In recent decades a lot of literature has been written on correlation between student achievement and parental involvement. The Journal of Education Psychology, has stated that parental involvement can predict “improved child literacy.”[1]  Garry Hornby and Rayleen Lafaele of New Zealand write, the “benefits of [parental involvement] . . . include: improved parent–teacher relationships, teacher morale and school climate; improved school attendance, attitudes, behavior and mental health of children; and, increased parental confidence, satisfaction and interest in their own education.”[2] The question then must be asked—if the benefits of parental involvement in school are so great to a child’s educational development, than why, prior to the coronavirus pandemic, were there not more parents involved in their child(ren)’s school? To explore this question, four specific factors will be examined: language and cultural barriers, English proficiency and level of education, socio-economic status, and the parent’s belief about their involvement. Perhaps after exploring these four factors, it might become clear how schools can help bridge the gap between educators and the non-involved parents.  

In early 2020, the entire world was struck with coronavirus (COVID-19). It spread rapidly forcing schools to shut down. The education system in the United States was forced to solve a giant problem within a matter of days—remote education. Teachers and parents partnered up like never before to provide education to children remotely. Prior to the pandemic, parental involvement in education was a constant struggle for schools. After the pandemic has passed, and parents and children are back to a “normal” routine, will parents remain as engaged in their child’s education, or will the status quo before the pandemic return? Before continuing, it must be noted that teachers work incredibly hard and long hours to involve parents in the education process. It is impossible to generalize teachers and parents, but some trends exist among parents that may allow us to see where gaps in parental involvement exist such as education level, socioeconomic status, and immigration status. All of the trends mentioned here are from the pre-COVID era. Parental involvement in education should be readdressed once research has been conducted on the post-COVID era and its effect on the education system.

            To build a strong relationship between the parent and the teacher, effective communication must be at play, sometimes this is unable to occur due to language and cultural barriers. For example, Hispanic parents that do not understand English may find it difficult to communicate with the education staff, thus making them less involved. According to the Pew Research Center, 15.7 million Hispanics do not speak English very well, in totality that is one-third of all Hispanics ages 5 and older in the United States.[3] One way to solve this problem would be to offer English classes to parents, although this process would take time and relationship between the parent and teacher could remain strained. Another solution would be for school districts to have more cultural brokers that the parents could speak to about educational issues. Additionally, there are many online tools that teachers could use that would assist any language barriers. When workings with immigrant parents, teachers should ask the parents about their culture, or reach out to other members of the parents’ culture to understand more about that culture. Immigrant parents that see a teacher learning more about their culture would be much more apt to be engaged in their child’s education. Simple ideas such as having a Mexican cultural day, where the parents could be directly involved, would go a long way in showing appreciation for the parents and their culture. This could help bridge the gap between immigrant parent and teacher.

Parents that are illiterate or did not complete high school may not be involved in the education of their child because they feel they cannot contribute. In many cases, parents that did not complete their education lack beliefs in the importance of education for their child.[4] If a parent, or both parents, cannot read and write English it would greatly hamper the assistance a parent could, or feels like they could, provide their child. The United States Department of Education estimates that 21 percent of adults in America do not have English literacy skills.[5] The number of these adults that are parents is unclear, but it shows that millions of adults across the United States are not proficient in English. Unlike the immigrant parent that cannot understand spoken English, the illiterate parent can understand what the teacher is saying but may feel inadequate to talk to the teacher. The illiterate parent may find it difficult to know where they fit into the equation of education the child and may rely solely on the educator to make decisions. The illiterate parent could foster a positive environment of learning such as buying picture books that the parent and child could study together, as one example. To help foster a positive relationship with parents, schools could offer educational resources to parents such as English classes or GED classes. This might help parents feel more confident and involved and possibly obtain education themselves. The teacher could call the parents instead of sending notes with the student, or the teacher could instruct the student that the teacher would like to have a meeting with the parent. It is important for the teacher to not seem to judge the illiterate parent. This would most certainly drive a wedge between the parent and the entire education system.

             Socio-economic status plays significant roles in parental involvement. The American Psychology Association, states, “Research indicates that children from low-SES [socioeconomic status] households and communities develop academic skills slower than children from higher SES groups.”[6] This is likely the result of poor parents working multiple jobs to satisfy the bills for the family and not having the time to invest in their child’s education. This precludes them from having the ability to be involved in school, even if they wanted to. Poor parents, especially in major cities, often lack adequate transportation. This leads parents to rely on other means to communicate with teachers such as having a child take a note to the teacher or vice versa. Furthermore, poor parents have less access to reliable internet compared to the wealthier people, according to the Pew Research Center.[7] This prevents some poor parents from being able to communicate via email or other electronic communications. As children grow older, parental involvement decreases. This could be because parents see the child as more independent. Childtrends.org reports that, in 2016, 58 percent of parents attended a scheduled parent-teacher conference of a child in high school. Compare that to 92 percent of parents that attended a parent-teacher conference of a child in Kindergarten through second grade.[8]Interestingly, socioeconomic status had little difference with whether or not a parent would attend a parent-teacher conference. As children grow older, poor parents may distance themselves even further from the education process because they are busy working and trying to maintain the home. Single-parent households are much more common in working class and poor than in middle and upper classes. Single parents are the most likely to not have the time to allocate towards their child’s education. Teachers could work closely with these parents and be willing to visit with them at odd hours or at home when the parent is available. School districts could hire a liaison to help bridge the gap between the parent’s and teacher’s schedules. Simply sending a note home with the student is not enough to help build the relationship between parents and the school. Teachers could post a blog on a blogging site that parents could read in their spare time, assuming those parents have access to the internet. Additionally, providing financial services to parents may help parents to realize that the school system is on their side and has the child’s interest in mind.

            Parents belief about their involvement may lead to less involvement. Hornby and Lafaele state, “Parents’ beliefs about various issues can act as barriers to effective [parental involvement]. First, the way that parents view their role in their children’s education is crucial.”[9] In other words, how the parents see themselves involved in their child’s education may steer them away from or toward participating in the education process. Parents with a higher level of education are much more likely to belief their involvement is warranted and thus involved in their child’s school. Childtrend.org reports that 95 percent of parents with a graduate or professional degree attended general meetings at their child’s school in 2016.[10] Hornby and Lafaele continue on to talk about the parents of high achieving students had parents that believed that they were important in the education process.[11] The belief that parental involvement is important, but equally as important is the belief that the parent can help. If a parent doesn’t believe they can help their child, they are much less apt to be involved in the child’s education.[12] A parent’s belief that their child just is not smart enough for that school or grade greatly impacts their willingness to be involved in the education of their child.[13] There are many things a teacher can do to help fix this problem such as reaching out a parent for a meeting, sending notes home about how great the student is doing, or calling or emailing the parent to invite them to school event. Teachers should constantly be looking for ways to reach out to parents that do not believe their involvement is needed.

            Parental involvement is extremely important; one such example of how parental involvement is so powerful is the case of Rhona Weinstein, an educational philosopher. In her book Reaching Higher, Weinstein, writes of a child named Adam. She delivers a thorough account of Adam’s life and how his parents moved him from school to school to find the right fit for him and his learning disadvantages. At the beginning of her story, she notes that Adam’s school told his parents that he would never enter into college and would likely be a below average for his entire life. Adam’s parents did not believe this and sought other ways for Adam to learn. Adam, as she notes, is her son. Weinstein took drastic measures to ensure her son got the best education they could find. In Weinstein’s case it was the education system that was failing her and her son, but with her involvement, Adam was able to have a successful education. There are many parents that do not have the time, experience, or education as Weinstein, but their involvement could, nonetheless, change their child’s education.[14]

In conclusion, literature on the subject of parental involvement has echoed that it is incredibly important for student achievement. Yet, we see that there are many barriers to forming a strong bond between teacher, parent, and child. We explored four facets of parental involvement: language and cultural barriers, English proficiency and level of education, socio-economic status, and the parent’s belief about their involvement. Language and cultural barriers are hard for teachers to overcome. With resources for the parents and translation tools, teachers can help build a meaningful relationship with the parents. Parents that lack in English proficiency may shy away from involvement with their child’s education. Schools can offer resources such as English classes or local colleges that parents could attend to build their English literacy. The education level of parents and their socio-economic status may hinder their ability to help their children. These parents may not have the time or resources to put towards their child’s education. The parent’s belief about how they should be involved can greatly impact their involvement. They may see it school as the place they send their children when they go to work and nothing else. They may see their child as unintelligent and not able to be in the grade or school they are in. Pre-COVID-19 trends show us there are many gaps in parental involvement. Once the United States overcomes the COVID-19 pandemic, the education system must work diligently to continue the progress made in parental involvement.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bibliography

“Adult Literacy in the United States.” Ed.gov, 2019. https://nces.ed.gov/datapoints/2019179.asp.

American Psychological Association. “Education and Socioeconomic Status Factsheet.” Https://Www.Apa.org, July 2017. https://www.apa.org/pi/ses/resources/publications/education.

Dearing, Eric, Holly Kreider, Sandra Simpkins, and Heather B. Weiss. “Family Involvement in School and Low-Income Children’s Literacy: Longitudinal Associations between and within Families.” Journal of Educational Psychology 98, no. 4 (2006): 653–64. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-0663.98.4.653.

Hornby, Garry, and Rayleen Lafaele. “Barriers to Parental Involvement in Education: An Explanatory Model.” Educational Review 63, no. 1 (February 2011): 37–52. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131911.2010.488049.

“How Parent Involvement Leads to Student Success | Waterford.org.” Waterford.org, November 1, 2018. https://www.waterford.org/education/how-parent-involvment-leads-to-student-success/.

Jens Manuel Krogstad, Renee Stepler, and Mark Hugo Lopez. “English Proficiency on the Rise Among Latinos.” Pew Research Center’s Hispanic Trends Project. Pew Research Center’s Hispanic Trends Project, May 12, 2015. https://www.pewresearch.org/hispanic/2015/05/12/english-proficiency-on-the-rise-among-latinos/.

Oostdam, Ron, and Edith Hooge. “Making the Difference with Active Parenting; Forming Educational Partnerships between Parents and Schools.” European Journal of Psychology of Education 28, no. 2 (March 14, 2012): 337–51. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10212-012-0117-6.

“Parental Involvement in Schools - Child Trends.” Child Trends, 2007. https://www.childtrends.org/indicators/parental-involvement-in-schools.

Pew Research Center. “Internet/Broadband Fact Sheet.” Pew Research Center: Internet, Science & Tech. Pew Research Center: Internet, Science & Tech, June 12, 2019. https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/fact-sheet/internet-broadband/.

Weinstein, Rhona S. Reaching Higher : The Power of Expectations in Schooling. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, Sept, 2004.

[1] Eric Dearing et al., “Family Involvement in School and Low-Income Children’s Literacy: Longitudinal Associations between and within Families.,” Journal of Educational Psychology 98, no. 4 (2006): 653–64, https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-0663.98.4.653.

[2] Garry Hornby and Rayleen Lafaele, “Barriers to Parental Involvement in Education: An Explanatory Model,” Educational Review 63, no. 1 (February 2011): 37, https://doi.org/10.1080/00131911.2010.488049.

[3] Jens Manuel Krogstad, Renee Stepler, and Mark Hugo Lopez, “English Proficiency on the Rise Among Latinos,” Pew Research Center’s Hispanic Trends Project (Pew Research Center’s Hispanic Trends Project, May 12, 2015), https://www.pewresearch.org/hispanic/2015/05/12/english-proficiency-on-the-rise-among-latinos/.

[4] Ron Oostdam and Edith Hooge, “Making the Difference with Active Parenting; Forming Educational Partnerships between Parents and Schools,” European Journal of Psychology of Education 28, no. 2 (March 14, 2012): 344, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10212-012-0117-6.

[5] “Adult Literacy in the United States,” Ed.gov, 2019, https://nces.ed.gov/datapoints/2019179.asp.

[6] American Psychological Association, “Education and Socioeconomic Status Factsheet,” Https://Www.Apa.Org, July 2017, https://www.apa.org/pi/ses/resources/publications/education.

[7] Pew Research Center, “Internet/Broadband Fact Sheet,” Pew Research Center: Internet, Science & Tech (Pew Research Center: Internet, Science & Tech, June 12, 2019), https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/fact-sheet/internet-broadband/.

[8] “Parental Involvement in Schools - Child Trends,” Child Trends, 2007, https://www.childtrends.org/indicators/parental-involvement-in-schools.

[9] Garry Hornby and Rayleen Lafaele, “Barriers to Parental Involvement in Education: An Explanatory Model,” 39.

[10] “Parental Involvement in Schools - Child Trends,” Child Trends, 2007, https://www.childtrends.org/indicators/parental-involvement-in-schools.

[11] Garry Hornby and Rayleen Lafaele, 39.

[12] Hornby and Lafaele, 39.

[13] Hornby and Lafaele, 39.

[14] Rhona S Weinstein, Reaching Higher: The Power of Expectations in Schooling. (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, Sept, 2004) 18-29.