Against the background of evidence that parent involvement benefits learners, parents, schools and communities, a need has arisen for effective parent involvment strategies to be developed particularly in rural and disadvantaged communities. A literature study investigated models of parent involvementand the provision of education in North West Province. Barriers to parent involvement in schools were also investigated. A qualitative methodology was used to investigate parent involvement in three rural schools in North West Province. Data were gathered by means of observation, semi-structures focus group interviews with parents and educators and semi-structures in-depth interviewswith principals of participating schools. Thus parents and educators blame each other for lack of participation. Other findings relate to the lack of resources and facilities in schools. Guidelines for proper parent involvement were proposed. / Educational Studies / M.Ed. (Comparative Education)

The primary aim of this research was to determine whether the home environment of secondary school children has an influence on their academic performance. A literature study was done where the major aspects of the home environment were identified: family lifestyle, parental involvement and attitude, physical living conditions. An analysis of academic performance and the factors affecting it was done. A measuring instrument was developed in order to measure the home environment in terms of being positive or negative. The results of the empirical research indicated that while home environment and age do play a significant role in the academic performance of secondary school children, gender, maternal employment, and whether the child lives permanently with both parents, did not. The educational implications of the findings and the teacher's role are discussed, and guidelines regarding the development of a home environment conducive to better academic performance are given. / Psychology of Education / M. Ed. (Psychology of Education)

A figura paterna e suas configurações atuais revelam que o homem, cada vez mais, vem conquistando o seu papel de cuidador dos (as) filhos (as) dentro da família. No entanto, poucos são os estudos sobre pais separados e com guarda dos filhos. Buscando preencher essa lacuna e ampliar a compreensão sobre vínculos pai/filho, o objetivo deste estudo consistiu em analisar como o pai percebe e acompanha o processo de escolha profissional do (a) filho(a) adolescente e como este, por sua vez, percebe a participação paterna nesta etapa da sua vida. A pesquisa utilizou o método de abordagem qualitativa, de característica exploratória. Os participantes foram escolhidos de forma intencional e do tipo amostragem por bola-de-neve. Foram quatro pais separados e não recasados, com a guarda de filhos (as) em fase de escolha profissional e cinco adolescentes, de ambos os sexos, cursando o Ensino Médio ou iniciando um curso de graduação, que moram com o pai. O instrumento utilizado foi constituído por duas entrevistas semiestruturadas conduzidas de forma semidirigida, uma com questões próprias para o pai e outra para o adolescente. Elas foram transcritas e analisadas com base na técnica de Análise de Tema: trabalhou-se com o recorte do texto em unidades de registro. A coleta de informações foi numa instituição de Ensino Médio e particular da cidade do Recife. Os resultados mostraram pais com expectativas em relação ao futuro profissional do filho. Dentre elas: desejo que perpetue ou repita a sua carreira profissional; respeito à escolha que o filho fizer o apoiando no que ele decidir; desejo que o (a) filho (a) tenha sucesso e realização; orientação nas dúvidas sobre a escolha e sobre as profissões; acompanhamento e orientação sobre a realidade das profissões, mercado de trabalho, salário e carreira profissional. Além disso, os pais pesquisados demonstraram influência, disponibilidade para compartilhar, orientar, apoiar e acompanhar tudo que se relacionar com a escolha profissional e projeto de vida futuro dos filhos. Da mesma forma, o (a) filho(a) teve a percepção de que o pai tanto se preocupa e cuida, quanto influencia na decisão dele. Como conclusão, pode-se dizer que o relacionamento entre pai separado e com a guarda dos filhos e seus filhos (as) é permeado por afeto, tranquilidade, compreensão, diálogo e carinho. De uma maneira geral, a figura paterna se preocupa e cuida do filho (a) na sua vida como um todo, incluindo sua vida profissional futura / The father character and its actual configuration reveals that men are, more and more, conquering the role of the childrens keepers in the family. However, there are very few studies about divorced fathers responsible for bringing up their children alone. Looking for filling this gap and maximizing the comprehension on the links between fathers and their sons/daughters, the object of this study consisted on analyzing how fathers perceive and follow their sons and daughters professional choice process and how this father , himself, sees his participation in this process.The research used the method of qualitative exploratory study. The participants were chosen intentionally. There were four divorced fathers that opted for not getting married again, with children who were choosing their professions and five adolescents, both genres, in secondary schools or starting a graduation course. All of them live with their fathers. The tool used in this research were two semi-structured interviews carried out in a semi-directed way. One of the interviews was directed to the father and the other to his son(s)/daughter(s). The questions were transcribed and analyzed based on the theme analysis technique. The collection of information was done in a Private Secondary School located in Recife. The results revealed fathers with great expectations regarding their son/ daughters professional future. Among them, the desire that their son and daughters repeat their professions; the respect to their choices, the desire that their sons and daughters are successful; the guidance regarding the doubts they may have about the choice and professions; the readiness in advising about the reality regarding the professions, jobs market, salaries and professional career. In addition, the researched fathers demonstrated that they may influence, they are disposed to share, advise, support e be close to their sons in relation to their professional choices and future life projects. In the same way, the sons and daughters had the perception that their fathers are worried, take care and influence them on their decisions. To conclude, we can say that the relationship between divorced fathers and their sons and daughters is full of affection, comprehension, dialogue and love. Generally speaking, the fathers are worried but mainly they take care of their children as a whole, including their future career plan

This thesis focuses on the public opinion on single mothers in emergency conditions in Český Krumlov region. The theoretical part defines single mother and single parent family. The fact that in many European countries the numbers of single parent families is increasing is stressed out. The theoretical part describes the changes in models of family behavior have been experienced in the last decades and factors which influence them. Also, basic facts on single families in the Czech Republic are presented e.g. female or male single parent family, their age, reasons for single family, social status, numbers and percentage of children born to single parents within last twenty years etc. In addition particular reasons of becoming a single mother are explained e.g. divorce, single parenting, becoming a widow. A phenomenon of domestic violence is closely related to the subject of single mother, therefore it is dealt with here too. The theoretical part conclusion shows principal reasons which cause that single mothers get into emergency conditions. The practical part presents a research which focuses on public opinions on single mothers in emergency conditions in Český Krumlov region. The field research was conducted through the method of a questionnaire. The focus group was public in Český Krumlov region. The aim of the field research was to map public opinions of Český Krumlov region residents on single mothers in emergency conditions. The research showed that single parent (mother) families are considered to be a group with the highest risks to be exposed to low standard of living. At the same time more than 50 % or respondents think that the most obvious reason for single mother to be in a critical life situation are economic troubles and lack of finance. An important fact which contributed to this result is that more than one quarter of respondents thinks that their current economic situation is not easy or even critical. In respect to domestic violence issue, the research showed that more than half of respondents believe that domestic violence against women by their spouses is mainly a results men aggressive behavior. The most frequent answer picked was aggressiveness initiated by the use of alcohol and drugs, than aggressive behavior inborn i.e. genetic predisposition to act aggressively and aggressive conduct like a way how to escape and resolve life situations which may appear to be unsolvable and an aggressor is not able to control her behavior. Public sees domestic violence to be a serious problem which is mainly present in single mother families. The most of respondents believe that domestic violence against mothers and children is the most frequent reason for single mothers to apply for subsidized single parent accommodation. The results also show that more than 60 % of respondents understand what domestic violence is and that very often victims never tell anyone and keep it secret even though they suffer for years. It is assumed that in this respect, public sees the relation between domestic violence and torturing victims in early childhood. More than 60 % of respondents believe that prevailing numbers of women who are victims of domestic violence in their childhood are victims of domestic violence also when they grow up mainly because of their previous experience when low self-confidence and violence become a part of their daily life even though hard bearing.

Single-parent families in the Czech Republic from census and sample surveys Abstract The main objective of this thesis is to comprehensively chart as much as possible what we can learn about single-parent families in the Czech Republic from all publicly available data sources, such as surveys and censuses. Incomplete families are viewed from a historical and the contemporary perspective and the expected development of a structure for the future is also shown. Single-parent families are a contemporary phenomenon because the number of dependent children in the incomplete families in the Czech republic has increased by almost a half in the last fifteen years. The thesis provides information about various data sources regarding single-parent families and it evaluates their use and comparability for the research. It also contains an analysis of the structure of families and households based on the population development and census data in the Czech Republic. The financial situation of single-parent families is examined in detail - their income expenditure, individual groups of cash expenditures. The thesis also focuses on the description of their apartment's facilities. Based on the results of the generated forecasts of the number of nuclear families in the Czech Republic for the period 2015-2050, which comes...

Made available in DSpace on 2017-06-01T18:08:30Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 dissertacao_cristiane_maria.pdf: 1324657 bytes, checksum: 77a57515d8cecf096c9919159cd2ad3f (MD5) Previous issue date: 2010-03-25 / The father character and its actual configuration reveals that men are, more and more, conquering the role of the children´s keepers in the family. However, there are very few studies about divorced fathers responsible for bringing up their children alone. Looking for filling this gap and maximizing the comprehension on the links between fathers and their sons/daughters, the object of this study consisted on analyzing how fathers perceive and follow their sons and daughters´ professional choice process and how this father , himself, sees his participation in this process.The research used the method of qualitative exploratory study. The participants were chosen intentionally. There were four divorced fathers that opted for not getting married again, with children who were choosing their professions and five adolescents, both genres, in secondary schools or starting a graduation course. All of them live with their fathers. The tool used in this research were two semi-structured interviews carried out in a semi-directed way. One of the interviews was directed to the father and the other to his son(s)/daughter(s). The questions were transcribed and analyzed based on the theme analysis technique. The collection of information was done in a Private Secondary School located in Recife. The results revealed fathers with great expectations regarding their son/ daughters´ professional future. Among them, the desire that their son and daughters repeat their professions; the respect to their choices, the desire that their sons and daughters are successful; the guidance regarding the doubts they may have about the choice and professions; the readiness in advising about the reality regarding the professions, jobs market, salaries and professional career. In addition, the researched fathers demonstrated that they may influence, they are disposed to share, advise, support e be close to their sons in relation to their professional choices and future life projects. In the same way, the sons and daughters had the perception that their fathers are worried, take care and influence them on their decisions. To conclude, we can say that the relationship between divorced fathers and their sons and daughters is full of affection, comprehension, dialogue and love. Generally speaking, the fathers are worried but mainly they take care of their children as a whole, including their future career plan / A figura paterna e suas configurações atuais revelam que o homem, cada vez mais, vem conquistando o seu papel de cuidador dos (as) filhos (as) dentro da família. No entanto, poucos são os estudos sobre pais separados e com guarda dos filhos. Buscando preencher essa lacuna e ampliar a compreensão sobre vínculos pai/filho, o objetivo deste estudo consistiu em analisar como o pai percebe e acompanha o processo de escolha profissional do (a) filho(a) adolescente e como este, por sua vez, percebe a participação paterna nesta etapa da sua vida. A pesquisa utilizou o método de abordagem qualitativa, de característica exploratória. Os participantes foram escolhidos de forma intencional e do tipo amostragem por bola-de-neve. Foram quatro pais separados e não recasados, com a guarda de filhos (as) em fase de escolha profissional e cinco adolescentes, de ambos os sexos, cursando o Ensino Médio ou iniciando um curso de graduação, que moram com o pai. O instrumento utilizado foi constituído por duas entrevistas semiestruturadas conduzidas de forma semidirigida, uma com questões próprias para o pai e outra para o adolescente. Elas foram transcritas e analisadas com base na técnica de Análise de Tema: trabalhou-se com o recorte do texto em unidades de registro. A coleta de informações foi numa instituição de Ensino Médio e particular da cidade do Recife. Os resultados mostraram pais com expectativas em relação ao futuro profissional do filho. Dentre elas: desejo que perpetue ou repita a sua carreira profissional; respeito à escolha que o filho fizer o apoiando no que ele decidir; desejo que o (a) filho (a) tenha sucesso e realização; orientação nas dúvidas sobre a escolha e sobre as profissões; acompanhamento e orientação sobre a realidade das profissões, mercado de trabalho, salário e carreira profissional. Além disso, os pais pesquisados demonstraram influência, disponibilidade para compartilhar, orientar, apoiar e acompanhar tudo que se relacionar com a escolha profissional e projeto de vida futuro dos filhos. Da mesma forma, o (a) filho(a) teve a percepção de que o pai tanto se preocupa e cuida, quanto influencia na decisão dele. Como conclusão, pode-se dizer que o relacionamento entre pai separado e com a guarda dos filhos e seus filhos (as) é permeado por afeto, tranquilidade, compreensão, diálogo e carinho. De uma maneira geral, a figura paterna se preocupa e cuida do filho (a) na sua vida como um todo, incluindo sua vida profissional futura

This arts-based intervention program was designed to reduce anxiety and aggressive behavior in adolescent girls who were being reared without their fathers during the period of 2010–2015. The research questions were designed to investigate the scope, frequency, and severity of the problem of increased aggressive behavior and anxiety by girls being reared without their fathers; to evaluate the effectiveness of an arts-based intervention in reducing aggressive behavior and anxiety in girls being reared without their fathers; to investigate the ways that the use of an arts-based intervention might improve feelings about family relationships for single mothers and girls being reared without their fathers; and to gather observations and perceptions of all participants of the arts-based intervention regarding its impact on aggressive girls being reared without their fathers. Eight children between the ages of 8 and 17 completed the study. Data collection consisted of administering the following surveys: the Adolescent Anger Rating Scale, the Children’s Aggression Scale, the Parent Adolescent Relationship Questionnaire, and a confirmation interview with parents. An anger-management intervention utilizing the arts as an outlet for self-expression was implemented during the winter 2013 semester. Results showed the implementation fostered peer collaboration and resulted in reduced anger and aggression as well as increased communication and family cohesion. Expression through the arts, coupled with anger-management training, enabled girls to cope with their anger rather than acting out.

Today, raising children under the best of circumstances represents a daunting endeavor as any parent and a growing body of research confirm. When a single parent is on active duty in one of the U.S. armed forces, there are additional challenges involved that may not exist among civilian counterparts. The phenomenon of single parents on active duty with its unique difficulties associated both with single parenting and with military service was the basis of this study. The purpose of the research was twofold: to describe the experiences of Air Force single parents as related to social support and work-life theory in the context of bureaucracy and to use that understanding to identify needed improvements in support services. The specific aim of this study was to gain an understanding of single parents in the military through a phenomenological approach. Purposive sampling was utilized to identify the 13 participants. The central question for the study was the following: What are the experiences of single parents serving on active duty in the United States Air Force? The seven themes that were identified as part of the single parent experience were: (a) transition to single parent in the Air Force, (b) better life (c) parental responsibilities, (d) work responsibilities, (e) support provided by the work organizations, (f) informal social supports, and (g) work-life conflict. Major findings include the importance of family-friendly supervisors that alleviated work-family conflict. Participants also noted the military family as being significant to their adjustment and acceptance of military life. Finally, participants were seeking a better life for themselves and their children by either joining as a single parent or deciding to stay as a single parent. This study offers an opportunity to change policy and practice to enhance and encourage the retention of single parents. One application of study findings is the reexamination of the Family Care Plan to alleviate work-family conflict. Another area identified for practice enhancement is the education and training of family-friendly supervisors.

Family is a unit of socialization and transmitter of social, cultural and economic resources. Thus family arrangements may result in unequal future outcomes for the children growing up in them. A case in point is children from single parent households. The aim of this study is to investigate whether children growing up in single parent households in Sweden experience growing disadvantages during the life course, compared to children from two-parent households, and if socioeconomic factors explain this association. Previous literature shows that children from single parent households are disadvantaged but few have investigated the long term effects of childhood household composition in Sweden and whether disadvantages grow over time.  Using Swedish representative, longitudinal data from Generations and Gender Survey round 2 (GGSII), individuals living in Sweden during childhood between ages 20 to 59 were observed during the years 1990 to 2019. With ordered logistic regression for each year, earnings trajectories could be analyzed, with semi-elasticities used for interpretation.  The results showed that respondents from single parent households fare worse in future earnings compared to respondents from two-parent household. This is explained by differences in educational attainment: children from single parent households have lower educational level which produce lower future earnings. The effect is statistically significant during several years after 2010, however, the results show no evidence of growing disadvantages. Socioeconomic background partially alter the association but not entirely. Whether socioeconomic background functions as a confounder or a mediator to the association has not been determined in this study but is an important task for future research in order to establish the causal nature of socioeconomic background in relation to childhood household composition and children’s future outcomes.

Mémoire numérisé par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal.