Parental involvement in early childhood education in Azerbaijan

Abstract

According to all major developmental theories, parents are the most influential people in children’s lives followed by their teachers and peers. Research has provided clear evidence that the parents should be involved in young children’s education as it has numerous benefits for the children for their achievement, cognitive skills, behavior, and socio-emotional development. As a Caucasian country, Azerbaijan has always paid special attention to its children’s education. However, there is no scholarly work presenting the situation of parent involvement in early childhood education (ECE) in Azerbaijan. Hence, this chapter will provide in-depth information about the background, current practice, and suggestions for the improvement of parent involvement in ECE in Azerbaijan. Furthermore, survey data were gathered from 340 participants who have second- and third-grader children through six schools in Baku to investigate the degree to which Azerbaijani parents become involved with and interact with their child’s school and the influence of their demographic characteristics including their age, gender, child’s gender, educational level, the number of children, and marital and employment status on their engagement. The results will be presented and discussed. Implications and suggestions will be made available.