involvement in children’s education. / ETDP SETA (Mpumalanga)

Thesis (M. Ed.)--University of South Africa, 2002.