The Nature of Parental Engagement at an Online Charter High School
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.24059/olj.v19i5.699Keywords:
Parent engagement, Online Learning, K-12, Cyber SchoolsAbstract
As enrollments in cyber charter schools grow, it becomes increasingly important to understand how parents engage in their students’ learning. Researchers have hypothesized that parental engagement is even more critical when online students learn from home, but few researchers have examined parents’ engagement behavior–especially parents of adolescent learners. In this case study we addressed this gap using parent and student interviews at a full-time online charter school. Our analysis of 19 interviews with 9 parents and 10 interviews with 10 students identified five primary types of parental engagement within this setting: (1) nurturing relationships and interactions, (2) advising and mentoring, (3) organizing, (4) monitoring and motivating student engagement, and (5) instructing. We also identified obstacles to effective parental engagement, and in this paper we discuss how programs can work with parents to foster more collaborative relationships.References
Black, E. W. (2009). An evaluation of familial involvements’ influence on student achievement in K-12 virtual schooling. University of Florida, Gainesville, FL. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/304883948?accountid=4488
Borup, J., Graham, C. R., & Davies, R. S. (2013). The nature of parental interactions in an online charter school. American Journal of Distance Education, 27, 40–55. doi:10.1080/08923647.2013.754271
Borup, J., West, R. E., Graham, C. R., & Davies, R. S. (2014). The Adolescent Community of Engagement: A framework for research on adolescent online learning. Journal of Technology and Teacher Education, 22(1), 107–129.
Boulton, H. (2008). Managing e-Learning: What are the real implications for schools? The Electronic Journal of E-Learning, 6(1), 11–18.
Cavanaugh, C. (2008). Distance Education Success Factors. Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, And Applications Online and Distance Learning, 686–692. Retrieved from http://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-59904-935-9.ch059
Cavanaugh, C. (2009). Getting students more learning time online. Distance Education. Washington, D.C.: Center for American Progress. Retrieved from http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/2009/05/pdf/distancelearning.pdf
Cavanaugh, C. (2013). Student Achievement in Elementary and High School. Handbook Of Distance Education. Retrieved from http://doi.org/10.4324/9780203803738.ch11
Cooper, H. (1989). Synthesis of research on homework. Educational Leadership, 85–91.
Curtis, H. (2013). A mixed methods study investigating parental involvement and strudent success in high school online education. Northwest Nazarene.
de la Varre, C., Irvin, M. J., Jordan, A. W., Hannum, W. H., & Farmer, T. W. (2014). Reasons for student dropout in an online course in a rural K–12 setting. Distance Education, 35(3), 324–344. doi:10.1080/01587919.2015.955259
Epstein, J. L. (1987). Parent involvement: What research says to administrators. Education and Urban Society, 19(2), 119–136. doi:10.1177/0013124587019002002
Erb, R. E. (2004). From Traditional Public School to Cyber Charter: How Parents Decide. (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). Pennsylvania State University.
Freidhoff, J. R. (2015). Michigan’s K-12 virtual learning effectiveness report 2013-2014. Lansing, MI: Michigan Virtual Learning Research Institute. Retrieved from http://media.mivu.org/institute/pdf/er_2014.pdf
Freidhoff, J. R., Borup, J., Stimson, R. J., & DeBruler, K. (2015). Documenting and sharing the work of successful on-site mentors. Journal of Online Learning Research, 1(1), 107–128.
Garthwait, A. (2014). Pilot program of online learning in three small high schools: Considerations of learning styles. E-Learning, 12(4), 353–365.
Glaser, B. G. (1965). The constant comparative method of qualitative analysis. Social Problems, 12(4), 436–445. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/798843
Graham, C. R., Henrie, C. R., & Gibbons, A. S. (2014). Developing models and theory for blended learning research. In A. G. Picciano, C.
D. Dziuban, & C. R. Graham (Eds.), Blended learning: Research perspectives, volume 2 (pp. 13–33). New York, NY: Taylor & Francis.
Greene, J. C., Caracelli, V. J., & Graham, W. F. (1989). Toward a conceptual framework for mixed-method evaluation designs. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 11(3), 255–274. doi:10.3102/01623737011003255
Harris, A., & Goodall, J. (2008). Do parents know they matter? Engaging all parents in learning. Educational Research, 50(3), 277–289. doi:10.1080/00131880802309424
Hasler Waters, L. (2012). Exploring the experiences of learning coaches in a cyber charter school: A qualitative case study. Retrieved from Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1347666490?accountid=4488.
Hasler Waters, L., & Leong, P. (2014). Who is teaching? New roles for teachers and parents in cyber charter schools. Journal of Technology and Teacher Education, 22(1), 33–56.
Hasler Waters, L., Menchaca, M. P., & Borup, J. (n.d.). Parental Involvement in K-12 Online and Blended Learning.
Hawk, S. T., Keijsers, L., Hale, W. W., & Meeus, W. (2009). Mind your own business! Longitudinal relations between perceived privacy invasion and adolescent-parent conflict. Journal of Family Psychology, 23(4), 511–520. doi:10.1037/a0015426
Hawkins, A. (2011). “We’re Definitely on our Ownâ€: Interaction and disconnection in a Virtual High School. Brigham Young University.
Hoover-Dempsey, K. V., & Sandler, H. M. (1995). Parental involvement in children’s education: Why does it make a difference? Teachers College Record, 97(2), 311–331.
Litke, D. (1998). Virtual schooling at the middle grades: A case study résumé. The Journal of Distance Education, 13(2), 33–50.
Liu, F., Black, E., Algina, J., Cavanaugh, C., & Dawson, K. (2010). The validation of one parental involvement measurement in virtual schooling. Journal of Interactive Online Learning, 9(2), 105–132.
Lowes, S., & Lin, P. (2015). Learning to learn online: Using locus of control to help students become successful online learners. Journal of Online Learning Research, 1(1), 17–48.
McFarlane, D. A. (2011). Are there differences in the organizational structure and pedagogical approach of virtual and brick-and-mortar schools? Journal of Multidisciplinary Research, 3(2), 83–98.
McNeal, R. B. (2012). Checking in or checking out? Investigating the parent involvement reactive hypothesis. Journal of Educational Research, 105(2), 79–89.
Merriam, S. B. (1998). Qualitative research and case study applications in education: Revised and expanded from case study research in education. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Moore, M. G. (2013). Handbook of distance education. New York: Routledge.
Muller, E. (2010). Virtual K-12 public school programs and students with disabilities: Issues and recommendations. Alexandria, VA. Retrieved from http://projectforum.org/docs/VirtualK-12PublicSchoolProgramsandSwD-IssuesandRecommendations.pdf
Murphy, E., & RodrÃguez-Manzanares, M. A. (2009). Teachers’ perspectives on motivation in high school distance education. Journal of Distance Education, 23(3), 1–24.
Ni, Y., & Rorrer, A. K. (2012). Twice considered: Charter schools and student achievement in Utah. Economics of Education Review, 31(5), 835–849. doi:10.1016/j.econedurev.2012.06.003
Noel, a, Stark, P., Redford, J., & Zuckerberg, a. (2013). Parent and family involvement in education, from the National Household Education Surveys Program of 2012 (NCES 2013-028). Education Statistics, Institute of Education. Retrieved from http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch
Rice, K. L. (2006). A comprehensive look at distance education in the K-12 context. Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 38(4), 425–449.
Russell, G. (2004). Virtual schools: A critical view. In C. Cavanaugh (Ed.), Development and Management of Virtual Schools: Issues and Trends (pp. 1–25). Hershey, PA: Information Science Publishing.
Smetana, J. G., Daddis, C., & Chuang, S. S. (2003). “Clean your room!â€: A longitudinal investigation of adolescent-parent conflict and conflict resolution in middle-class African American families. Journal of Adolescent Research, 18(6), 631–650. doi:10.1177/0743558403254781
Sorensen, C. (2012). Learning online at the K-12 level: A parent/guardian perspective. International Journal of Instructional Media, 39(4), 297–308.
Stake, R. E. (2010). Qualitative Research: Studying How Things Work. New York, NY: Guilford Press.
Staker, H. (2011). The rise of K-12 blended learning: Profiles of emerging models. Learning. Innosight Institute. Retrieved from http://www.christenseninstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/The-rise-of-K-12-blended-learning.emerging-models.pdf
Steinberg, L. (2001). We know some things: Parent–adolescent relationships in retrospect and prospect. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 11(1), 1–19. doi:10.1111/1532-7795.00001
U.S. Department of Education. (2010). Supporting families and communities: Reauthorizing the elementary and secondary education act. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Education. Retrieved from http://www2.ed.gov/policy/elsec/leg/blueprint/faq/supporting-family.pdf
Watson, J., Murin, A., Vashaw, L., Gemin, B., & Rapp, C. (2013). Keeping pace with K-12 online & blended learning: An annual review of policy and practice. Evergreen Education Group. Retrieved from http://kpk12.com/cms/wp-content/uploads/EEG_KP2013-lr.pdf
Zhang, H., & Almeroth, K. (2010). Moodog: Tracking student activity in online course management systems. Journal of Interactive Learning Research, 21(3), 407–429.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
As a condition of publication, the author agrees to apply the Creative Commons – Attribution International 4.0 (CC-BY) License to OLJ articles. See: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
This licence allows anyone to reproduce OLJ articles at no cost and without further permission as long as they attribute the author and the journal. This permission includes printing, sharing and other forms of distribution.
Author(s) hold copyright in their work, and retain publishing rights without restrictions
