Perceptions of Parent Involvement in Schools from Families of Children with and Without Special Needs
Author | : Victoria W. Carr |
Publisher | : |
Total Pages | : 162 |
Release | : 2000 |
ISBN-10 | : OCLC:48042279 |
ISBN-13 | : |
Rating | : 4/5 (79 Downloads) |
Book excerpt: The purpose of this study was to compare perceptions of parental involvement of families who have children with special needs and families who have children without special needs from preschool through grade three. A survey of families with regard to parent involvement was conducted in Ohio. Responses from a sub-sample of 781 families who did not have children with special needs and 145 families who had children with special needs was analyzed. In general, few significant differences were found between the perceptions of parents of children with and without special needs. The differences found were related to the importance of family support and learning at home. In addition, differences in how well schools initiated and implemented parent involvement were found in volunteering and decision making dimensions. Specifically, parents of children with special needs placed more importance on receiving information about community services and discussing hopes and future plans for their children than did parents of children without special needs felt the schools did a significantly better job of inviting parents into the classroom to help. In addition, although both groups of parents rated serving on decision making committees low, parents whose children did not have special needs rated this dimension more satisfactory. No other areas within the six dimensions for both the importance of parent involvement and how well schools initiated and implemented parent involvement were found significantly different between the two groups of parents. Overall, parents perceived the schools as being moderately receptive to parental involvement.