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DOCUMENT RESUME

ED 363 441 PS 021 903

AUTHOR Benjamin, L. Ann

TITLE Parents' Literacy and Their Children's Success in

School: Recent Research, Promising Practices, and

Research Implications. Education Research Report.

INSTITUTION Office of Educational Research and Improvement (ED),

Washington, DC. Office of Research.

REPORT NO ED/OERI-93-8; OR-93-3081

PUB DATE Aug 93

NOTE 5p.

PUB TYPE Information Analyses (070) Reports Descriptive

(141)

EDRS PRICE MF01/PC01 Plus Postage.

DESCRIPTORS *Academic Achievement; *Adult Literacy; At Risk

Persons; Early Childhood Education; Early

Intervention; Elementary Education; Elementary School

Students; *Family Programs; *Parent Influence;

*Parent Student Relationship; Preschool Children;

Socioeconomic Influences

IDENTIFIERS Even Start; *Family Literacy; Kenan Trust Model

ABSTRACT

This report examines recent research and program

developments designed to improve the education of children by

improving the literacy skills of their parents, particularly their

mothers, who did not graduate from high school. Traditional research

has revealed that more highly educated mothers have greater success

in providing their children with the cognitive language skills that

contribute to early success in school than less well-educated

mothers. A growing body'of recent research, however, suggests that

the way parents raise their children may be more important than the

parents' occupation, income, or educational level. During the past

decade there has been growing interest in the notion that

educationally disadvantaged parents and children are a learning unit,

and that family and intergenerational literacy programs can provide

parents with needed support in their role as first teachers. Programs

which seek to improve parents' literacy and other skills include Even

Start, the Kenan Trust Family Literacy Model, and the

Intergenerational Literacy Action Research Project. Two major

implications from the research on the influence of parental literacy

are: (1) low-literate parents, particularly mothers, are more likely

to exert a positive influence on their children's academic

achievement when they are able to enhance their own literacy skills

than when they are unable to do so; and (2) intervention programs

should be designed to enable family members to construct useful

meanings and definitions of literacy. Contains a list of 18 selected

readings. (MDM)

Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made

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2

Parents' Literacy and Their Children's Success in School:

Recent Research, Promising Practices, and Research Implications

Why children succeed or fail in school is one of

the most enduring questions for educational researchers. A salient finding from traditional research on both adult education and early childhood

intervention programs is that the mother's level of

education is one of the most important factors

influencing children's reading levels and other

school achievements.

Generally, traditional research has revealed that

more highly educated mothers have greater success in providing their children with the cognitive

and language skills that contribute to early success

in school (Sticht & McDonald, 1990). Also, children of mothers with high levels of education stay

in school longer than children of mothers with low

levels of education.

It is important for the reader to keep in mind that

traditional studies focus on broad populations instead of the populations most likely to experience

difficulties in acquiring basic literacy skills. There

is evidence suggesting that correlational studies

intended to provide ;nformation for literacy intervention have idert ;led symptoms of the causal

variables. The socia: arif't cultural precepts within

the family are causal fact6rs which must be addressed in programs designed to produce longterm changes in the lives of disadvantaged family

members (Hayes, 1991; Gadsden, in press).

This report examines recent research and program

developments designed to improve the education

of children by improving the literacy skills of their

parents (particularly their mothers) who did not

graduate from high school.

Recent Research

The National Assessment of Educational Progress

(NAEP) data provide some evidence supporting

the traditional interpretations of children's academic success that focus on gross measures of

parents' educational attainment. A review of the

performance of children and young adults across

age groups (9 to 25 years of age) and across ethnic

groups on various literacy tasks of the NAEP confirmed the importance of mothers' educational

levels (Sticht, 1988). Data from the 1990 NAEP

reading assessments revealed that the average proficiency among fourth-graders was lower for those

students who report that their mothers had not

completed high school.

However, another line of research has challenged

the traditionalist view that one or a few variables

can explain the influence of the home on low-income children's academic success. A growing

body of research suggests that how parents raise

their children may be more important than the

parents' occupation, income, or educational level

(Heath, 1983; Taylor & Dorsey-Gaines, 1988;

Teale, 1986; Snow, Barnes, Chandier, Goodman,

& Hemphill, 1991).

The Harvard Families and Litcracy Study (Chall &

Snow, 1982) investigated the home literacy practices of successful and unsuccessful low-income

elementary school students to identify faCtors that

contributed to the acquisition of literacy and children's achievement in school. The study found "no

simple correlation between parents' literacy level,

educational background, amount of time spent on

literacy work with children, and overall achievement."
3

a ,

1'

Auerbach's review of the ethnographic studies of

family literacy found that a two-way support system (as opposed to simply parent-to-child literacy

learning) characterized the literacy interactions of

many low-income, minority and immigrant families.

One study of parental involvement based on a

model *of children reading to parents found that

children who read to their parents on a regular

basis made greater gains than children receiving

an equivalent amount of extra reading instruction

by reading specialists at school (Tizard, Schofield,

& Hewison, 1982).

Auerbach's work also shows that "indirect factors

including frequency of children's outings with

adults, number of maternal outings, emotional climate of the home, amount of time spent interacting

with adults, level of financial stress, enrichment

activities, and parental involvement with the

schools had a stronger effect on many aspects of

reading and writing than did direct literacy activities, such as help with homework" (Auerbach,

1989).

Research Issues

A firm understanding of the family context will

increase our understanding of the "strengths" of

educationally disadvantaged families that contribute to the children's academic success.

Tea le (1986) argues that a frequent shortcoming of

research on the effects of family background is its

correlational design. "Children are tested in, for

example, various aspects of literacy development

(usually referred to as reading readiness) and their

achievement levels are then correlated with particular home background characteristics. Such research provides no direct evidence for cause--

effect relations. Yet, frequently, these studies suggest implications for instruction or home intervention programs."

A growing number of researchers argue that naturalistic inquiry in which the researcher does not

attempt to manipulate study setting and places no

prior constraints on what the outcomes of the

research will be (Patton, 1990) is particularly wellsuited for gathering data on all of the contributors

to literacy development.

One researcher has suggested a cycle of research

that begins with an ethnographic examination of

the context as a whole, is followed by case studies

to focus carefully on a few individuals, continues

with experimental research of new approaches, and

ends with another ethnographic examination to see

how the new procedures work in an entire context

(Kami1,1989).

During the last decade, educators and policymakers have become increasingly interested in the notion that educationally disadvantaged parents and

children are a learning unit and that family and

intergenerational literacy programs are a promising approach to supporting parents in their role as

first teachers.

Promising Programs and Practices

Improving the school readiness and literacy skills

of children is an essential goal of the federally

funded Even Start family literacy program. Preliminary findings of the 4-year national evaluation

of the Even Start program reveal that participating

children who have had no prior pre-school experience double the expected developmental growth

rate. This finding suggests that "as Even Start

children enter the public schools they are more

likely to know basic concepts and precursors of

kindergarten skills than they would have in the

absence of the program" (St. Pierre, Swartz, Murray, & Deck, 1993).

In the Kenan Trust Family Literacy Model, parents

work on basic academic skills and parenting skills

while their children attend a preschool class. Follow-up studies of preschool participants who were

at risk of failure when they enrolled in the family

literacy program showed that primary grade students performed above average on variables such

as academic performance, motivation to learn, attendance, self confidence, and probable success in

school. Ninety percent of the children were rated

as "not considered at risk for school failure" by

their current teachers.

There were also significant findings for the parents who participated in the Kenan Trust Family

Literacy Model. Over 80 percent of the parents

who enrolled in the program were unemployed,

had not completed high school, and had an income

of less than $7,000 per year, primarily from public

assistance (Seaman, Popp & Darling, 1991; National Center For Family Literacy, 1993). After

participating in the program

41 percent either were in some form of higher

or continuing education program or had definite

plans for enrolling;

35 percent were employed;
41 percent were not receiving any form of public Conclusion and Research Implications

assistance; and

Well over half of the parents were still serving

as volunteers in their children's elementary

schools 1 to 3 years after leaving the program.

The Intergenerational Literacy Action Research

Project (ILAR), conducted by Wider Opportunities for Women (Fossen and Sticht, 1991), involved mothers participating in community-based

programs that provide women with basic-skills instruction and job training. The study revealed that

65 percent of the children benefitted from their

mother's participation in the adult education and

training programs.

Following their participation in the project, more

than 90 percent of the mothers reported that they

had become aware of the influence they had on

their children's educational achievements. The

mothers also stated that they would read to their

children more often and make greater efforts to

help them with their homework, take them to the

library, and talk with them about school.

Selected Readings

Auerbu: h, E. R. (1989). "Towar' a SocialContextual Approach to Family Literacy." Harvard

Educational Review 59(2): 165-181.

Chall, J. S., & Snow, C. (1982). Etunilies and

Literacy: The Contributions of Out of School Experiences to Children's Acquisition of LiteraQ

Washington, D.C.: National Institute of Education

Fossen, S. V. & Sticht, T. G. (1991). Teach the

Mother and Reach the Child: Results of the Intergenerational Literacy Action Research Project of

Wider Opportunities for Women. Washington,

D.C.: Wider Opportunities for Women, Inc.

Gadsden, V. (unpublished draft). Conceptual Issues in

Family Literacy: Toward a Framework.

Hayes, A. "Undoing the OversimplificatiOn of a

Complex Matter: Issues in Defining Evaluative

Criteria, Data Collection, and Reporting for Intergenerational Literacy Programs." Paper presented

at the annual meeting of the American Educational

Research Association, San Francisco, April 1991.

Heath, S. B. (1983). Ways with Words: Language,

Life, and Work in Communities and Classrooms.

New York: Cambridge University Press.

Kamil, M. (March, 1989). "Personal Communication" in Newman, A. P., & Beverstock, C., eds.

Adult Literacy: Contexts & Challenges. Newark,

Delaware: International Reading Association,

Inc., 1990.

National Center for Family Literacy. (1993). Dissemination Process Submission to the Program

Effectiveness Panel of the U.S. Department of

Education. Louisville, Kentucky: Author.

Nickse, R. S. (1990). "Family and Intergenerational Literacy Programs: An Update of thc Noises

of Literacy." Information Series. 342, ERIC Clearinghouse on Adult, Career, & Vocational Education. Columbus: Ohio State University.

Patton, M. Q. (1990). Qualitative Evaluation and

Research Methods. Newbury Park, California:

Sage Publications.

There are a number of factors in the family context

that must be identified and thoroughly investigated so that low-literate parents learn how to use

their existing skills as tools for improving their

lives and their children's education.

Two major implications from this research are:

Low-literate pa ents, particularly mothers, are

more likely to exert a positive influence on their

children's academic achievement when they are

able to enhance their own literacy skills.

Intervention programs should he designed to

enable family members to construct useful

meanings and definitions of literacy.

All the stakeholders should come together to

develop a research agenda for examining parent

child interacLk)ns and advancing family literacy as

a field with appropriate frameworks and instructional approaches.
Seaman, D.; Popp, B; & Darling, S. (1991). Follow-up Study of the Impact of the Kenan Trust

Model for Family Literacy. Louisville, Kentucky:

National Center for Family Literacy.

Snow, C. E.; Barnes, W. S.; Chandler, J.; Goodman, I. F.; & Hemphill, L. (1991). Home and

School Influences on Literacy. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.

St. Pierre, R.; Swartz, J.; Murray, S.; & Deck, D.

(1993). Highlights of National Evaluation of the

Even Start Family Literacy Program: Preview of

Third Interim Report. Cambridge: Abt Associates,

Inc.

Sticht, T. G. (1988). "Adult Literacy Education."

Review of Research in Education 15:59-96.

Sticht, T. G., & McDonald, B.A. (1990). Teach

the Mother and Reach the Child: Literacy Across

Generations. Literacy Lessons. Geneva: International Bureau of Education.

Taylor, D., & Dorsey-Gaines, C. (1988). Growing

Up Literate: Learning from Inner City Families.

Portsmouth, New Hamshire: Heinemann.

Teale, W. H. (1986). "Home background and

young children's literacy development" in Teale,

W.H; & Sulzby E., eds. Emergent Literacy: Writing and Reading. Norwood, New Jersey: Ablex

Publishing Corp.

Tizard, J.; Schofield, W. N.; & Hewison, J. (1982).

Reading Symposium: "Collaboration Between

Teachers and Parents in Assisting Children's

Reading." British Journal of Educational Psychology 52 (Part 1): 1-15.

This Research Report was written by L. Ann Benjamin and is part of a series published by the office

of Res arch of the U. S. Department of Education.

If you have comments or would like to suggest

topics for future issues, please write to the Office

of Research, OERI, U.S. Department of Education,

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OERI.

OR-93-3081

August 1993

EDIOERI 93-8

This Research Report is produced by the Office of Research,

Office of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI) of the U.S. Department of Education.

Richard VV. Riley, Secretary of Education

Sharon P. Robinson, Assistant Secretary, OERI

Joseph C. Conaty, Acting Director, OR