Home-school Communication Research Articles

The Associations Between Parenting Self-Efficacy and Parents’ Contributions to the Home-School Partnership Among Parents of Primary School Students: a Multilevel Meta-analysis

High-quality partnerships between families and schools can bring enormous benefits to the development, learning, and wellbeing of children. Decades of research has identified parenting self-efficacy as a key factor influencing parents’ contributions toward effective home-school partnerships. However, the strength of this association has varied significantly across studies with the aggregated strength remaining unclear. This meta-analysis aimed to investigate the associations between parenting self-efficacy and various aspects of parents’ contribution to the home-school partnership, namely home-based involvement, school-based involvement, home-school communication and relationships, as well as parental expectations and aspirations among parents of primary school students. Moderator effects were also examined. Through systematically searching six databases and screening papers, we included 50 independent studies involving 185 effect sizes (N = 20,043 children). Results showed a small to medium correlation between parenting self-efficacy and the multidimensional construct of home-school partnership outcomes (r = .189). The associations were stronger for education-focused parenting self-efficacy (r = .183) than general parenting self-efficacy (r = .114) and were stronger still for home-based participation (r = .248) and parental expectations and aspirations (r = .248) than school-based participation (r = .124) and parent-teacher communication/relationship (r = .090). We detected limited moderating effects of child gender, parent gender, ethnicity, sample type (general or targeted), and socio-economic status and publication bias. Overall, this meta-analysis provides evidence to support the positive relationship between parenting self-efficacy and parents’ contributions to the strength of the home-school partnership. Implications and suggestions for future research are discussed.

The effects of Dibao programme on adolescent academic performance: evidence from seventh-grade students in China

ABSTRACT China’s Dibao is one of the largest cash transfer programmes in the world, serving as a ‘last safety net’. However, evidence regarding the effect of Dibao on children’s educational outcomes and its mechanisms remains limited. Using data from the China Education Panel Survey (CEPS) and employing a combined propensity score matching and difference-in-differences (PSM-DID) approach, this study examined the association between Dibao participation and adolescent academic performance in China and explored the potential influence mechanisms in this relationship. The results showed that Dibao had significant positive effects on adolescent academic performance. Moreover, the positive effects of Dibao on academic performance were stronger among urban adolescents, boys and adolescents living with their parents. Attending remedial class, expenditure of remedial class, frequency of communication with parents, having home-school communication, attitudes towards learning, and self-confidence about the future were important influence channels in the relationship between Dibao participation and adolescent academic performance. Our findings suggest that cash transfer programmes such as China’s Dibao can go beyond the safety nets to make ends meet. Dibao’s potential role in boosting adolescents’ human capital in poor families provides important implications for policy reform in China as well as in other developing countries.

Study on the Influence of Home-school Cooperation on the Mental Health of College Students in China and its Mechanism

The purpose of this study is to explore the influence of home-school cooperation on the mental health of college students in China and its mechanism. By collecting a large number of sample data and using descriptive statistics, factor analysis and regression analysis, this paper makes an in-depth analysis of the relationship between home-school cooperation and college students' mental health. The results show that home-school cooperation has a significant positive impact on college students' mental health, among which the frequency of home-school communication, the diversity of home-school cooperation forms and the depth of home-school cooperation have a positive impact on college students' mental health. Further analysis shows that home-school cooperation can not only understand and solve students' psychological problems in time, but also promote students' psychological healthy growth by providing rich growth environment and personalized psychological support. Based on the above findings, this study puts forward some policy suggestions, such as strengthening home-school communication, enriching the forms of home-school cooperation, deepening the content of home-school cooperation and improving the policy support system, in order to provide more powerful protection for the mental health of college students in China. These research results not only help to enrich and develop the theoretical system in the field of home-school cooperation and college students' mental health, but also provide an important reference for educational practice and policy formulation.

A Policy Brief towards Improving Mental Health Support Structures for Teachers in Shengli Middle School

Teachers are particularly susceptible to job burnout, ranking third in a survey of occupational burnout across 15 industries. Teacher burnout is an extreme reaction when teachers are unable to cope with work pressures, directly linked to factors such as age, teaching experience, personality, social support, and personal achievements. This study employs a qualitative research approach, conducting interviews with middle school teachers to understand their mental health and needs, and explore potential solutions. The findings emphasize the need for policy support, salary improvement, establishment of home-school communication mechanisms, and a better understanding of teachers' challenges and work conditions.

Insights into UK Teachers’ Wellbeing and Workload during the COVID-19 Pandemic Lockdown: Testimonies from the Silent Voices and Lessons Learnt

This paper presents the findings of a national survey of over 3400 teachers across all phases of education in England, 10 weeks into school closure. In this paper we report on the teachers’ experiences and their testimonies of the effects of the lockdown on their wellbeing as they navigate the situation, trying to cope with teaching and adjusting to the use of new technology to deliver lessons in the confines of their home. We present their voices as they related their experiences and emotions in real time as the event unfolded. Teachers reported an increased workload with a proportionately large amount of time spent on administrative duties and planning, but less on actual teaching. On average, these teachers spent 15 h a week marking during the lockdown. Under half of the respondents said they felt happy and cheerful often, while only 17% said they did not feel this way often. Almost all teachers said they felt that what they were doing was important and worthwhile. The most common emotions expressed by teachers were fear, isolation, neglect, anxiety, and confusion. The inconsistency and lack of clarity of government guidelines added to teachers’ anxiety. The negative media portrayal of teachers did not help. The majority of teachers reported little previous experience in online teaching and only a quarter were confident in using edtech to deliver remote teaching. Only a third of teachers said they were adequately supported for online teaching. This has implications for future teacher development and initial teacher training. However, there were equally numerous positive experiences reported by teachers. Active support from parents and consistent school-home communication were seen as important in ensuring students’ continued engagement with learning. These lessons are beneficial in supporting the long-term sick and school refusers post-lockdown.

The perceived challenges to online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic: A nationwide study of K-12 parental perspectives (Arab and other parents) in Qatar

This study aimed to explore self-reported challenges Arab and other parents encountered during the sudden shift to online teaching and learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The researchers investigated the likely effect of demographic and contextual factors on the perceived challenges reported by parents. To achieve the study's objectives, the researchers utilized a mixed-method design involving a random sample of students' parents (Arab and other parents) in public and private schools in Qatar. The study's sample consisted of 2781 parents who responded to the online survey and 25 parents who participated in online semi-structured interview. The results derived from this study identified several challenges like lack of social interaction with schoolteachers, lack of motivation among children to participate in online classes and complete their homework, and dealing with the technical problems encountered during the online learning experience. The results further disclosed differences between Arab and other parents regarding the technologies and devices used during online teaching and learning. Finally, the results revealed differences between schools that do not organize additional activities in the curriculum compared to those that organize such activities. The study recommends home-school communication in order to empower parents and train them on how to manage effective learning at home and deal with children's learning behaviors. The study proposes developing parents' technical skills for online earning and the provision of material support for parents. Finally, it is important to raise a flag calling for revisiting the current curriculum to enrich children's schooling experiences and strengthen the bonds with their schools.

Understanding the Perceptions of School Engagement of Parents of Students With Autism

Family–school engagement is integral to the success of students with autism. However, limited research has examined the conceptualization of family–school engagement from the perspective of parents of children with autism. With this in mind, we conducted focus groups with 22 parents of school-age children (ages 3–21) with autism. Using qualitative analysis, the authors identified seven types of engagement, each of which requires specific supports and has different barriers that may limit their use. These included: (a) collaborative partnership, (b) home-school communication, (c) advocacy, (d) school-based participation, (e) home-based participation, (f) service coordination, and (g) classroom observation. Adding two novel types of family engagement to the existing literature, findings contribute to a conceptualization of school engagement that incorporates the preferences and experiences of diverse parents of children with autism. Implications and directions for future research are discussed.

Home-school Communication in Greek Secondary Multicultural Educational Settings: Parents’ and Teachers’ perspectives

Although it is widely acknowledged that home-school communication, as an aspect of parental involvement, plays a decisive role in children’s educational and socioemotional development, while it promotes social inclusion, especially in multicultural educational settings, the topic has not been adequately explored in Greece, especially in Lower High School. We qualitatively explored teachers’ and parents’ perceptions on home-school communication. The aims of this research were to examine (1) what kind of experiences teachers and parents have from home-school communication, (2) how does gender affects the entire process, and (3) which are the practical suggestions for improvement. The results of this research are the following: different perceptions of effective home-school communication, passive parental involvement, the immigrant status, structural obstacles, cultural and linguistic language diversity, stereotypes, and gender function as obstacles against effective home-school communication. Participants highlighted that possible solutions involve regular home-school communication, home-school collaboration, holistic and flexible practices, translators, and support toward families, especially mothers.

Impact of Bullying Victimization on Chinese College Students' Suicidal Tendency: The Moderating Effect of Teachers' Emotional Support and Family Support.

To explore the influence of bully victims on the suicidal tendencies of college students, and the moderating role of teacher emotional support and family support in the relationship between bully victims and college students' suicidal tendencies, in order to provide a reference for the effective intervention of college students' suicide behavior. Based on a survey of 15,560 college students. Multiple stepwise regression and Interaction analysis explore the impact of the bully victimization on college students' suicidal tendencies and the moderating role of family support and teacher emotional support in the relationship between the bully victim and college students' suicidal tendencies. This study found that the Suicidal Tendencies score of college students was 19.79 points, indicating that some college students have a risk of suicidal tendencies; secondly, verbal bullying (β = 0.084, P <0.001), physical bullying (β = 0.222, P <0.001) and social relationship bullying (β = 0.122, P <0.001) have a positive and significant impact on the suicidal tendencies of college students; in addition, family support and teacher emotional support have a significant regulatory effect on the bully victim and college students Suicidal Tendencies and family support. The regulating effect was significantly higher than that of teacher emotional support. Chinese college students have the risk of suicidal tendencies; peer bullying victimization is an important reason for affecting college students' suicidal tendencies, teacher emotional support is a protective factor for bully victims to affect college students' suicidal tendencies, and family support has a significant moderating effect on the bully victim and college students' suicidal tendencies. Therefore, it is necessary to actively adopt home-school linkage and home-school communication to reduce campus violence and increase the psychological resilience of college students.

Constructing Four Steps of Home-School Communication for Students’ Psychological Crisis Intervention from the Perspective of Focus Solution

Constructing Four Steps of Home-School Communication for Students’ Psychological Crisis Intervention from the Perspective of Focus Solution

Home-School Communications: Multicultural Parents of Children with Disabilities

The primary goal of this study was to examine the role of communication between parents of children with special needs and schools. As the multicultural population in United States’ schools continues to increase, the need to help teachers understand what parents expect in terms of being able to communicate effectively grows in importance. Understanding cultural expectations of parents is important for teachers to communicate effectively. Parents of children with disabilities may be unsure of their role in their children’s education, especially if they were educated in schools outside of the United States. By designing and implementing effective communication programs for parents of students with disabilities, conflict that may arise between parents and school officials can be avoided.

Close Communication Between Home and School is Beneficial to Student Learning

This paper provides an analysis of the strategies adopted to explore whether schools and families in China should enhance home-school communication and gives an analysis of the strategies adopted to enhance home-school communication in Chinese schools. Home-school communication is now an important issue in education due to the increasingly visible involvement of parents in education. Given that schools and families have different educational philosophies, there will inevitably be communication problems between parents and schools. This paper uses Behaviourism and Constructivism to analyse the ways in which families and schools in China should improve communication between home and school and can set up forms such as parent-teacher conferences.

A Systematic Literature Review of the Patterns of School-Home Communication Among Caregivers of Children with Autism

A Systematic Literature Review of the Patterns of School-Home Communication Among Caregivers of Children with Autism

Home–school communication: what we have learned from the pandemic

ABSTRACTDrawing on interview data with school staff and parents from seven primary schools across England, this paper explores how schools and homes worked together during the Covid-19 pandemic, and the impact this had on their relationships with one another. Given that research before the pandemic has indicated that much of the communication taking place between home and school tends to be ‘one way’ – from the school to home (Meier and Lemmer 2015; Leenders et al. 2019), this paper demonstrates how enforced school closure meant that schools had to find new, or modified ways of communicating and interacting with children and their families. Forty-nine interviews were conducted with participants including headteachers, classroom teachers, teaching assistants, school office workers and parents. Participants were asked to talk about their own experiences of the pandemic including how they communicated with one another. Findings revealed that the pandemic facilitated a great deal more collaboration and ‘partnership' between teachers and parents. Participants reported that they had developed a better understanding of one another and that this had positive implications for the children’s education. Given the lessons learned from this study, this has important implications for all schools about promoting effective communication practices.

Exploring the Current Situation and Problems of Changing Teaching Patterns in Rural Compulsory Education Through Double Reduction Policy Practices

The Double Reduction policy is a hot topic of interest in China and in the year or so since it was put into practice. This essay, therefore, reviews and analyzes the collected literature and data to analyze the current situation of students, teachers, and parents in rural areas after the implementation of the "Double Reduction" policy and to identify changes or problems that exist. The study discovered that teachers were equally committed to their own professional growth and strategy changes, which made teaching in rural areas more suitable to the local conditions and features. The emphasis of education in the classroom was also more on the kids themselves, which significantly quickened the process of catching up to students in metropolitan areas in terms of development. However, the Double Reduction policy also puts instructors under pressure to work more hours, makes it difficult for them to develop their own skills, and gives children inequitable attention in the classroom. In addition, there is a dearth of rich content forms in the after-school services. Rural areas also experience challenges as a result of the Double Reduction policy in terms of inadequate infrastructure, human resources, and barriers to home-school communication, which merits consideration. In order to promote the full implementation of the Double Reduction policy, the transformation of the focus on teachers, individuals of students and their parent's education thinking should be carried out simultaneously, so as to realize the ultimate goal of education reform as soon as possible and return education to education itself.

Family-School Communication: How Conflict between Family and School Expectation Influences Children’s Development

Effective family-school communication has a positive impact on children's education and learning, as well as the educational process in schools, according to research done in the area of family-school communication and the opinions of parents and teachers. Especially for families in kindergartens and primary schools, schools need parents to participate more in children's education and development, and family-school communication is an important factor that can promote parental involvement and help children develop in different fields. An effective home-school communication mode is conducive to the mutual expression of family and school expectations. Through communication, the expectations of both groups can modify and reach the same level, which will encourage the healthy growth of the relationship between family and school and increase cooperation between the two. This paper introduces the literature on family-school communication and makes a systematic review. At the same time, from the perspective of the school, some specific strategies for family-school communication are proposed.

The role of school-home communication in supporting the development of children’s and adolescents’ digital skills, and the changes brought by COVID-19

School-home communication is a growing research field in social sciences, particularly in education sciences and communication studies. While previous studies have paid much attention to the importance of school-home interaction in supporting primary academic socialisation and progress of elementary school pupils, the role of teacher-parent communication and collaboration in influencing the development of children’s and adolescents’ digital skills remains an under-researched area. This paper employed thematic analysis of in-depth interviews with education experts in six European countries, providing an insight into their opinions and views on the problems in communication between homes and schools. The analysis identified main problems in and obstacles to school-home collaboration on children’s digital skills development, and the changes the COVID-19 pandemic brought along in this field of education. The paper provides five policy recommendations for enhancing school-home collaboration on digital skills development.

Parent Involvement in Education as Predictors of Social–Emotional Strengths in Kindergartners

Although more is known about how general parenting practices predict social–emotional strengths in children, less research has looked at parent involvement in education and children’s social–emotional strengths. This study examined the extent to which parent involvement, specifically home-based involvement, parent–teacher trust, and home–school communication, predicted children’s social–emotional strengths in kindergarten. The study featured both parent (n = 120) and teacher ratings (n = 156) of children’s social–emotional strengths. We examined the association between parent involvement and social emotional strengths while controlling for child age and gender, socioeconomic status, and general parenting (positive verbal discipline and harsh/inconsistent discipline). Parents’ reports of home-based involvement were a moderate to strong positive predictor of their child’s social–emotional strengths over the kindergarten year. For teacher ratings of social–emotional strengths, parents’ trust of the teacher was associated with higher social–emotional strengths. The findings may inform essential components in parenting or school-based interventions for social–emotional development, as well as differences in what parents and teachers perceive as related to social–emotional development in young children. Impact Statement Parents play an important role in children’s social–emotional development. The current study demonstrate parents perceive home-based involvement activities are associated with child social–emotional strengths, while teachers perceive a trusting relationship between home and school as most important. Results highlight ways to support schools and families working together to support social–emotional strengths.

Research on the Influence of the Policy of "Double Reduction" on the Communication between Primary and Middle School Scholars and Schools

Since the implementation of the "double reduction" policy, primary and secondary schools have gradually strengthened the construction of the home-school collaborative education mechanism, but there are still problems such as too few communication channels between teachers and parents, single content, parents' distrust of the concept of collaborative education, and lack of planning in home-school communication. In the process of communication, most teachers communicate with their parents with students' grades as the center, and the lack of two-way communication makes teachers fail to fully consider the demands of individual students and their parents. As the most important measure of the Party in the field of education at present, it is necessary to further highlight the guiding role and exemplary vanguard role of the Party organization, enhance the orientation of the Party organization, strengthen learning, form a consensus and highlight key points. At the same time, the increase of teachers' professional titles can indirectly reflect the country's dependence on the education industry and its love and respect for teachers. The policy of "double reduction" is conducive to promoting the rise of a good atmosphere of "respecting teachers and attaching importance to teaching" in the whole society and has an important role in promoting the improvement of the overall national quality.

Teaching in emergency remote classrooms: reflections for professional learning

ABSTRACT Background Reflective teaching has long been regarded as playing an important, and potentially empowering, role in teachers’ professional learning. The study reported in this paper considered the longer-term significance of teachers’ self-reflective learning in the course of their daily emergency remote teaching during COVID-19, and how this supported teacher agency. Purpose This small-scale case study sought to explore, in depth, teachers’ perceptions of how their professional learning was realised through reflective practice during emergency remote teaching. Method Three teachers from primary, junior high, and high schools in mainland China participated in the case study during the spring and fall semesters in 2020. They considered the accommodations they made for emergency remote teaching and the corresponding implications for their professional learning and sense of agency. Data were collected via four-monthly, semi-structured interviews, resulting in a total of five interviews per teacher. These charted the progress of their emergency remote courses in the spring, and allowed for final reflections via a follow-up interview in the fall. Data were analysed thematically. Findings The resultant four themes and eight categories related to aspects including pedagogical strategies, home-school communication, classroom management, and teachers’ technological literacy. Within these, approaches to blending online and offline coursework, valuing sociocultural concerns in classroom interaction, and developing adaptive mindsets were among areas identified as relevant to teachers’ professional learning beyond the emergency remote teaching situation. Conclusions The findings highlight the multiple ways in which professional learning took place through reflective teaching in the remote teaching environment. They draw attention to the importance of situating some professional learning in everyday practice. Understandings gained during remote teaching have broader implications for educators’ professional learning and growth in pre-tertiary education.