The Impact of Parents’ Involvement Using Online Platforms in Improving Learners’ Reading Comprehension in English VI: an Action Reasearch

Abstract

This study aimed to examine the impact of parental involvement upon learner’s reading achievement. The study investigated whether learners with difficulty would improve reading comprehension when parents became actively involved in their child’s reading activities. Together with their parents, selected learners of Grade Six of Laong-Laan Elementary School participated in this reading intervention program. They were identified as struggling readers who were having difficulty in comprehension. Prior to the start of the reading program, learners were individually administered a pre-reading inventory using PHIL-IRI passage to assess the reading comprehension level of the learners. Each learner read and answered 8 written questions in an online platform using Google form about the story without parental support. Learners took a pre-test and classified their reading level as frustration, instructional or independent readers. There were 21 or 45.65% students under the frustration, 20 or 43.48% students in the instructional, and 5 or 10.87% students in the independent. Their parents were involved to read with their child at home during this time of pandemic. The learners read and discussed books or short story once a week with their parents at home and answered written comprehension questions about the story. The intervention lasted for 8 weeks. The post-test result showed, from the 21 learners under the frustration level decreased into 9 or 19.57%, 20 learners in the instructional increased into 22 or 47.83%, and from 5 learners in the independent increased into 15 or 32.60%. The outcomes of the study reveals that learner’s reading comprehension level increased as a result of parental involvement in their child’s reading activities. Meanwhile. the participating learners have also experienced a heightened enjoyment of reading and the parents have become more confidant in providing reading support to their children. The school should come up training sessions and a reading manuals to guide parents on meaningful indulgence in their children’s reading at home especially in this time of pandemic due to COVID-19 virus. Future and more in-depth research is recommended to identify what aspects of parent involvement have the most positive effect on diverse students’ achievement in reading and in other subjects.