Influence of family involvement on kindergarteners' early literacy and social development

Abstract

In 1990, the National Education Goals Panel developed eight goals, one of which identified the need for parental participation in a child's education. Both academic achievement and social skills have been identified as positive correlates with family involvement. The present study investigated the impact of family involvement on early literacy and social skills of kindergarten students. Kindergarten is an important year in a child's academic career, as both literacy and social skills continue to develop, enabling success in school. Family involvement encompassed three dimensions of involvement identified by Fantuzzo, Tighe, and Childs (2000): Home-based involvement, school-based involvement, and home-school conferencing. Results of the study yielded a small to moderate relationship between school-based involvement and social skills development among kindergarteners, suggesting parent involvement within the school environment is important. However, results did not indicate a predictive relationship between any of the three dimensions of family involvement and early literacy or social development.