My study examined whether and how the relationship between parent and teacher
corresponds to the socioeconomic status (SES) of the family or to the achievement level of
their child in reading and writing. Relationship was defined in terms of communication,
perceptions of mutual support and reported levels of satisfaction. The constructs were
assessed through questionnaires and interviews with seven parent-teacher dyads. Each dyad
represented a unique profile of student achievement (high or low), SES of the family (high or
low), and parental involvement (high or minimal). Successful relationships were
characterized as having clear communication, perceptions of helpful mutual support, and
high levels of success. No clear patterns in the success of the relationships emerged from
examination of the SES or achievement of the children; however, successful relationships
were aligned with the teachers' ratings of parental involvement. Teachers included
newsletters and log book messages in their methods of communicating with parents, while
parents considered only two-way interactions as communicating with their child's teacher.
Teachers in higher SES schools reported giving suggestions to parents to assist their children
but the parents did not report hearing the suggestions; however, teachers in lower SES
schools did not report giving suggestions to parents but parents reported hearing the
suggestions. Home literacy activities varied across families in high versus low SES schools.
Parents in higher SES schools reported a broader range of activities in their home that
supported their children's literacy acquisition than their lower SES counterparts. Activities
reported by low SES families were more task oriented while activities reported by higher
SES families were more entertainment oriented and corresponded better with school
activities.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:BVAU.2429/14317 |
| Date | 11 1900 |
| Creators | Nordby, Carla J. |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Relation | UBC Retrospective Theses Digitization Project [http://www.library.ubc.ca/archives/retro_theses/] |
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