From day one, they were outside to greet and meet the teacher. They handed the teacher school supplies and telephone numbers. They shook the teacher's hand and some even offered hugs. Later in the month, during the annual "Open School Night," there were so many parents in the classroom, there weren't enough chairs for everyone to sit down, and so they had to stand. It was an eye opening revelation compared to previous experiences where less than half of the parents were in attendance. .
This action researcher remembers thinking: these kids are considered the "top" students due in large part because of their parent's involvement. So, the teacher asked himself: "What is it about these parents that are so different from others? What common characteristics do they possess? Is there a correlation between their behavior and the academic success of their child? Can these characteristics be identified and somehow taught to others, or are these just instinctual, possibly even cultural, behaviors that people simply possess?" From those observations and questions, the seed of this research was planted.
Statement of the Problem.
At P.S. X, a low-income urban school in East New York, when parents are not directly engaged in their child's education, the student's level of achievement suffers. Most P.S. X parents are not obviously involved in the day-to-day activities of the school. Often parents are seen in the school only when they are called in for disciplinary reasons. However, when parents show regular and ongoing support and concern about their child's studies, their child tends to embody that same sense of care and ownership over their own education. More parental involvement is needed in this school.
Review of Related Literature.
Lack of parental involvement is one of the biggest problems facing our public schools today (Desimone, 1999; Epstein, 1991; Hill, 2004, Ladson-Billings, 2001).