Parental Involvement Influencing Academic Performance: A Study of Students’ Perceptions

Abstract

Research studies demonstrate that when parents are maximally involved in their child's academics, it is likely to claim that the child is performing well and confidently at every stage of an academic journey. In the Pakistani context, this integral factor is not only failed to be noticed by the parents but also by the students themselves. Therefore, there seems a dire need to conduct a study that keeps the perceptions of students into account. The current study aims to analyze the perceptions of students about parental involvement influencing their academic performance at semi-government Middle level school of district Sukkur, Pakistan. The population of the study includes 6th, 7th, and 8th graders. Convenient sampling strategy was used to select desired sample. The quantitative research approach was opted using a self-developed questionnaire reviewed by content and construct experts. The data were analyzed through descriptive analysis. The overall findings of this studies show that students perceived that parents should keep monitoring their child's studies, and there should be a parent-teacher communication and child-parent communication as regards the children’s academic performance. The respondents attached importance to parental involvement in school activities. This study recommends some actionable measures to increase parental involvement in Middle level students' academics such as schools should re-develop the (PTA) meetings; teachers must be trained to communicate effectively with parents regarding minute aspect like; child's readiness, and parents should limit the screen time of their child during their study hours. Lastly, the study presents implications for parents, school administrators, and students to bridge the gap.