Date of Award

1985

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts in Education

Department

Education

First Advisor

Nancy Polette

Second Advisor

Diane Denney

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine whether parent tutoring of developmentally delayed children would significantly improve student achievement. This study focused on a parent-participation program, systematically controlled, which was designed to educate parents in methods of productive teaching so that these parents could participate in a remediation program for their child.

The subjects for this study were those students, assigned to a self contained kindergarten classroom, who scored below the 40th percentile in a combined score of the mathematics and language subject areas of the Test of Basic Experiences (TOBE). Of the 43 students who were administered the test, 12 scored below the 40th percentile. The 12 subjects were randomly assigned to either the experimental or control group. Both groups received the same classroom remediation. In addition, the parents of the students in the experimental group were asked to participate in a series of parent-teacher workshops, led by the classroom teacher.

Eight parent-teacher sessions were held during a four month period. During these sessions, parents were given information about child development and insight into the kindergarten curriculum. Teaching packets, containing games and activities along with instructions and ideas to use with the children at home were distributed to the parents at each session. The games and activities were designed to help developmentally delayed children gain knowledge and understanding in two curriculum areas--mathematics and language.

An analysis of the gathered data showed that the subjects who received both home tutoring and classroom remediation did not perform significantly better than those subjects who received classroom remediation only. However, although the results could not be explained statistically, the treatment group did show greater gain scores in both the mathematics and language posttest measures. On the mathematics posttest, the experimental group showed a mean gain score of 7.33 while the control group showed a mean gain score of 6.00. On the language posttest, the experimental group showed a mean gain score of 5.00 while the control group showed a mean gain score of 2.67. These scores showed a trend toward the predicted outcome of the study.

Another observed outcome of this study was the positive impact it had on the parents who participated in the parent-teacher sessions. Communication between the classroom teacher and these parents was increased. The parents expressed an increased understanding of their child's strengths and weaknesses, more knowledge of the curriculum, and a greater ability to help their child with school work. They also expressed a desire to attend parent programs in the future.

While the results of this study cannot be viewed as conclusive, they do suggest positive outcomes of a "parents as tutors" program.

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