1. Family Influences on Early Grade Reading and Mathematics Linda Zuze 28 September 2017

2. Overview Why collect data on families Rethinking family influences
Example from TIMSS
Example from EGRS
Lessons learned

3. Why collect data on families?
Coleman revisited
Outside influences on schooling
Support for learning
Verification of school information

4. Why collect data on families?
Demographic
Parental education
Educational resources
Extra lessons
Chores
Nutrition
Home language
Home possessions
Lifestyle
Grade repetition
Educational support
Structural features of the home
Attitudes about school
Homework
Household structure
Early learning
Source of lighting
Main care giver
Absence from school

5. Why collect data on families?
Demographic
Parental education
Educational resources
Extra lessons
Chores
Nutrition
Home language
Home possessions
Lifestyle
Grade repetition
Educational support
Structural features of the home
Attitudes about school
Homework
Household structure
Early learning
Source of lighting
Main care giver
Absence from school

6. Why collect data on families?
Demographic
Parental education
Educational resources
Extra lessons
Chores
Nutrition
Home language
Home possessions
Lifestyle
Grade repetition
Educational support
Structural features of the home
Attitudes about school
Homework
Household structure
Early learning
Source of lighting
Main care giver
Absence from school

7. Why collect data on families?
Demographic
Parental education
Educational resources
Extra lessons
Chores
Nutrition
Home language
Home possessions
Lifestyle
Grade repetition
Educational support
Structural features of the home
Attitudes about school
Homework
Household structure
Early learning
Source of lighting
Main care giver
Absence from school

8. Rethinking Family Influences
Stage Setting
Intangible qualities of parenting
Different from traditional definitions
Two Dimensions:
Communicate importance of education to a child (success = school achievement part of self definition)
Create an environment where learning can flourish (basic needs met)

9. Rethinking Family Influences
Stage Setting 1.
High-Low
Outcome: Average Achievers 2.
High-High Outcome: Solid High Achievers 3.
Low-Low Outcome: Low Achievers
4. Low-High Outcome: Mediocre or Average Achievers
High
Quality or conducive to learning environment
Moderate
Parent’s cant’ convey the importance of education well but have the ‘resources’ to create a good environment and overcome any negative and counterproductive environments.
Parents communicate the importance of education well and have the resources to create a ‘good’ environment overcome any negative and counterproductive environments.
Parent’s cant’ convey the importance of education well and lack the ‘resources’ to create a good environment that would overcome any negative and counterproductive environments.
Parents communicate the importance of education well but lack the resources to create a ‘good’ environment overcome any negative and counterproductive environments.
Children’s location within this framework strongly determines their achievement independent of their parents’ level of direct involvement.
This framework also helpful for understanding why achievement varies between students who appear to be similar in many ways, such as the school they attend, the communities the live and the families from which they come.
Low
Quality (internalisation) of the message about the importance of schooling
Source Harris and Robinson, 2017

10. Rethinking Family Influences
Stage Setting 1.
High-Low
Outcome: Average Achievers 2.
High-High Outcome: Solid High Achievers 3.
Low-Low Outcome: Low Achievers
4. Low-High Outcome: Mediocre or Average Achievers
High
Quality or conducive to learning environment
Moderate
Parent’s cant’ convey the importance of education well but have the ‘resources’ to create a good environment and overcome any negative and counterproductive environments.
Parents communicate the importance of education well and have the resources to create a ‘good’ environment overcome any negative and counterproductive environments.
Parent’s cant’ convey the importance of education well and lack the ‘resources’ to create a good environment that would overcome any negative and counterproductive environments.
Parents communicate the importance of education well but lack the resources to create a ‘good’ environment overcome any negative and counterproductive environments.
Children’s location within this framework strongly determines their achievement independent of their parents’ level of direct involvement.
This framework also helpful for understanding why achievement varies between students who appear to be similar in many ways, such as the school they attend, the communities the live and the families from which they come.
Low
Quality (internalisation) of the message about the importance of schooling
Source Harris and Robinson, 2017

11. Rethinking Family Influences
Stage Setting 1.
High-Low
Outcome: Average Achievers 2.
High-High Outcome: Solid High Achievers 3.
Low-Low Outcome: Low Achievers
4. Low-High Outcome: Mediocre or Average Achievers
High
Quality or conducive to learning environment
Moderate
Parent’s cant’ convey the importance of education well but have the ‘resources’ to create a good environment and overcome any negative and counterproductive environments.
Parents communicate the importance of education well and have the resources to create a ‘good’ environment overcome any negative and counterproductive environments.
Parent’s cant’ convey the importance of education well and lack the ‘resources’ to create a good environment that would overcome any negative and counterproductive environments.
Parents communicate the importance of education well but lack the resources to create a ‘good’ environment overcome any negative and counterproductive environments.
Children’s location within this framework strongly determines their achievement independent of their parents’ level of direct involvement.
This framework also helpful for understanding why achievement varies between students who appear to be similar in many ways, such as the school they attend, the communities the live and the families from which they come.
Low
Quality (internalisation) of the message about the importance of schooling
Source Harris and Robinson, 2017

12. Rethinking Family Influences
Stage Setting 1.
High-Low
Outcome: Average Achievers 2.
High-High Outcome: Solid High Achievers 3.
Low-Low Outcome: Low Achievers
4. Low-High Outcome: Mediocre or Average Achievers
High
Quality or conducive to learning environment
Moderate
Parent’s cant’ convey the importance of education well but have the ‘resources’ to create a good environment and overcome any negative and counterproductive environments.
Parents communicate the importance of education well and have the resources to create a ‘good’ environment overcome any negative and counterproductive environments.
Parent’s cant’ convey the importance of education well and lack the ‘resources’ to create a good environment that would overcome any negative and counterproductive environments.
Parents communicate the importance of education well but lack the resources to create a ‘good’ environment overcome any negative and counterproductive environments.
Children’s location within this framework strongly determines their achievement independent of their parents’ level of direct involvement.
This framework also helpful for understanding why achievement varies between students who appear to be similar in many ways, such as the school they attend, the communities the live and the families from which they come.
Low
Quality (internalisation) of the message about the importance of schooling
Source Harris and Robinson, 2017

13. Rethinking Family Influences
Accounts for variation in achievement for children who are similarly advantaged…
Stage Setting 1.
High-Low
Outcome: Average Achievers 2.
High-High Outcome: Solid High Achievers 3.
Low-Low Outcome: Low Achievers
4. Low-High Outcome: Mediocre or Average Achievers
High
Quality or conducive to learning environment
Moderate
Parent’s cant’ convey the importance of education well but have the ‘resources’ to create a good environment and overcome any negative and counterproductive environments.
Parents communicate the importance of education well and have the resources to create a ‘good’ environment overcome any negative and counterproductive environments.
Parent’s cant’ convey the importance of education well and lack the ‘resources’ to create a good environment that would overcome any negative and counterproductive environments.
Parents communicate the importance of education well but lack the resources to create a ‘good’ environment overcome any negative and counterproductive environments.
Children’s location within this framework strongly determines their achievement independent of their parents’ level of direct involvement.
This framework also helpful for understanding why achievement varies between students who appear to be similar in many ways, such as the school they attend, the communities the live and the families from which they come.
Low
Quality (internalisation) of the message about the importance of schooling
or disadvantaged…
Source Harris and Robinson, 2017

14. Some Examples from TIMSS

15. TIMSS 2015 C
Source: TIMSS 2015 Grade 9 Data, South Africa

16. TIMSS 2015
Schoolwork is so difficult that parents/caregivers are unable to help
Source: TIMSS 2015 Grade 9 Data, South Africa

17. TIMSS 2015
Proportion of Grade 5 parents who engage 'often' with learners in early educational activities
Benefits of parental involvement strongest for younger children (Grades 1 to 5).
Source: TIMSS 2015 Grade 5 Data, South Africa

18. TIMSS 2015
Home Educational Resources and Average Mathematics Achievement
Source: TIMSS 2015 Grade 5 Data, South Africa

19. Some Examples from EGRS
Between 2015 and 2017, DBE partnered with the North West Provincial Education Department to pilot and evaluate three interventions in a selection of schools.
Two interventions focused on providing support to teachers.
The third was intended to increase parental involvement in developing the reading skills of their children
4500 children in total

20. Parental Influences on Reading Scores
If a learner’s school bag was checked on most days or at least once a week, and the parent of the child thought that the child read better than their peers, these learners achieved significantly better results on the reading test.
Accurate perception of how well child reads also an indicator of parental involvement.
Less than 5% of parents had “inflated” views of their child’s reading (thought that their child read ‘better than others’ when their child was in the bottom 50% of the class.
Less than 5% of parents had “deflated” views of their child’s reading (thought that their child read ‘worse than others’ when their child was in the top 50% of the class.
Positive association between parental perceptions of how well a child reads and reading performance.
Bag check (parental involvement) related to higher reading scores
The two behaviours reinforced each other.
Inflated vs. deflated views.

21. Parental Influences on Reading Scores
Parents who attended four or more sessions significantly more likely to check bag or read to child daily

22. Parental Influences on Reading Scores
Workshop attendance and reading to a child also significant in wave 1.
Preaching to the converted…

23. Parental Influences on Reading Scores
Parents from resource-poor homes have different views about their roles.
Impact of parental involvement on reading scores.
Attendance: Employment (negative), responsibility about a child’s reading, reading to child (already significant before).
Challenge is how to get better attendance rates among parents who are ‘unconverted’.

24. Rethinking Family Influences
Stage Setting 1.
High-Low
Outcome: Average Achievers 2.
High-High Outcome: Solid High Achievers 3.
Low-Low Outcome: Low Achievers
4. Low-High Outcome: Mediocre or Average Achievers
High
Quality or conducive to learning environment
Most learners in the public education system…
The ‘converted’ few…
Moderate
Parent’s cant’ convey the importance of education well but have the ‘resources’ to create a good environment and overcome any negative and counterproductive environments.
Parents communicate the importance of education well and have the resources to create a ‘good’ environment overcome any negative and counterproductive environments.
Parent’s cant’ convey the importance of education well and lack the ‘resources’ to create a good environment that would overcome any negative and counterproductive environments.
Parents communicate the importance of education well but lack the resources to create a ‘good’ environment overcome any negative and counterproductive environments.
Children’s location within this framework strongly determines their achievement independent of their parents’ level of direct involvement.
This framework also helpful for understanding why achievement varies between students who appear to be similar in many ways, such as the school they attend, the communities the live and the families from which they come.
Low
Quality (internalisation) of the message about the importance of schooling
Source Harris and Robinson, 2017

25. Looking Ahead What data to collect about families
Measuring the intangibles
Implications for policy and practice

26. Thank you