“Me I don’t really discuss anything with them”: Parent and teacher perceptions of early childhood education and parent-teacher relationships in Ghana

Abstract

Parental involvement in early childhood education (ECE) is presumed to be important. Yet little research exists on how parents view their role in their child’s early schooling, nor on how parent-teacher relationships may shape classrooms. This is particularly true in low- and middle-income countries. This study analyzes interviews with 25 parents and 25 teachers of children in pre-primary school in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana. Interviews investigated perceptions about educational quality, experiences with ECE, communication between parents and teachers, and roles of parents and teachers in children’s education. Results revealed important areas of both alignment and misalignment between parents’ and teachers’ perceptions and goals for children’s ECE experiences. Implications for ECE policy and parental engagement are discussed.