Parental Involvement in Schools

Parental Involvement in Schools

Research Plan for Quantitative Study:

The basis of this study is to gain a better understanding of why children do better academically if their parents take an interest in their school and participate in school activities (such as meetings, events, committees, etc.). Throughout the course of the study, we hope to determine why parents who come from a higher educational background and income might participate more readily in their children's academic life and why this has such a positive effect on the students. In determining why some parents more readily participate in their children's school activities, we hope to determine if the parents who don't participate do not because of their educational background or because of race and upbringing.

Introduction

Parental involvement in school is extremely important, because students with parents who are involved in their school show fewer signs of behavioral problems, better academic performance and are more likely to finish high school than students who do not have parents who are involved in school. The percentage of students who reported their parent's involvement in their school rose significantly between 1999 and 2003. This rise became evidence in student attendance and parental attendance to meetings with the school, as well as parent/teacher conferences, school events, volunteering and parents who served on committees.

Statistics show that parents are more likely to participate in their children's school while the child is in elementary school. Hispanic and non-Hispanic black students were more likely to have parents who did not participate in their school. Parents with a higher education level, as well as a higher income are also more likely to participate in their child's school. In 2003, 80% of students whose parents had a bachelor's degree or above had parents who attended school events.

Statement of Purpose

The purpose of this quantitative research study is to determine why students who have parents who are active in their schools tend to do better as well as determining why some parents do not participate in their child's school activities.

Statement of Hypothesis

Based on the statistical data, it is relevant to mention that students who come from families with a solid educational background and income source are more likely to receive the academic support from their parents, because their families not only have the means to succeed, but the parents have an interest in their children continuing on in their own footsteps.

Research Methods

Each study will consist of a minimum of 5 participants. We decided to keep the number of study participants to a minimum in order to maintain the interpretation of the mean and standard deviation that will be used in effect size and standard error calculation.

Research instruments used within the study include electronic searches of databases, searches of journals, hand searches of grey literature, documenting search and selection processes.

We will include only Randomized Control Trials (RCTs) in this study. Studies that solely utilize single group, single subject or quantitative approaches will not be included in the review.

Participants will be coded to the following: age, grade, gender, number of participants, SES and ethnicity. If a single study has multiple outcomes, we will use a shifting unit of analysis approach. Upon evaluating the overall effect size of an intervention, the study will be represented by the mean outcomes in the study. When examining potential moderators of overall outcomes, the results will be aggregated with only the separated categories of the moderator variables.