Parental Involvement as a Important Factor for 

Successful
Education 

Introduction  

Many researchers recognise the important role that strong positive bond between homes and schools,
play in the development and education of chil dren (Edwards & Alldred, 2000; Henderson & Berla,
1994; Richardson, 2009;  Sanders & Sheldon, 2009; Sheldon, 2009). The theories put forward have
been  supported, and reaffirmed, by numerous studies that have shown that good co operation between
schools, homes and the communities can lead to academic  achievement for students, as well as to
reforms in education. Research has also  shown that successful students’ have strong academic support
from their in volved parents (Sheldon, 2009). Furthermore, research on effective schools,  those where
students are learning and achieving, has consistently shown that  these schools despite often working in
low social and economic neighborhoods,  have strong and positive school-home relationships (Sanders
& Sheldon, 2009;  Sheldon, 2009). More importantly, these effective schools with positive school 
climate, have made a real effort in reaching out to their students’ families in  order to bring about good
cooperation. Sanders and Sheldon (2009) maintain  that schools become successful when a strong and
positive relationship among students, parents, teachers and the community has been established. All stu
dents’ are more likely to experience academic success if their home environ ment is supportive
(Henderson & Berla, 1994; Sanders & Sheldon, 2009). 
Epstein (2001, 2009) alleges that there are many reasons for develop ing and establishing a
partnership between school, family and community. The  main reason for such a partnership is to aid
students in succeeding at school.  Other reasonsinclude improvinge school climate and school
programs, devel oping parental skills and leadership, assisting families in connecting with oth ers in the
school and the community, and assisting teachers with their work.  All these reasons emphasise the
importance of parents playing an active role in  their childrens’ education and keeping a strong and
positive relationship with  schools. 

Models of parental involvement 

Educators and parents play major roles in the educational success of  students. Students need a positive
learning experience to succeed in school:  one providing support, motivation, and quality instruction.
With the increas ing demands on the family, parental support in the
education of students ex tends beyond the school building. Many families are faced with overwhelming 
and unpredictable schedules and circumstances while juggling school, sports, family situations, family
time, work schedules, and other responsibilities, al lowing minimal time to provide support in any one
given area (Swap, 1993). Although it seems that parental involvement is researched the topic of  many
domestic and foreign studies, there is still concern regarding parental in volvement and what constitutes
effective parental involvement in the education  of students. Educators, parents, and community
members may have different  opinions regarding effective involvement practices and the ways each can
con tribute to the educational process. 
Parental involvement in the education of students begins at home with  the parents providing a
safe and healthy environment, appropriate learning ex periences, support, and a positive attitude about
school. Several studies indicate  increased academic achievement with students that have involved
parents (Ep stein, 2009; Greenwood & Hickman, 1991; Henderson & Berla, 1994; Rumberg er et al.,
1990; Swap, 1993; Whitaker & Fiore, 2001). Studies also indicate that  parental involvement is most
effective when viewed as a partnership between  educators and parents (Davies, 1996; Emeagwali,
2009; Epstein, 2009). By ex amining parents’ and teachers’ perceptions, educators and parents should
have  a better understanding of effective parental involvement practices in promoting  student
achievement.  
Numerous researchers such as Berger (2008), Davies (1996), Epstein  (2009), and Henderson
and Mapp (2002) have studied parental involvement  and its effects on the educational process over the
years. A leading researcher of parental involvement is Joyce Epstein, the founder and director of the
National  Network of Partnership Schools at Johns Hopkins University. With numerous  studies and
work in over 100 publications, Epstein focuses on school, family,  and community partnership
programmes that will improve policy and prac 
tice in an effort to increase student academic achievement and student success.  Epstein has identified a
framework wich containing six important factors with  regards to parental involvement. This
framework is based on findings from  many studies of what factors are most effective with regards
comes to childrens  education (Epstein, 1995, 1996, 2001, 2003, 2009). Those six factors are parent 
ing, communicating, volunteering, learning at home, decision-making and col laborating with the
community.  

Parenting – includes all of the activities that parents engage in to raise  happy, healthy children who
become capable students. Unlike teachers, whose  influence on a child’s is relatively limited, parents
maintain a life-long commit ment to their children. Activities that support this type of involvement
provide  information to parents about their child’s development, health, safety, or home  conditions that
can support student learning. Includes: parent education and other courses or training for parents,
family support programmes to assist fam ilies with health, nutrition, and other services, home visits at
transition points  to elementary, middle, and secondery school. 

Communicating – Familes and schools communicate with each other  in multiple ways.
Schools send homes and flyers about important events  and activities. Parents give teachers information
about their child’s health and  educational history. A school website is an additional mode of
communication  with parents and families. Includes: conferences with every parent at least once  a year,
language translators to assist families as needed, regular schedule of use 
ful notices, memos, phone calls, newsletters, and other communications. Volunteering – applies to
recruiting and organising help and support  from parents for school programmes and students’
activities. There are three  basic ways that individuals volunteer in education. First, they may volunteer
in  the school or classroom by helping teachers and adminstrators as tutors or as sistants. Second, they
may volunteer for the school; for instance, fundraising for  an event or promoting a school in the
community. Finally, they may volunteer  as a member of an audience, attending school programmes or
performances.  Includes: school/classroom volunteer programme to help teachers, administra tors,
students, and other parents, parent room or family center for volunteer  work, meetings, and resources
for families, annual postcard survey to identify  all available talents, times, and locations of volunteers. 

Learning at home – pertains to providing ideas and information to par ents about how they
can best assist their children with homework and curric ular-related decisions and activities. Parents
helping their children with home work or takeing them to a museum, are examples of this type of
involvement.  
These activities produce a school-oriented family and encourage parents to  interact with the school
curriculum. Activities to encourage learning at home  provide parents with information on what
children are doing in the classroom  and how to help them with homework. Includes: information for
families on  skills required for students in all subjects at each grade, information on home 
work policies and how to monitor and discuss schoolwork at home, as well as  family participation in
setting student goals each year and in planning for col lege or work. 
Decision making – refers to including parents in school decisions and  to developing parent
leaders and representatives. Parents participate in school  decision making when they become part of
school governance committees or  join organizations, such as the parent/teachers association. Other
decision 
making activities include taking on leadership roles that involve disseminat ing information to other
parents. Includes: active PTA/PTO or other parent 

organizations, advisory councils, or committees for parent leadership and par ticipation, independent
advocacy groups to lobby for school reform and im provements, networks to link all families with
parent representatives. 
Collaborating with the community – pertains to identifying and in tegrating communities’’
services and resources to support and strengthen  schools, students, and their families. Includes:
information for students and  families on community health, cultural, recreational, social support, and
other  programmes/services, information on community activities that link to learn ing skills and
talents, including summer programmes for students. 
Each of these factors can lead to various results for students, parents,  teaching practices, and the
school climate. In addition, each factor includes  many different practices of partnership. Lastly, each
factor poses challenges  to involve all families and those challenges must be met. That is why Epstein 
(2001; 2009) considers it to be significant for each school to choose what fac 
tors are believed to be most likely to assist the school in reaching its goals for  academic success, and to
develop a climate of alliance between homes and the  school. Even though the primary focus of these
six factors is to promote aca demic achievements, they also contribute to various results for both
parents  and teachers (Epstein, 2003, 2009). For instance, it may be presumed that par ents will gain
more self-confidence in their role as parents, they will show lead ership with decision-making, and they
will have more effective and productive  communication with their children with regards to school
work, and will have  more communication with other parents at the school. According to Hender son
and Berla (1994), parents also gain a more positive attitude towards the  school and its staff, and gain
more confidence in assisting their children with  homework, by being involved with their education. In
addition, they are more  likely to gather support for the school and its programmess in the community 
and become more active community members. For teachers, the benefits may  be presumed to be better
communication with parents, a deeper understanding  of the family of their students and their situation,
and more effective commu nication with both the homes and the community (Epstein, 2009).
Henderson  and Berla (1994) also claim that the schools will benefit from parental involve ment by
improved teacher morale, more support from families and higher  student academic achievement. In
addition, Clarke (2007) asserts that schools  function best when parents and the community are active
participants and have  a sense of ownership of the school. Therefore, it is safe to say that these six fac
tors not only benefit the students, but also their parents, teachers and schools.

Determinants of Parental Involvement 

Parents’ cognitions about their role have been identified as a major con tributor to their
willingness to engage in supportive parenting. We focused  on three forms of parental cognition:
parents’ aspirations concerning their  children’s future occupation, their self-efficacy in rearing and
educating their  children, and their perceptions of the school (Eccles & Harold, 1996; Hoover Dempsey
& Sandler, 1997; Okagaki & Frensch, 1998). 
Parental Aspirations – Parental aspirations refer to idealistic hopes or  goals that parents
may form regarding future attainment. Parents who hold  high aspirations for their children’s future are
likely to be more willing to ex ert efforts to ensure that those aspirations are realized. Indeed, evidence
from  research suggests that educational and occupational aspirations are associated  with the ways in
which parents shape children’s activities, time, and learning  environment (Murphey, 1992). 
Parenting Self-Efficacy – The construct of self-efficacy refers to „beliefs  in one’s
capabilities to organize and execute the courses of action required to  produce given attainments”
(Bandura, 1997, p. 3). Research conducted in a va riety of countries finds that individuals with high
self-efficacy in a specific area  exert effort in that area, persevere in the face of difficulty, and respond
resilient ly to adversity (Bandura, 2002). They are less prone to self-defeating thought  patterns, and
they experience less stress and depression than those with lower  self-efficacy. The construct of self-
efficacy is intended to be domain specific;  particular experiences with respect to a given domain affect
the individual’s  sense of confidence about acting efficaciously in that domain. 
The domain of parenting self-efficacy has been examined at length, and  parenting self-efficacy
has shown to be an extraordinarily powerful determi nant of effective parenting behaviour in Western
societies. Parents with high  self-efficacy are generally more optimistic, authoritative, and consistent in
their  interactions with their children than those with lower parenting self-efficacy   (Ardelt & Eccles,
2001; Bandura, Barbaranelli, Caprara, & Pastorelli, 1996; Olioff  & Aboud, 1991). Additionally,
theoretical formulations have identified parenting  self-efficacy as a key determinant of parental
involvement in schooling (Eccles &  Harold, 1996; Hoover-Dempsey & Sandler, 1997). Empirical
work suggests that  parents with high self-efficacy are more likely to monitor their children’s school 
work and to participate actively at the school (Ardelt & Eccles, 2001). Perceptions of the School –
Parents’ degree of involvement is likely to  be affected by the school itself. If teachers appear to care
about the welfare of  the child, communicate respect for parents, and develop effective means of 

communicating with families, parents are more willing and able to become in volved in their children’s
schooling (Hoover-Dempsey & Sandler, 1997). 

Parental involvement: a summary of empirical findings 

Parents and families have a major impact on the success of the process of  education and
upbringing of children. Involvement of parents is related to their  position at home (monitoring the
learning of children), as well as participation  in activities organized at school (parent-teacher
conferences, volunteer activi 
ties, various forms of parental activism, workshops and seminars for parents). It  is well established that
parental involvement is correlated with school achieve ment of both children and adolescents (Long,
2007; Rich, 1987). Elementary  school children gain greater academic, language, and social skills
(Grolnick &  Slowiaczek, 1994), middle and high school students have greater achievement  and future
aspirations (Eccles & Harold, 1993) and spend more time doing and  completing homework (Epstein et
al., 2009). Research shows that parental in volvement is more important to children’s academic success
than their fam ily’s socioeconomic status, race, ethnicity, or educational background (Amatea  & West,
2007; Henderson & Berla, 1994). Parental involvement can encourage  children’s and adolescents’
achievement in many ways. One way that parents  can contribute positively to their children’s
education is to assist them with their  academic work at home. Parents who read to their children, assist
them with  their homework, and provide tutoring using resources provided by teachers  tend to do better
in school than children whose parents do not assist them (Ball  & Blachman, 1991; Izzo et al., 1999).
Futhermore, research shows that the level  of parental involvement is associated with academic success.
Children whose  parents are actively involved in their schooling benefit better than children  whose
parents are passively involved. Specifically, if parents attend teacher con ferences, accept phone calls
from the school, and read and sign messages from  school, their children will benefit academically more
than children whose par ents do none of the above. Furthermore, children excel even more when their 
parents assist them at home with their homework, attend school sponsored  events, and volunteer at
their children’s schools (Suizzo, 2007; Weisz, 1990). 

Barriers to parental involvement 

Although parental involvement is recognized as being of significance  in the education of

factors have become of great interest to educational decision makers (Feurstein,  2000).  
Today’s parents are often preoccupied with the distractions and demands  of daily life. Burdened by
low-income, inflexible work hours and language bar riers, some parents are unable to attend school
activities or participate in the  schooling of their children on a regular basis (Ho, 2009). Bæck (2010) as
well as  Lee and Bowen (2006) cite cultural norms, insufficient financial resources, and  lack of
educational attainment as barriers to parental involvement in school.  
Davis (1996) found that many parents suffer from low self-esteem and  others did not experience
success in school themselves and therefore lack the  knowledge and confidence to help their children.
Parents who did not experi ence success in school may view it negatively (Greenwood & Hickman,
1991).  Parents may be intimidated by the language, the curriculum, and the staff; con sequently they
avoid communication with the school (Flynn, 2007). 
Rutherford and Edgar (1999) recognize that parents have increased  difficulty in being involved
in their student’s secondary education as deter mining which educator is responsible for which part of
the child’s academic  programme can be overwhelming. Hill and Taylor (2004) assert that “parents 
from lower socioeconomic backgrounds face many more barriers to involve ment, including
nonflexible work schedules, lack of resources, transportation  problems, and stress due to residing in
disadvantaged neighborhoods” (2004,  p. 162). Ascher (1988) reported that low-income urban parents
can and want to  participate in the education of their children as much as middle-class parents.  She also
reported that, single-parent participation is often hindered by inflex ible leave policies and child-care
responsibilities. Many school officials tend to  decide in advance that single and low-income working
parents can not be ap proached or relied upon. They are not expected to participate in their children’s 
classroom, attend meetings, or provide assistance with home learning activities  (Ascher, 1988). 
 Williams and Sanchez (2011) identify four areas that are barriers to in volvement: time poverty,
lack of access, lack of financial resources, and lack of  awareness. Johnson (1994) asserted that
“feelings of inadequacy, limited school  background, or preoccupation with basic necessities may
prevent parents from  communicating with schools” (1994, p. 46). Lee and Bowen (2006) and Dika 
and Singh (2002) cite social capital in families as being positively linked to  their students’
achievement, graduation rates, higher educational attainment,  as well as motivation and involvement in
school. Similarly, Ho (2009) discuss 
es the benefit of parents’ involvement in schools, noting that it helps parents  overcome a lack of social
capital. Likewise, Hill and Taylor (2004) assert that

parental involvement in the school supports students’ achievement by increas ing the parents’ social
capital. 
Students are a critical component for successful school, family, and com munity involvement
and can create a barrier for partnerships when they fail  to fulfill their duty (Epstein, 1995). Students are
often responsible for deliver ing information and communicating with their parents regarding school
pro grammes, activities, and events (Epstein, 1995).  
In programmes that require high level of involvement, teachers help stu dents understand their role and
the importance of actively participating in the  family, school, and community partnership (Epstein,
1995). Given decreased  budgeted funds in education and increased expectations, school administrators 
and teachers must take the initiative to involve parents in an effort to assist the  educational
achievement of students (Wherry, 2009). Some school adminis trators and teachers may not know how
to involve parents; therefore, educa tors lacking this knowledge could be taught techniques for
involving parents  and creating partnerships (Greenwood & Hickman, 1991). Administrators and 
teachers may not fully understand the importance of parental involvement and  the effects of parental
involvement on student achievement (Flynn, 2007). 
Often, teachers believe parents do not support the school and do not  discipline children when
there has been a problem at school. When teachers do  not feel parental support, they often believe it is
a waste of their time to contact  parents (Flynn, 2007). 
To overcome the barriers preventing parental involvement, schools need  to provide a welcoming
climate where the school staff is respectful and respon sive to parents (Wherry, 2009). It is critical that
administrators and teachers  encourage respectful two-way communication between the school and
home  (Wherry, 2009). Bouie, an educational consultant stated, “The answer is to stop  treating parents
like „clients” and start treating them like „partners” in help ing children learn” (as cited in Wherry,
2009, p. 7). A survey of parents in four  school systems concluded that parents want to be treated with
respect and do  not want a professional client relationship (Davies, 1991). Failure to sufficiently  train
preservice teachers is a significant obstacle in promoting parental involve ment in the schools (Epstein,
1995). Preservice teachers could work with par ents as part of their teacher education programme and
internship (Greenwood  & Hickman, 1991). Classes could be incorporated into teacher education pro
grammes and advanced degree programs to assist in defining an educator’s role  in school, family, and
community partnerships (Epstein, 1995). 
Some school systems have employed parent involvement coordinators  to lead and coordinate
parental involvement activities and programmes within
the system in an effort to overcome obstacles between the home and school  (Epstein, 2001). Epstein
(2009) described the role of parent involvement coor dinators as a way of encouraging more parents to
become involved in a variety  of aspects of the school. Parent involvement coordinators often conduct
work shops for parents to inform them of the school curriculum and remind them  that they are their
child’s most important teacher (Epstein, 2009). 

Adequately parent involvement:  

Considering the research findings, their own practical experience, as  well as discussions with
other experts, Bouffard and Weiss (2008) summarize  some of the basic principles that the process of
involving families can make  meaningful and useful. First, the involvement of parents must be part of a 
broader strategy of complementary support learning and development as a  systematic effort supported
by joint action of all stakeholders. Furthermore,  the involvement of parents should be viewed as a
continuous process that has  its evolutionary stages through childhood and adolescence, and is
especially  important in the periods of the transition of children from one to another level  of schooling.
However, not all parents have equal capacities for fuller partici pation in all activities and not all
schools are interested and able adequately  support participation in them. Research shows that the
traditional system of  parental participation, despite good intentions, usually leaves out the participa 
tion of non-dominant parents. In the modern school system, there is no gener ally accepted model of
parental participation. 
 Analysing a number of existing approaches in establishing an adequate  model of the
relationship between parents and schools, Swap (1993) identifies  three models of parental
involvement. 
Protective Model – the goal of this model is to avoid conflict between  teachers and parents by
keeping the teaching and parenting functions separate  (Swap, 1993). It is referred to as the protective
model because its objective is to  protect the school from interference by parents. The teacher’s
responsibility is  to educate children, while the parent’s responsibility is to make sure children  get to
school on time with the correct supplies. In this model, parental involve 
ment is seen as unnecessary and as potentially interfering with the education  of children.  
Transmission Model – is predicated on the view that teachers see them selves as the primary source of
expertise on children but who recognize the  benefits of using parents as a resource (Swap, 1993). In
this model, the teacher 

remains in control and decides on the intervention, but does accepts that par ents can play an important
role in facilitating children’s progress. Teachers us ing this approach must have additional skills,
including techniques to effec tively guide parents and interpersonal skills to establish productive
working  
relationships. One drawback of this approach is the assumption that all par ents can, and should, take on
the role of acting as a resource (Swap, 1993). This  model has the potential to overburden parents by
placing excessive demands on  them to carry out activities in the home.  
Curriculum-enrichment Model – the goal of this model is to extend the  school curriculum by
incorporating parent’s contributions (Swap, 1993). This  model is based on the assumption that parents
have valuable expertise to con tribute and the interaction between parents and teachers will enhance the
cur riculum and the educational objectives of the school. Parent involvement in  this model focuses
primarily on curriculum and instruction within schools.  The major drawback to this model is that it
involves teachers permitting par ents to have tremendous input regarded what is taught and how it is
taught. In  some cases, this may seem threatening to the teacher.  
Ten years later, Hornby (2011) addes descriptions of three more models: Expert Model – in this
model teachers consider themselves to be the ex perts regarding all areas of the development and
education of children, whereas  parent’s views are given little credence (Cunningham & Davis, 1985).
Teachers  maintain control over all decisions, while the parent’s role is to receive informa tion and
instruction about their children. Parent’s views and feelings, the need  for a mutual relationship, and the
sharing of information are given little, if any,  consideration.  
Consumer Model – In this model, teachers function as more of a con sultant while parents
decide what action is to be taken (Cunningham & Da vis, 1985). The responsibility of decision-making
lies on the shoulders of the  parents, but it is the teachers’ responsibility to provide parents with
relevant  information and the options available. In this model, teachers defer to the par ents, who are
placed in the expert role. Because parents are in control of the  decision-making process, they are more
likely to be satisfied with the services  they receive, to feel more confident in their parenting, and to be
less dependent  on professionals.  
Partnership Model – is the most appropriate model one in which teach ers are considered to be experts
on education and parents are viewed as ex perts on their children (Hornby, 2001).The goal is to
establish a partnership  in which teachers and parents share expertise and control in order to provide 
the optimum education for children, each contributing different strengths to

the relationship. Mutual respect, long-term commitment to a wide range of ac tivities, and sharing of
planning and decision-making responsibilities are the  essential components for true partnerships
between parents and teachers are  to occur.  
The essence of effective partnerships between parents and school staff  was summarized in seven
principles by Turnbull and colleagues (2011). A key  principle of effective partnership is trust. The
teacher is required to have reli able, confidential, open and honest relationships with parents.
Furthermore,  the relationship must be based on mutual respect which means respect for the  opinions
of others and respect for the dignity of others. Parents should be con vinced of the competence of
persons who are professionally involved in the  work with their children. Effective partnerships require
two-way communica tion that will enable the exchange of knowledge and ideas between all parties 
involved. No less important is the imperative of protecting children, which is  achieved through early
identification of problems, their solution, the identi fication of appropriate strategies and the promotion
of knowledge about the  protection of children. 

Conclusion  

Research has indicated that great schools have effective partnerships  with parents (Davies,
1996); therefore, school, family, and community partner ships are critical component in educating
students. 
Parental involvement provides an important opportunity for schools  to enrich current school
programmes by bringing parents into the educa tional process. Increased parental involvement has been
shown to result in  increased student success, enhanced parent and teacher satisfaction, and im proved
school climate. To ensure effective parental involvement, schools may  have partnership programmes in
place that continually develop, implement,  evaluate, and improve plans and practices encouraging
family and community  involvement. Schools can encourage involvement in several of areas including 
parenting, learning at home, communication, volunteering, decision-making,  and community
collaboration. Effective parental involvement programmes are  built upon a careful consideration of the
unique needs of the community. In  order to build trust, effective approaches to parent involvement rely
upon a  strengthbased approach, emphasizing positive interactions. Though specifics  may vary, all
parent involvement programs share the goal of increasing parent school collaboration in order to
promote healthy child development and safe  school communities.

There must be mutual trust and respect between the home, school, and  community. Partnership
programmes within the school can train volunteers  on specific ways and strategies to assist in the
classroom or school. With this  type of training, all volunteers will know the expectations and have a
better  understanding of the operations of the school. Schools need to attempt to in 
volve numerous parents and community members in the education of students  through effective
partnership programmes in an effort to express the impor tance of education. Finally, schools may
implement involvement activities that  concentrate on involving all parents. Administrators and
educators must pro vide a welcoming and inviting atmosphere to make the school less intimidating  and
more comfortable for those parents who have negative experiences in the  school. Interactions between
the school and home need to be more positive,  requiring teachers to contact families throughout the
year and not just when  problems arise. It is may be beneficial for administrators and educators to at
tempt to involve all parents in the education of their children and make the  educational experience
more positive for everyone involved. 

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