Academic Performance Trend of Students with Ofw Parents

In what ways does Parent Involvement affect Children’s Academic Performance?

Rebecca Deutscher, Ph.D. and Mary Ibe, M.A. Lewis Center for Educational Research, Apple Valley, California

Abstract This project examined the role that parent involvement has on children’s academic performance. Various types of parent involvement were assessed, including volunteering, home involvement, attending parent classes, school political involvement, talking to staff, talking to teachers, etc. Academic performance was measured by STAR test scores and by grades. Approximately 400 students in 7th through 11th grade were included. Overall, the results indicated that those who did the self-report survey, went to the parent class, or were involved in more home-type involvement (such as checking child’s planner, talking to child at home about school-related topics, or engaging in educational activities outside of school) had children that performed better in various areas of the STAR test or had better grades. Objectives and Perspective Parent involvement has been shown to be an important variable that positively influences children’s education. More and more schools are observing the importance and are encouraging families to become more involved. Because of this recent trend, it has become essential to understand what is meant by parent involvement and in what ways it has an influence on children’s education. A comprehensive view of involvement is presented by Epstein’s model. Epstein (1997) discussed how children learn and grow through three overlapping spheres of influence: family, school, and community. These three spheres must form partnerships to best meet the needs of the child. Epstein defined six types of involvement based on the relationships between the family, school, and community: parenting (skills), communicating, volunteering, learning at home,

decision making, and collaborating with the community. Epstein stressed the fact that all of these six types of involvement

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