CYP Now - Parental Involvement and its Effects on Children’s Education

Evidence shows parental engagement in children’s learning at home is critical to a child’s education and development. But most research to date has focused on mothers or parents in general, so less is known about how fathers affect their children’s education. This study by the University of Leeds, University of Manchester and the Fatherhood Institute set out to explore the relationship between fathers’ involvement in childcare and children’s educational outcomes as they progressed through primary school.

The researchers recommend fathers carve out time for interactive activities with their children each week. Picture: Mediteraneo/Adobe Stock

Report: Parental Involvement and its Effects on Children’s Education
Report authors: Helen Norman and Jeremy Davis
Published by: University of Leeds, September 2023

METHOD

Researchers analysed data on just under 5,000 mother-father households in England from the Millennium Cohort Study, which followed children born from 2000 to 2002. Parents were asked about their involvement in activities with their child such as reading, drawing and playing indoors and outdoors. The team linked this information to primary school test scores for children at age five and seven. They also surveyed 250 fathers and ran focus groups with fathers and organisations that work with parents.

KEY FINDINGS

The study found fathers’ involvement in childcare has a unique and important effect on the educational outcomes of children – over and above the effect of mothers’ involvement. Dads who regularly drew, played and read with their three-year-olds helped their children do better at school by age five. Dads being involved at age five also helped improve scores in seven-year-olds’ Key Stage Assessments.

There were different effects when mums and dads took part in the same activities. The data suggests mums had more of an impact on young children’s emotional and social behaviours than educational attainment.

Children were more likely to have a good level of attainment in the Early Years Foundation Stage Profile (EYFSP) at age five if either parent read to them regularly, but the effect appeared to be slightly stronger for fathers.

Nearly three-fifths – 59.6 per cent – of children whose dads read to them regularly reached a good level of overall achievement in the EYFSP compared with 38.4 per cent of children whose dads rarely did this. The pattern was similar for mothers, although the proportion of children reaching a good level of EYFSP achievement if the mother reads to them regularly is slightly lower at 56.7 per cent.

The analysis suggests dads’ involvement has a positive impact on children’s achievement in school regardless of a child’s gender, ethnicity, age within the school year and income.

However, the study found various factors got in the way of dads getting more involved in their children’s education. These included dads’ working hours and the assumption that mothers were primarily responsible for children’s care and education.

About half of dads surveyed said the school or nursery always or mostly contacted the mother when the child was sick or hurt, while 39 per cent said they mostly contacted the mother with instructions for activities to do at home.

IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE

The researchers recommend fathers carve out as much time as possible to do interactive activities with their children each week. For busy working dads, even just 10 minutes a day could have educational benefits. Schools and early years settings should make more effort to reach out to fathers by collecting and using dads’ contact details where possible, explicitly referring to fathers when communicating with families and running activities targeted at dads. Meanwhile, Ofsted should take specific account of engagement with fathers when it inspects childcare settings and schools.