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Family Involvement in Elementary School Children’s Education


File number :
CS-CEFC-28e

Bibliographic reference :
Harvard Family Research Project (2007). Family Involvement in Elementary School Children’s Education, No. 2 in a series, 12 pages. [En ligne].
<http://www.hfrp.org/>

Abstract :

This synthesis prepared as part of Harvard Family Research Project (United States) activities accounts for research results that highlight the importance of family involvement in children’s educational progress. To conclude, thirteen recommendations directed at policymakers, practitioners and researchers are stated.

Family Involvement Process and Children’s Academic Results
Several research projects have shown the positive link between family involvement and academic achievement, more particularly with regard to parenting practices, home-school relationships and parental responsibility towards children’s learning.

Parenting Practices
Parenting practices refer to the relationship between a child and his/her parents. A positive relationship is characterized in terms of support (e.g., warmth, encouragement), respect for the child’s autonomy and appropriate instruction based on the child’s development and characteristics. This relationship influences the development of the child’s adequate social behaviours and academic achievement.

The community influences parenting practices. As parents’ social network is broader, more resources are available to the child. Likewise, this social network supports parents significantly by contributing to increasing confidence in their parenting skills and thereby their capacity to offer their child a cognitively stimulating home, have a warmer relationship with their child and better fulfill their responsibilities.

Home-school Relationships
The partnership between school and parents also has positive effects (e.g., communication, participation in school activities or involvement in school workgroups or administrative bodies). For instance, it was observed that children were more engaged in school (e.g., better work habits) when there was cooperation. Consistent and continuous involvement of parents was associated with children’s improved literacy performance, even to the point of curbing the negative influences of poverty. Schools are responsible for encouraging family involvement. In schools that had opted for a formal home-school relationship programme, higher academic achievement was reported for students (reading, mathematics).

Parental Responsibility Towards Learning
Parents can have a major influence on their children’s learning outcomes, especially by carrying out the following processes:
(1) Encouraging family literacy activities (e.g., reading with children) help children develop positive feelings towards reading and improve their literacy performance. In addition, the use of a rich vocabulary by parents is linked to children’s higher vocabulary scores as early as kindergarten.

(2) Guiding children in completing their homework has positive effects on their academic performance and helps prevent behavioural problems. Parents’ positive attitude towards homework and explicit teaching of work methods are aspects to be preferred.

(3) Managing and coordinating children’s education to ensure the coherence of the different environments in which they develop and learn (school, home and community) are associated with improved performance, especially in literacy. Through their relationship with the school, parents can foster this coordination (e.g., communicating with teachers regarding children’s progress).

(4) Maintaining high educational expectations towards children is the process with the most important effect. When children perceive that their academic achievement is important to their parents, they are more motivated to succeed and, consequently, put in the effort needed.

This synthesis concluded by stating several implications in terms of policymaking, practice and research.

The abstract presenting the synthesis prepared by the Harvard Family Research Project on middle and high school students’ sducation  may be viewed by searching the IOAA database with the CS-CEFC-31e file number. 



Links :
http://www.hfrp.org/

Key Words :
Parenting Practices, Family Involvement, Parental Responsibility, Social Network, Underprivileged Environment, Academic Results, Behavioural Problems, Literacy, Vocabulary, Homework, Expectations, Harvard Family Research Project, Synthesis, Literature Review, Newsletter7

Monitored Countries :
United States