Reaching out to children, talking to them and helping them with their homework matters more than income or background, analysis from the Australian Research Alliance for Children and Youth shows.
Students with engaged parents are more likely to do well academically, graduate from school and go on to higher education, an ARACY report by Dr Stacey Fox and Dr Anna Olsen from Australian National University has found.
The aspects which appear to matter most include high expectations and aspirations for children, shared reading between children and parents and family conversation.
In the report Drs Fox and Olsen say parent/child talking time is a simple but crucial form of parent engagement.
Children also benefit when their parents provide a positive environment for homework and play a role in school activities.
“A sense of belonging to the school community and participation in school activities can indirectly impact children’s academic outcomes by conveying to children the extent to which parents’ value and support their education,” Drs Fox and Olsen say.
Anton Leschen, Victorian general manager at The Smith Family, said such research illustrates that “a child’s education is about more than what happens in the classroom”.
The Smith Family, which is co-hosting the Australian Parent Engagement conference in June, is looking for more sponsors to expand their Learning for Life program which helps disadvantaged parents support their children’s schooling.
Richmond parents Leanne and Jason Mansfield are very engaged in the school and sporting activities of their daughters Lucy, 10, Chloe, 13 and Charlotte, 15.
