Fostering Classroom Communities

 
 

The relationship between parent involvement and preschool children's social competence and learning behaviors 

DeWar, Amanda Lee. University of Northern Colorado, ProQuest Dissertations Publishing, 2011. 3498436. 

Purpose:  The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between parent involvement and preschool children's social competence and learning behaviors. 

Population/Participannts:  The participants were recruited from 47 preschool classrooms.  A total of 46 preschool teachers were invited to participate that had been teaching in their classrooms for 11 weeks to ensure they would know the students who would potentially participate in the study. 

The students represented 3 groups: 

1st group- students who paid tuition to attend the preschool. 

2nd group-students who received special education services within the classroom and were on an Individual Education Program (IEP) 

3rd group- students who attended the preschool at no cost; who participated in the Colorado Preschool Project (CPP) for children who demonstrated at-risk characteristics. 

The author of this study used the Preschool Learning Behaviors Scale that was completed by teachers that has 29 items representing specific learning- related behavior. 

The Penn Interactive Peer Play Scale was used to measure social competence. It's comprised of 32 items that look at preschool children's interactive peer play skills.  Teachers and Parents each reported on how often they observe certain interactive behaviors during a child's free play. 

The Family Involvement Questionnaire is a multidimensional rating scale that parents complete to measure the type of and extent of their involvement in their child's education. 

When it came to data collection the author used a multiple regression analysis to determine the relationship between parental involvement and preschool students level of social competence, and demonstration of learning behaviors. 

The results of the current study did not support a significant relationship between parent involvement and preschool children's social competence and learning behaviors. 

Because the population was not from a Head Start Program, the measures used in this study differed from the findings of other research when it came to Parental Involvement.   

Limitations for this study are primarily a result of the measures used as well as the characteristics of the sample and sample size. 

Arnold, D. H., Zeljo, A., Doctoroff, G. L., & Ortiz, C. (2008). Parent involvement in preschool: Predictors and the relation of involvement to literacy development. School Psychology Review, 37(1), 74-90.  

Epstein, J. L., Sanders, M. G., Simon, B. S., Salinas, K. C., Jansorn, N. R., & Van Voorhis, F. L. (2002). School, family, and community partnerships. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press, Inc. 

Fan, X., & Chen, M. (2001). Parental involvement and students’ academic achievement: A meta-analysis. Educational Psychology Review, 13(1), 1-22. 

Each of these resources that was used by the author was relevant to the study because of what the author primarily focused the study on.  The study was about Parental Involvement and the relationship of preschool children's learning behavior and social competence.   These resources helped the author in the development of the study because of the focus and the findings these resources presented to help the author. 

The information from this dissertation definitely gave me so much insight when it comes to fostering supportive learning environments.  I have a small business working with children from preschool to elementary and when I do my tutoring sessions I make sure I create the environment to make them feel welcomed and that they have a fun learning experience along with building a great relationship with their parents to inform them of the progress and working together so the child can reach their highest potential.