| Citation: | Hoover-Dempsey, K. V., & Sandler, H. M. (1997). Why do parents become involved in their children's education? Review of Educational Research, 67(1), 3-42. EJ548327. |
Annotation:
The purpose of this article is to review psychological theory and research literature important to understanding why parents become involved in their children's education. The literature suggests that parents develop their beliefs and understandings about the requirements and expectations of the parent role as a function of their membership and participation in a variety of groups (family, school, church, etc.). Also, a school's climate that invites involvement influences parents' decisions about whether and how to become involved in their children's education. The authors suggest that if schools and communities wish to benefit from parent involvement, they must work specifically to enhance parents' beliefs about their roles in their children's education, their sense of efficacy for helping children succeed in school, and their ability to maintain some level of control over events. This article lists several ways this might be accomplished, such as giving teachers time to interact with parents during the school day. It goes on to suggest that teacher/parent time be spent mutually agreeing on expectations for the parent's role and devising specific ways for parents to offer academically useful help to their children. It also suggests that community employers be encouraged to offer parents time away from work to be involved in school. The literature reviewed comes primarily from psychology; however, the authors state that other disciplines (e.g., anthropology, economics, education, sociology) also offer significant information about critical contextual elements of the involvement process.
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