PARENT ENGAGEMENT REAPS REWARDS

By Wade Marionneaux, P&C Federation Board Member, and Executive Director, West Sydney Electorate

One of the primary goals of a school’s P&C Association is to foster a sense of community where parents and schools can work in partnership to support our children’s education.  But amidst all of the activities and meetings and fundraising, it is easy to lose sight of why a sense of community is so important.

In a school with a healthy, inclusive and welcoming relationship between parents and educators, parents are more likely to engage with a child’s school and a child’s learning.  And parent engagement can supercharge nearly all of a child’s school outcomes from behaviour to wellbeing to graduation rates.

 How parents can get involved

There is a growing body of research on the kind of parent engagement that is effective and the types of outcomes that parent engagement can improve.  Broadly speaking, the forms of parent engagement can be broken down into engagement with school and engagement at home.

At school

Engagement with school can come in the form of attending school events and performances, volunteering in the classroom, attending parent teacher conferences, and participating in school governance through the P&C Association.

At home

Engagement at home includes discussions about school, encouragement of academic pursuits, reading together, providing enriching activities like going to the library, and providing a quiet place to do homework.

The positive benefits

In terms of outcomes, the list of positive benefits is long. Research shows that students with engaged parents demonstrate higher test scores, higher graduation rates, improved attendance, better social skills, better behaviour, a stronger belief in the importance of education, and greater overall wellbeing. These results remain consistent over time even as the type of engagement changes – parents in primary school may be more likely to help out in the classroom, while parents in high school may be more likely to encourage academic pursuits or participate in school governance.

The benefits are not inconsequential.  In fact, parental engagement is actually a stronger predictor of educational outcomes than a family’s socio-economic background. Students with engaged parents – no matter what their income or background – are more likely to do well at school, graduate from school, and go on to higher education. Not only that, but a 2008 study, by Houtenville and Conway in the United States, actually estimated that the combined value to a student of overall parent engagement was equivalent to an extra $1,000 in government spending per student, per year. This research is borne out in the experience of The Smith Family working with families experiencing disadvantage, as reported in their 2023 submission to the Review to Inform a Better and Fairer Education System (National School Reform Agreement Consultation).

Improved student wellbeing

Improvements in achievement are important, but for many parents improved student wellbeing may be the most important benefit that can come from engaging with education.  A 2014 international study of Year 9 and 10 students in Jordan found that parental involvement in school had a measurable positive impact on students’ emotional engagement in school. Put simply, students with more involved parents were more likely to have fun, enjoy school, have high self-esteem, and to perceive school as a satisfying experience.  Although there are a variety of theories to explain this effect, the simplest one seems the most likely: having parents involved at their school can help children to feel safe at school and convey to students that parents value and support education, and thus make children themselves more likely to engage.

The benefits for parents

The benefits also don’t all accrue to students.  School engagement, especially through a P&C Association, can help parents to build social networks, understand school norms, and gain knowledge about the school curriculum.  These benefits are particularly strong for parents that did not have positive experiences at school themselves or that come from different cultural backgrounds.  For parents from differing cultural or language groups, the opportunity to work and engage with other parents in a canteen or at a sausage sizzle presents a unique opportunity to grow language skills and build relationships in the local community.

Not the homework!

Not every type of parental engagement is beneficial though. In a 2019 meta-analysis of 448 separate independent studies on parent involvement, by Barger and colleagues, the authors determined that one particular kind of parent involvement had a negative impact on student achievement – assistance with homework. While having a parent who asks about homework, or encourages the completion of homework, or provides a quiet place to actually do homework is beneficial, actually attempting to help with homework is not.

The best investment

The lessons from the research are simple: being engaged in your child’s education is one of the best investments that a parent can make.  Attending events, talking to teachers, asking about assignments, reading together, or joining a P&C Association – all of these activities pay dividends for your child.  Just please, don’t try to help with homework!

This article was first published in the Term 3 2024 (Vol 76, No 3, pp6-7) issue of Parent & Citizen, the journal of the P&C Federation NSW

 

PARENT ENGAGEMENT REAPS REWARDS, REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING

Al-Alwan, A. (2014). Modeling the Relations among Parental Involvement, School Engagement and Academic Performance of High School Students. International Education Studies, 7(4). https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1069284.pdf

Australian Department of Social Services (2015). Parental Engagement In Child’s Learning and Development (report from the Footprints In Time: The Longitudinal Study of Indigenous Children). https://www.dss.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/02_2015/parental_engagement.pdf

Australian Research Alliance for Children and Youth (ARACY) (2016). Parent Engagement:  A Review Linking Policy and Programs. https://www.aracy.org.au/documents/item/640

Barger, M.M, Kim, E.M., Kuncel, N.R., Pomerantz, E.M. (2019). The Relation Between Parents’ Involvement in Children’s Schooling and Children’s Adjustment: A Meta-Analysis, Psychological Bulletin 145(9). https://psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037%2Fbul0000201

Fox, S., Olsen, A. (2014). Education Capital: Our Evidence Base Defining Parental Engagement. ACT Government. http://www.det.act.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0011/687476/52828-DET-Defining-Parental-Engagement-A4-Report_AccPDF_01.pdf).

Houtenville, A.J., Conway, K.S. (2008). Parental Effort, School Resources, and Student Achievement, Journal of Human Resources 43(2), 437-453.

Povey J., Campbell A.K., Willis L-D., Haynes M.A. (2016). Engaging Parents in Schools and Building Parent-School Partnerships:  The Role of School and Parent Organisation Leadership. International Journal of Educational Research 79, 128-141.  https://www.researchgate.net/publication/306066207_Engaging_parents_in_schools_and_building_parent-school_partnerships_The_role_of_school_and_parent_organisation_leadership

The Anne E. Casey Foundation (2022). Parental Involvement in Your Child’s Education: The Key to Student Success, Research Shows, blog.

https://www.aecf.org/blog/parental-involvement-is-key-to-student-success-research-shows (citing a 2004 report, Parental Involvement in Education. Policy Brief No 3, National Human Services Assembly. https://assets.aecf.org/m/resourcedoc/NHSA-ParentalInvolvementinEducation-2004.pdf).

The Smith Family (2023) Submission to the Review to Inform a Better and Fairer Education System. National School Reform Agreement Consultation. https://www.thesmithfamily.com.au/-/media/files/research/policy-submissions/review-to-inform-a-better-and-fairer-education-system/review-to-inform-a-better-and-fairer-edcucation-system2.pdf