Family Fun Time Activities:
Does the number of guardians in a household affect family involvement?
Amber Bruce
amber.bruce@live.longwood.edu
SOCL-345-03/04
Dr. Pederson
November 29, 2022
Abstract
In society today, children require parental involvement because it helps increase their abilities later in life relating to social interaction, control of emotions, and communication skills. This study is an effort to increase family involvement while collecting further data to help support the success of the activities. Family Fun Time activities were sent home to the households of children from Head Start and the Andy Taylor Center, which are located in Farmville, Virginia, and surrounding counties. The participants receive an activity with instructions for each day for a week and a book at the end of the week to improve response ratings. Twenty surveys were returned to Longwood University and were analyzed. The data that is being analyzed will help determine whether the activities helped parent involvement. The quantitative analysis of the returned surveys was based on close-ended questions, while the qualitative analysis of the returned surveys was based on open-ended questions. Themes of convenience, enjoyment, and family have been observed through research of the surveys. On average, the households from the return surveys were either two-parent (35%), single-parent (20%), or multigenerational (35%). In relation to the respondents of the two-parent households, the average family involvement is 10.00. The single-parent households have an average parent involvement of 9.33. For respondents with a multigenerational household, they have an average family involvement of 8.33. We decided to begin our study to help understand local occurrences of family involvement of younger generations.
Introduction
Children need parental involvement in their younger years of life, whether that is helping with school or participating in activities at home. I am interested in determining whether the Family Fun Time Activities help improve the relationship within the family. The research conducted used Family Fun Time Activities to create an environment that encourages more involvement. Surveys were sent to the families accompanied by a book to encourage response rates. We received 20 surveys back out of 99 sent to Andy Taylor Center and Head Start. I used 16 of those surveys to conduct my research relating to my dependent variable of family involvement and an independent variable that I have selected for this study is, “Does the amount of guardians present in the household affect family involvement?” The more time the parents spend with their children will allow for a more successful future, if the parent remains positive (Allen, 2018). Parents play a large role in child development because they control what their child learns in the household. They make the decisions on how the child develops, and discover that children become better students with the encouragement of their parents (Xanthacou et al., 2018). Many things such as time, education, and economic status are related to the lack of parental involvement in the children’s lives (Newman et al., 2019). Many issues started from the ideas of who is responsible for the development of children, especially without the proper necessities. Governments have become dependent on female labor, which in return supports working mothers (Allen, 2018). This can cause a lack of parental involvement, which is known to have a negative effect on children ( Allen, 2018 & Harris & Robinson, 2016). We decided to begin our study to help understand local occurrences of family involvement of younger generations. We looked at their income, race, and education status to see if any of those variables had a factor in whether the family was more involved or not.
Literature Review
How would Family Fun Time Activities improve family involvement? If the families participate in Family Fun Time Activities, then the parents should be interested in continuing activities after the study. I am interested to discover the motivation the parents will have for the future, whether or not they will continue doing activities with their children once the study has concluded.
Discovering the motivations for parents to help increase their children’s activities can be justified by programs that are being developed by the government (Allen, 2018). The examination of the programs showed there is a need to create programs that help parents receive leave to help their children and other childcare policies (Allen, 2018). The more time the parents spend with their children will allow for a more successful future, if the parent remains positive (Allen, 2018). There are options so parents can work and provide for their children rather than request time off to attend to their child’s needs during the work week.
Many people in poverty lack the financial ability to take a day off of work to attend school-related functions or even spend time with children in their homes, such as doing homework together as a family (Allen, 2018). The observation of Epstein’s parental involvement guidelines, which are the ideas that family and school can work together in an effort to benefit the children more (Newman et al., 2019). Epstein’s Parental involvement guidelines are parenting, communicating, volunteering, learning at home, decision-making, and finally collaborating with the community (Epstein, 2002). In relation to parenting the children, the parents could schedule classes that emphasize child-rearing and discipline skills (Epstein, 2002). Communicating is beneficial to parent involvement, especially with the schools and communicating with the child’s teacher (Epstein, 2002). Volunteering is beneficial for childhood development because the more the parents are present, the more benefits the children will receive. (Epstein, 2002) Parents could even participate in social groups with other parents and prepare activities for home life(Epstein, 2002). The encouragement of learning at home is beneficial and some examples are providing information on how to help children with homework or even encouraging parents to help with homework (Epstein, 2002). Decision-making is beneficial for both parents and children because the parents need to be more involved with planning events or with school committees (Epstein, 2002). The final process is that collaborating with the community is beneficial because the children create bonds with the community such as a career day, which gives children the opportunity to meet individuals in the community (Epstein, 2002). Many things such as time, education, and economic status are related to the lack of parent involvement in the children’s lives (Newman et al., 2019).
Parents play a large role in child development because they control what their child learns in the household. They make the decisions on how the child develops, and discover that children become better students with the encouragement of their parents (Xanthacou et al., 2018). With a working or negligent parent, there are issues related to the child’s development and there may be a negative atmosphere if the parent is not present. The children will gain self-esteem and in return improve their behavior and academic abilities (Xanthacou et al., 2018). Learning in a household is influential on childhood development. According to Epstein (et al., 2002), there must be goals set, curriculum-related activities, and homework. The home must be a positive environment for children, where education is encouraged. The house must be collaborating with the community as stated by Epstein (et al., 2002) and Newman (et al., 2019) because of the impactful resources there such as a school with the community and childcare services. These opportunities help the children become more involved and create bonds with society. Both Allen (2018) and Epstein (et al., 2002) explain that there must be better opportunities for parents to develop skills and support, so the children in return have better conditions.
There must be a connection between the parents and schools so that education for the children is accommodated. This learning must continue in the home, which should be encouraged by the parents. Issues related to child protection and parental responsibilities were the main reasons programs and policies were to be created (Allen, 2018). Many issues are started from the ideas of who is responsible for the development of children, especially without the proper necessities. Governments have become dependent on female labor, which in return supports working mothers (Allen, 2018). This can cause a lack of parental involvement, which is known to have a negative effect on children ( Allen, 2018 & Harris & Robinson, 2016).
According to Harris and Robinson (2016) children are more successful when they accomplish academic success and this statement is affirmed by Xanthacou (et al., 2018), which explains that it is because of their parent’s involvement. After children get older they are less likely to drop out of high school because of the positive environment their parents created for them (Harris & Robinson, 2016, 198). Programs that involve the parents interacting with the children and students allow a household to be more positive (Xanthacou et al., 2018), which in return improves the social and emotional environment.
The activities students and children participate in will help enhance their cognitive functioning (Lee et al., 2021). Some studies have examined that children’s educational attainments influence their parents’ health and well-being (Dennison & Lee, 2021). This can also relate to the success of students and what opportunities given to them (Xanthacou et al., 2018). Parents do benefit from the success of their children, so the more involvement the parents have the more benefits they will gain (Lee et al., 2021).
Another researcher has examined the use of technology and explained the necessity of engagement with parents and children, and how it helps shape the children’s behavior and development (McClain, 2018, p 282). Technologies are a great advantage to increase the ability to learn for children, but there must be an understanding of the negative implications of the use of technology (McClain, 2018, 282). The more involvement the parents have with the children in relation to development, the more the children will benefit because they will gain support(Epstein et al., 2002). Activities at home are beneficial and help the children actively participate in learning, especially with their parents’ help (Epstein et al., 2002).
Through our research, we have tried to increase family involvement in households of local communities. We sent home activities that require the parents or siblings to participate with the children, an effort to increase parent involvement. The activities were designed to create a positive atmosphere in the children’s home. The children were challenged to learn new material and improve their social skills. Some even learned to be patient and communicate their emotions better to their parents.
Data and Methodology
Instrument
A survey questionnaire was created by the 50 members of the Social Research and Program Evaluation Team at Longwood University. The survey asked both open and close-ended items. Items on the survey were designed to evaluate SMART objectives of five activities that were completed the previous week by Head Start and Andy Taylor Center families. Items were included that also address demographic information, enjoyment of the activities, family involvement, and completion of the activities. Hard copies of the questionnaire were delivered to Head Start and the Andy Taylor Center.
Sample
The non-probability sample for this study was based on 99 children (ages three to five years old). Seventy-nine children attended Head Start in three counties. Head Start is a federally subsidized preschool for families with economic needs. Twenty-one children attended the Andy Taylor Center which is located on a college campus, and families apply and pay for their children to attend. Attached to the questionnaire was a children’s book to incentivise families to return the survey. Guardians of the children were asked to complete the survey and return it to the preschool the next day. Teachers sent a reminder home with children to return outstanding questionnaires. This resulted in 20 questionnaires being returned, eighteen from Head Start and two from the Andy Taylor Center, but my research focused on 16 questionnaires. Overall, there was a 20.2% response rate.
Quantitative Analysis
Quantitative analysis of the returned surveys was based on close-ended questions. For this study, the dependent variable is family involvement. The item from the questionnaire that was used to operationalize this was, “How involved was your family throughout the activity?” The answer choices were on a scale of zero to ten, with zero being the least amount and ten being the highest amount. For this study, the Independent variable is, “Does the amount of guardians present in the household affect family involvement?” The answer choices for this question were, “What best describes your household? (Please circle all that apply) 1. Two-parent, 2. Single-parent, 3. Multigenerational (Grandparents, parents, and children in the same home), 4. Blended Family (When two families join together after previous relationships), and 5. Other.” Descriptive statistics were used to analyze these variables.
Qualitative Analysis
Qualitative analysis of the returned surveys was based on open-ended questions. The open-ended questions on the survey were, “What did your family enjoy most about these activities? Why? (Please write in your response. Use the back sheet of paper if you run out of room)”, “What did your child learn from these activities?”, “What recommendations would you suggest to make these activities better?” To answer the research question, “How did Family Fun Time activities improve family involvement?” Inductive open coding was used to determine recurring themes in the respondents’ responses.
Findings
Quantitative Findings
The dependent variable for this study is family involvement, which is coded on a scale from zero to ten. The question asked the respondents was, “How involved was your family throughout the activity? (Scale 0-10; 0 = not at all, 10 = great amount.” The mean of this variable is 9.07. The standard deviation of this variable is 1.27. The independent variable that I have selected for this study is, “Does the amount of guardians present in the household affect family involvement?”
The question on the survey relating to the independent variable was, “What best describes your household? (Please circle all that apply)” The choices were 1. Two-parent, 2. Single-parent, 3. Multigenerational (Grandparents, parents, and children in the same home), 4. Blended Family (When two families join together after previous relationships), and 5. Other.” Descriptive statistics were used to analyze these variables. Out of the sixteen responses for the survey relating to the members of the household, we received thirteen responses to the question (Figure 1.). Four respondents stated they lived in a two-parent household, three respondents stated they were members of a single-parent household, and we received six responses for a multigenerational household. None of the respondents selected blended families or the other option on the survey. In relation to the respondents of the two-parent households, the average family involvement is 10.00. The single-parent households have an average parent involvement of 9.33. For respondents with a multigenerational household, they have an average family involvement of 8.33. The highest average of parent involvement from the respondents is the households that contain two parents.
Qualitative Findings
The Family Fun Time Activities contain themes that were identified in the sixteen surveys we have received. The respondents mentioned the themes of family, enjoyment, and helpfulness of the activities.
In relation to family, nine quotations from the sixteen surveys help establish the improvement of family time. Respondent number one states, “…convenient activity to do with family,” which helps establish that this increased family involvement. The convenience of the activity as stated helped this respondent’s family interact with one another and create bonds with one another. Respondent number three helped explain family by stating, “completing some with siblings,” which supports the siblings interacting with one another. This helps explain the improvement and importance of family because of interactions between siblings. The fourth respondent stated, “Time spent together,” the ninth respondent stated, “Doing them together,” and the tenth respondent said, “Doing them together…She loves doing things with mom and dad.” These statements help justify the family participating in activities and have explained how they were interacting with one another throughout the Family Fun Time Activities.
In relation to enjoyment, the third respondent stated, “Our Family really enjoyed how simple the activities were and how much our child enjoyed them.” and the seventh respondent stated, “We enjoyed putting all different shapes together on the pizza survey.” These statements help explain that the activities are beneficial in developing new knowledge. The quotations also explain that families enjoyed participating in the activities, especially the twelfth respondent “My family and son enjoy doing the little things we were doing together”.
In relation to convenience and the activities being helpful, the sixteenth respondent stated, “My son learned different techniques from the activity that he can apply to real life. Thanks!” This statement justifies the activities that are beneficial for developing different learning techniques. The seventh respondent stated, “My child learned how to be creative.” With this activity, there is creative development, which is helpful in the development of children’s abilities. The fifteenth respondent stated, “Patience, not giving up if something doesn’t go her way or look how she expected it to.” This helps explain the ability to handle emotions and remain patient which will help the children later on.
Conclusion
In conclusion, we received a 20.2% response rate from the 99 surveys we sent to the Andy Taylor Center and Head Start. Those who responded to the surveys enjoyed the activities because it helped the children gain social and other beneficial skills. The responses were primarily from the mothers of the household. On average, the households from the return surveys were either two-parent (35%), single-parent (20%), or multigenerational (35%). The convenience of the activity as stated helped respondent number one’s family interact with one another and create bonds with one another. Respondent number three helped explain to the family when stating, “completing some with siblings,” which supports the siblings interacting with one another. This helps explain the improvement and importance of family because of interactions between siblings. The dependent variable for this study is family involvement, which is coded on a scale from zero to ten. The question asked to the respondents, “How involved was your family throughout the activity? (Scale 0-10; 0 = not at all, 10 = great amount.” The mean of this variable is 9.07. The standard deviation of this variable is 1.27. The independent variable that I have selected for this study is, “Does the amount of guardians present in the household affect family involvement?” The question on the survey relating to the independent variable was, “What best describes your household?” Descriptive statistics were used to analyze these variables, which explained thirteen out of the sixteen responses from the survey relating to the members of the household. Four respondents stated they lived in a two-parent household, three respondents stated they were members of a single-parent household, and we received six responses for a multigenerational household. None of the respondents selected blended families or the other option on the survey. In relation to the respondents of the two-parent households, the average family involvement is 10.00. The single-parent households have an average parent involvement of 9.33. For respondents with a multigenerational household, they have an average family involvement of 8.33. The highest average of parent involvement from the respondents is the households that contain two-parents. This helps explain the role of more than one parent does help parent involvement with the children. In relation to convenience and the activities being helpful, the sixteenth respondent stated, “My son learned different techniques from the activity that he can apply to real life. Thanks!” This statement justifies the activities that are beneficial for developing different learning techniques and explains the parents being involved to make this observation. Parents should try to become more involved in their children’s lives and the Family Fun Time Activities have shown to be beneficial for the respondents. On average the two-parent household had more parental involvement, but that does not mean other households with either a single-parent or multigenerational do not have involvement, as displayed in our research. Many people in poverty lack the financial ability to take a day off of work to attend school-related functions or even spend time with children in their homes, such as doing homework together as a family (Allen, 2018). The home must be a positive environment for children, where education is encouraged. The house must be collaborating with the community as stated by Epstein (et al., 2002) and Newman (et al., 2019) because of the impactful resources there such as a school with the community and childcare services. Family Fun Time activities help children create bonds with their families and learn developmental skills that will prepare them for their future.
References
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Lee, S., Charles, S. T., & Almeida, D. M. (2021). Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences & Social Sciences. Change Is Good for the Brain: Activity Diversity and Cognitive Functioning Across Adulthood, Vol. 76(Issue 6), p1036-1048. https://web-s-ebscohost-com.proxy.longwood.edu/ehost/detail/detail?vid=6&sid=5911a17a-2d28-45b8-ab3e-f90685d6a0d9%40redis&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#AN=151011379&db=27h
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Newman, N., Northcutt, A., Farmer, A., & Black, B. (2019, September 29). Language Teaching and Educational Research. ERIC. Retrieved September 24, 2022, from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED601964.pdf
Xanthacou, Y., Bahalis, T., & Stavrou, N. A. (2018, December 5). Home. YouTube. Retrieved September 24, 2022, from https://www.scirp.org/reference/ReferencesPapers.aspx?ReferenceID=718906