Parents' and teachers' perceptions of parent involvement and participation in Catholic schools
Abstract
The purposes of this study were to examine the relationship between teachers' perceptions and parents' perceptions of parent involvement in Catholic schools and to assess the relationship between parents' perceptions of involvement at their schools and their satisfaction with the education their children were receiving. Samples of 122 parents and 86 teachers from eight schools in the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey, were surveyed on the Parent Involvement and Participation Scale. Additionally, parents were surveyed on their perceptions of the quality of the school. White parents perceived parents as more supportive of the school than non-White parents. As the educational and occupational background of the parents increased, perceptions of the opportunities the school provided for parents to learn about education and their children decreased, as did their perceptions of their involvement in personnel decisions. The greater the number of children in the school, the lower parents' perceptions of parent involvement in shaping the school's budget and policies, and the lower their scores on parents as supporters of the school. The greater the number of years parents had children in the school, the lower their perceptions of parents as shapers of school policies and the lower their satisfaction with the school. Parents who were members of the parent association perceived parents as less involved in educational choices and were not as satisfied with the school as parents not in the parent association. The higher parents' perceptions of the achievement of their children in school, the higher their perceptions of parental involvement and the greater their satisfaction with the school. Parents' perceptions of parental involvement did not significantly differ from those of the teachers, with the exception that parents saw themselves as able to participate in more learning activities about education and their children than did teachers. As parents' satisfaction with the school increased, their perceptions of parents' involvement as teachers of their children and as shapers of school policies increased, and involvement as learners and as supporters of the school decreased.
Subject Area
Religious education|Elementary education
Recommended Citation
Benevento, Suzanne Longo, "Parents' and teachers' perceptions of parent involvement and participation in Catholic schools" (1997). ETD Collection for Fordham University. AAI9808995.
https://research.library.fordham.edu/dissertations/AAI9808995
