Parental Involvement and Student Success

Abstract

Home is a student's first classroom, and parents are a student's first teacher. School aged children spend 70% of their waking hours (including weekends and holidays) outside of school (Education, 2003). With such a high percentage of time spent outside of the classroom, students need home and school connections in order retain knowledge and succeed in academic achievement. Teachers and parents must also communicate. This purpose of this study was to gather and interpret information on the connection of parental involvement and its effects on student learning and success at Cathedral School. The researcher hoped to gain insight and obtain information that would determine if increasing parental involvement in classrooms would decrease the gap of academic achievement and give all students at Cathedral School an equal chance at success. The present study indicated the following. Students whose parents are involved academically and at home do better in school. When parents feel they have a purpose at school, when students feel motivated to learn, when parents feel they can help their student with their academic success, and when teachers, students, and parents all work together with open communication, it is shown that great things can happen. If there is a break anywhere in the chain, the first one to suffer is the student.