Question
I want to write my dissertation on parental involvement and student learning and achievement. Could you help me to formulate a topic? Do you think there will be enough written literature on this topic?
Answer
There is certainly literature available about the relationship between parental involvement and student achievement – however, the volume of this literature varies according to a number of factors. Which age group would the dissertation refer to, for example? There is an abundance of literature about the impact of parental involvement in early years and primary education, but this becomes scarcer when looking at secondary or further education (Goodall and Vorhaus, 2011). It also depends on what you mean by ‘involvement’. Grolnick and Slowiaczek (1994) suggested that there are three main types of parental involvement in a child’s education:
- Behavioural involvement: for example, going into school and participating in activities which help their child manage schooling.
- Personal involvement: caring about and interacting with their child at events related to school.
- Cognitive/intellectual involvement: exposing their child to stimulating activities or materials or assisting them in their intellectual development (p.29)
Whether you would be focusing on one of these types of involvement or all would also affect the title. We do provide a service which offers help in creating titles and these can be tailored to your needs; please see our Titles Service by clicking here.
References
Goodall, J. and Vorhaus, J., (2011). Review of best practice in parental engagement. Department for Education (DFE).
Grolnick, W.S., and Slowiaczek, M.L. (1994). ‘Parents’ involvement in children’s schooling: a multidimensional conceptualization and motivational model.’ Child Dev 65.1, pp. 237-252.
