Magister Educationis - MEd / Parental involvement in their children’s schooling has been found to be an important factor with regard to children’s experience of schooling including their academic performance. This quantitative study focused on parental involvement at a school of skills in the Cape metropole, Western Cape. Epstein’s (2009) six typologies of parental involvement in their children’s schooling provided the theoretical framework of the study and guided the formulation of the research instrument and the data analysis of the study. A survey research design was used and 74 parent/caregiver participants were conveniently sampled after all ethical protocols were followed. The findings indicated that participants: (i) indicated a very positive attitude towards being involved in the education of their children at the school of skills and were inspired to be involved in the education of their children, (ii) were highly involved in the following typologies of parental involvement: learning at home, parenting and collaboration with community, (iii) communication between school and the parents as a form of parental involvement was found to be at a moderate level, (iv) participants were found to be minimally involved in decision-making as a form of parental involvement, (v) volunteering as a form of parental involvement was represented by low to moderate levels of involvement, (vi) participants’ marital status, forms of kinship relations with the learners at the school of skills (e.g. biological mother, foster parent) and levels of formal education were not found to have a significant statistical relationship with their levels of parental involvement in their children’s schooling. (vii) The challenges that participants faced with regard to their involvement in their children’s schooling included the following: a) a fair number of about 30% participants frequently found language as a barrier for them to assist their children with homework, b) about 46% of the participants indicated that they were seldom or never recruited by educators to volunteer at the School of Skills, c) about half of the participants indicated that their challenge was that they were not trained on how to offer their talents for volunteering at the school, d) participants also found it difficult to share information with the school about their child’s cultural background, talents, and needs.

Submitted in Fulfilment or Partial Fulfilment of the Requirement for the DEGREE OF MA S T E R 0 F EDUC A T ION in the Department of Educational Planning and Administration at the University of Zululand, 1983. / The object of this dissertation was to determine parental involvement as an administrative component of educational administration for the Black people in South Africa. This study is in field of Educational Administration. Parents are the first persons to organise educational situations for the child. Six chapters were written. When stating the problem, it was indicated in the first chapter that serious administrative problems may come about as a result of unwholemome relationship and lack of co-operation between parents a^d administrators of education. The study of Educational Administration, its definitions, nature, purposes and procedure, demonstrate the relevance of participation of the parent clientele. In considering educational administration as a practice a three- *evel paradigm was used, namely,the macro- meso- and micro-structural levels. After analysing the administration of education for the Blac*ks in South Africa it was found that Black parental involvement is inadequate. Recommendations for the increase of parental involve¬ment were made. / The University of Zululand

A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Education in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Education (Educational Psychology) in the Department of Educational Psychology & Special Needs Education at the University of Zululand, 2015 / Parents play a crucial role in the support of learning. The study focused on the parental involvement in the education of teenagers with special needs in a High School in Pinetown district. The aim as to understand the role of parents in the education of their special need teenagers, thus, an in-depth literature study on different ways of parental involvement was undertaken. The comparison was made between how developed countries and developing countries perceive and engage parents in the education process. The laws and legislations that promote parental involvement were also looked at. Epstein (1995) theory of overlapping spheres of influence was discussed. It is emphasised that learners should be the focal point of all programmes to foster parental involvement and that learners succeed at a higher level when internal and external models of influence intersect and work together to promote learning. Furthermore, Epstein (2001) typology of parental involvement was discussed. Bronfenbrenner’s (1979) ecosystemic theory showed that a strong family and school linkage for the academic and socio-emotional development of a teenager with special needs is important and should be sustained. Qualitative research methodology was applied to gather data. Purposive sampling was used to select the participants which the researcher thought would provide with rich descriptions of their beliefs. Ten parents were interviewed, using the language they best understood. To better understand how they viewed parental involvement and what were the techniques they would like the school to employ to improve parental involvement. Tesch’s (1990) method of data analysis was used to assist the researcher in reducing the massive data into relevant themes and sub-themes. The results revealed that the beliefs that parents hold about the school, level of education, unwelcoming atmosphere in the school, limited time availability of parents, lack of support to equip parents with necessary skills to be effectively involved in the education of their teenager learners were identified as some of the barrier to parental involvement. The results also indicated that parents, school and community needed to be involved in teenagers’ education and development. For collaboration and partnership to take place there should be clear lines of communication and professional relationship guided by trust and respect. The study concluded with recommendations to develop strategies that could be used for effective parental involvement. The results may assist the school to fulfil its role as a community institution, assist parents to realise their role in the development of their teenagers, promote awareness of the factors that might influence the formulation of policies. However, further research on the topic was suggested.

Parents, teachers, and administrators have different perceptions of the importance and effects of parental involvement. A rural school district was experiencing low levels of parental involvement; therefore, to address that problem, the purpose of this concurrent mixed methods study was to explore the experiences and ideas of parents, teachers, and administrators related to parental involvement. The theoretical framework was based on Epstein's 6 types of parental involvement: parenting, communicating, volunteering, learning at home, decision making, and collaborating. Data were collected from parents (n=67), teachers (n=4), and administrators (n= 3) from 5 rural elementary schools. Instruments included Epstein's School and Family Partnership Survey and a qualitative questionnaire to examine the perceived effects of parental involvement. Descriptive analysis of the survey data indicated that parents wanted more communication from schools, ; teachers reported that active participation from parents is vital for student success, and administrators indicated the need to support both parents and teachers. Content analysis of the qualitative questionnaire determined common themes, indicating that frequent communication was an important factor in projecting student outcomes and future relationships within the learning community. The study contributes to positive social change by providing the local district with knowledge that supports parental involvement programs and provides ideas for improvement, which may ultimately improve student outcomes.

A decline in parent participation in one impoverished Pre-K through Grade 5 school in Texas over recent years has been an ongoing concern for school administrators. The purpose of this instrumental case study was to investigate parent perceptions of the school's efforts to involve parents in the school. Research questions focused on identifying factors that inhibited parental involvement concentrating on parent perceptions of school efforts. Constructivist theory and the advocacy/liberatory framework formed the conceptual framework for this study. A triangulation method for data collection included parent interviews, teacher questionnaires, and observations of parental involvement activities over 12 weeks. Participants were a typical sampling of 9 teachers and 9 parents. Observations were logged and coded. Teacher questionnaires were thematically coded and used to create probing questions for parent interviews. Interview transcripts were coded, and member checks validated findings. Results indicated that school practices for parent involvement were unclear to parents, inconsistently implemented, and poorly communicated. Parents reported that consistent communication and encouragement could help break down barriers to participation. As a result of these findings, a parental involvement project was formulated including research based goals, a plan for implementation, and a program evaluation. These findings and proposed project could lead to positive social change by assisting local staff to design a parental involvement program that gives parents a voice in school practices and by providing a model for other schools struggling to involve parents.

Parental involvement practices in education have traditionally referred to overt forms of involvement such as attending school meetings, parent teacher conferences, and volunteering at the school. Research suggests that Latinx parents do not utilize these approaches as much as they do subtler practices. These practices are manifested in parents’ communication with their children, their parenting styles, and the academic expectations they place on their children. The current study intended to recognize the parental practices used by Latinx parents that contribute to educational attainment and combat fixed beliefs regarding their lack of involvement in their children’s education. The data collection was completed via Qualtrics panel and funded by the CEHS Graduate Student Research Award grant. The final sample consisted of 252 Latinx parents (age 18 or older) nationwide who had a child or children in kindergarten through sixth grades. Respondents reported being more involved in their children’s education than their parents. Each parenting variable was significantly associated with respondents’ academic outcomes with the exception of parental pressure. Results suggest intergenerational transmission of parenting practices regardless of acculturation level and support for a nuanced examination of predictors of academic achievement for Latinxs. Results also reflect vi Latinx parents’ involvement in their children’s education in meaningful ways. Parents’ level of acculturation played a role in the relationship between their self-reports and what they recalled about how they were parented. Specifically, the relationship between self-report and retrospective report of authoritarian parenting and parental pressure was strongest for respondents at the highest levels of Latinx acculturation and lowest at the lowest levels of Latinx acculturation. Overall, Latinx respondents appear to be following their parents’ parenting practices regardless of their level of acculturation, and these practices predict Latinxs’ educational attainment. Understanding how Latinx parents involve themselves in their children’s education debunks the myth that they are not involved and opens pathways to collaboration and support between these parents and the U.S. education system

Parental involvement 1n early childhood intervention with children at risk has been reported as an effective variable in treatment both in popular literature and research reviews. However, the results of meta-analyses of early intervention literature have concluded that research evidence is not currently available to support this notion. Therefore, research which employs strong methodology to study the efficacy of parental involvement in early interventions with children at risk is needed. The purpose of this study was to determine whether, in a sample of preschoolers exhibiting developmental and behavioral risk, there are posttreatment differences between different levels of parent-involved groups in developmental skill, problem behavior, or parents' childrearing behaviors and knowledge of behavioral principles. Forty-two 3- to 5-year-old children and their parents served as the study sample. The selection criteria included showing evidence of mild or moderate developmental or behavioral problems or other risk indices. Risk data was obtained by parent report and by scores on the Battelle Developmental Inventory. Demographic data was also obtained. Three intervention groups provided either high parental involvement, low parental involvement, or a no-treatment waiting list. Children in the high and low parental involvement groups participated 1n a four-month center - based program. Parents in the high involvement group participated in an intensive center-based program and home-based activities. Parents in the low involvement group completed only homebased activities. The children were assessed with the Battelle Developmental Inventory and the Burk's Behavior Inventory. Parents were assessed with the Iowa Parent Behavior Inventory and the Knowledge of Behavioral Principles as Applied to Children. The three study groups were found to be comparable in terms of demographic variables and pretreatment developmental screening scores. No significant differences were found between groups on any of the child assessments. Mothers in the high parental involvement group scored significantly higher on a test of Knowledge of Behavioral Principles as Applied to Children. Additional information was provided in the study on actual (vs. intended) treatment participation and on quality of parent-child interactions. Possible reasons for lack of child treatment effects and strengths and weaknesses of this study were discussed. It was recommended that future research combine high - quality research designs with a strong conceptual framework and assess both quantitative and qualitative treatment outcomes in exploring the benefits of parental involvement in early intervention with children at risk.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / In 1787, Prince Hall, a Revolutionary War veteran, community leader, and Black parent, petitioned the Massachusetts legislature on behalf of Black children demanding a separate “African” school. Hall claimed that Black children were met with continuous hostility and suffered maltreatment when attending White controlled schools. Many have documented similar claims and actions by Black parents throughout history. These experiences present a consistent insidious counter-narrative of parental involvement challenging the notion of race neutral schools but congruently demonstrate a racial phenomenon in the purview of parental involvement that is undertheorized. Considering these experiences, my central research question was, how is one involved as a Black parent in their child’s education? Among 16 sets of Black parents, this study explored the relationship between race, racism, parental involvement using critical race theory (CRT), and critical qualitative research methods. Findings indicate that Black parental involvement included the consideration of how race and racism in schools may impact, at the very least, their children’s academic achievement, which led to two means of protection of their children from anticipated or experienced school related racism; racial socialization, which was chiefly exercised as involvement at the home level, and racial vigilance, which seemed to be a pervasive form of involvement at the school and home level. I consider the totality of these parental involvement means, Black parental protectionism drawing from Mazama and Lundy conception of racial protectionism. This finding should reframe our understanding of parental involvement but the implications of Black parent protectionism suggest that Black children need protection from racist institutions. When considering the treatment of Black children in White dominated schools over the last four centuries, perhaps Black parents have been their children’s only saving grace to escape the continuous racial maltreatment in schools through time. Instead of falling into traditional research paradigms, which typically relate involvement to achievement, this study concludes with questioning if Black children can receive an optimal education in a pervasive system of racism in schools regardless of Black parental protectionism.

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