Exploring teachers' attitudes towards parental involvement in a township primary school in Pinetown District.

Abstract

This study explores the attitudes of teachers towards involving parents in their children’s learning. The aim of the study is to identify the attitudes of teachers, and to understand why teachers have the attitudes they have towards parental involvement. The location of the study was a township primary school in the Pinetown District in KwaZulu-Natal. The literature revealed that parental involvement has a positive impact to learners’ academic achievements. This study sought to ascertain an understanding of teachers’ attitude towards the involvement of parents in their children’s learning. Data were generated through semi-structured interviews. Purposive sampling was used in the selection of the participants, which were eight teachers. The study adopted an interpretive qualitative approach to closely interact with the participants to gain more insight and understanding of teachers’ attitudes. The items of the data were analysed into meaningful themes using Miles and Hubert thematic approaches. Interpretations were noted and added to the research conclusion. The findings indicated that teachers’ attitudes are important for developing a welcoming environment for parents to be involved in their children’s learning. Parents and teachers need to work as partners in order to develop learners’ full potential. Teachers have a positive attitude towards involving parents in their children’s learning which ultimately benefitted their children. However, the barriers they encounter hinder implementation of parental involvement in said township primary school. Findings also indicated that communicating effectively is essential for a good parent teacher relationship. It was recommended that establishing of positive attitudes by teachers could improve successful learning in a school environment. Parents need to be guided on how they could become more involved in their children’s learning. Moreover, schools should employ parent centred practices, where the assistance of parents to be involved in their children’s learning is welcomed and acceptable.