Date of Award
2003
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Education
Department
EdD Program for Educational Leaders
Advisor
Clifford Claiborne
Committee Member
Donald Lueder
Committee Member
Barbara Packer
Keywords
achievement, academic performance, Daniel Boone Elementary School, grade 3, Homeroom Parent Support Group, Iowa Test of Basic Skills, parent attitudes, parent-child activities, parent education, parent involvement, parent partnerships, parent-school relationship, school-community relationships, student achievement, teacher attitudes, workshops
Abstract
This applied dissertation investigated the extent of parental involvement at the Daniel Boone Elementary School. Parents were visible on campus during the school day and at special performances featuring children, but according to the teachers, they were not actively involved in a manner that affects their children’s academic performance or success in school. Increasing parental involvement was not a priority at Boone School, as indicated in the 1999-2000 School Improvement Plan.
Therefore, a Homeroom Parent Support Group (HPSG) program was implemented to increase parental involvement in an elementary school setting. Parents and their third grade students were members of the target group. The objective for this program was to increase parental involvement in the school by (a) improving parents’ attitudes toward the school, (b) training parents to develop partnerships with teachers, and (c) improving students’ academic performance in reading and math, as measured by the Iowa Test of Basic Skills (ITBS). The program included multiple strategies for increasing parental involvement in the school, such as (a) parent workshops, (b) parent education classes, and (c) parent-child activities. The applied dissertation examined whether the HPSG program increased parental involvement and student achievement. Evaluation of the effect on increasing parent involvement and student achievement was based on comparisons of the parent and teacher presurvey and postsurvey data, parents’ attendance records, and the third grade students’ scores on the ITBS.
The results of the HPSG program indicated a 50% increase in parental involvement, an improvement in parent attitudes toward the school, and an increase in student achievement, as evidenced by the third grade parents’ and teachers’ attitudinal presurveys and postsurveys, the third grade parents’ and teachers’ attendance records, and the 2000-2001 ITBS mean scores.