Family involvement in the primary years: Teachers’ perceptions of the effects on literacy achievement

This research study focuses on the perceptions teachers have about the effects that family involvement has on the literacy achievement of elementary school students. The study is guided by this question of teachers’ perceptions look like and is supported by several sub-questions that help distinguish how much and what types of involvement are impactful and what roles schools have in supporting involvement. A comprehensive literature review examines existing research on this topic from North America and around the world. With a case study approach, three in-depth interviews were conducted with elementary school teachers in the Peel District School board. The data collected during these interviews results in six overarching themes: 1) Teachers believe literacy affects all other subjects and areas of life, 2) Teachers believe that involvement requires both academic support and emotional support to be effective, 3) Teachers believe that family involvement has a direct correlation to literacy achievement, 4) Teachers believe that there are barriers that families face that may deter their involvement, 5) Teachers believe that in general when families are not involved, negative consequences are likely to follow including lack of literacy achievement, poor self-esteem, trouble in all aspects of curriculum, 6) Teachers believe that communicating with parents is important. This research study concludes with a discussion on the implications of this research in regards to other literature, it’s implications in the field, and recommended steps for future research