Fifth grade students' perceived and desired level of parental involvement in their education

Abstract

The primary purpose of this study was to describe the correspondence between fifth grade students’ perceived and desired level of parental involvement in their education, with identification of the specific school-related activities in which students want their parents involved. An experimenter-designed survey of ten questions was administered to 96 fifth grade students, 43 males and 55 females. The schools that participated in the study were Sherman Elementary and Manz Elementary in the Eau Claire Area School District in the fall of 1999. Parental involvement was defined as the parent or parents’ participation in on-going classroom and school activities, and involvement in learning activities at home (Watkins, 1997). This study showed that there was a major correspondence between the fifth graders’ perceived and desired level of parental involvement in their education. Also, a high correspondence was found between the activities the participants do with their parents and the activities they would like to do with their parents. This study will help parents, teachers, and counselors understand the ideas and feelings of fifth grade students about integrating their growing sense of personal responsibility with their parents’ guidance and support.