Home environment including parents’ income and educational level is the single most important factor in predicting the child’s academic success.
The child’s work in school and his attitude towards it are greatly influenced by these relationships: wholesome family relations lead to motivation to achieve while unwholesome relationships cause emotional tension which may have a detrimental effect on the child’s ability to learn.
There is considerable evidence that home environment is related to measured levels of child intelligence and school environment. The evidence suggests that maternal educational level is the strongest predictor of a child’s achievement.
Studies relating to parental disciplinary patterns state that parental acceptance or warmth is considered an important determinant of positive child outcomes. Parental warmth and acceptance are much more conducive to child learning and positive development than parent’s hostility or physical punishment.
On the other hand, another study states that achievement motivation is closely related to independence. Especially for economically advantaged girls, too much parental warmth is associated with less achievement.
In one of the studies, it is concluded that mothers of leader children are more loving than those of non-leaders and that parental over-protectiveness fosters over-dependency in the children. Furthermore, children from homes where parents are permissive are found to be resourceful, cooperative, self-reliant, and well-adjusted. They showed perseverance and could assume responsibilities.
A study also claims that the setting in which parents communicate their expectations makes a difference in children’s reaction to those expectations. Children tend to develop high levels of aspirations when the parents make appropriate demands at appropriate times, rewarding success liberally and holding standards of excellence for them while also giving them freedom to work out their own problem in their own ways. Both of these conditions seem to be necessary for high achievement and plenty of opportunities for independent work and decision making.
There is also evidence that parental faith is implicit. The youngster and everyone else must realize that if a parent expects his offspring to do well, while giving her autonomy within wide limits, then the parents believes strongly in the child. Such a relationship has meaning for an individuals sense of identity, as well as for her desire to excel.
In relation to reading ability, an author claims that there is evidence that parental assistance with child reading improves reading ability and that children of parents who listen to their children “read aloud” on a regular basis have higher reading achievement scores than children who do not have such a reading experience.
Another study claims that when children have a quality school program and supportive and involve parents, they do better on academic and social skills.
To give more importance to parents involvement, Morrison (1988) aptly states that children see parent involvement as a sign that their parents value education. When their parents are involved in their program, they recognize that their parents are not just leaving them and forgetting them.
References:
Quesada, Elizabeth E. The Relationship of Mothers, Child Rearing Practices with the Leadership Ability of the Public Elementary Schools, Metro Manila.
