Effect of parenting style on the academic development of children

Parents according to Longman Dictionary of contemporary English imply the father or mother of a person. It also went on to disclose its view on parenting as the skill or activity of looking after your own children. Davies (2000) opined that parenting (or child rearing is the process of promoting and supporting the physical, emotional social and intellectual development of a child from infancy to adulthood.

Parenting style is a psychological contrast representing standard strategies that parents use in their child rearing (stantrock, 2007). There are many differing theories and opinions on the best ways to rear children, as well as differing levels of time and effort that parents are willing to invest in the rearing of their children. Parental investment starts soon after birth. These include the process of birth breast feeding, affirming the value of the baby’s cry as the parents. Nwafor (2009), states that many parents create their own style from a combination of factors, and these may evolve over time as the children develop their own personalities and move through life’s stages. Santrock (2007) disclosed that parenting style is affected by both the patens’ and children collectively and is largely based on the influences of one’s own parents and culture. Kelvin 82011), denotes that most parents learn patenting practices from their own parents some they accept, some they discard.

Okoro (2009) exposes that the family as an agent of socialization and a primary point of child academic development is a vital tool to look into. A particular parenting style may make or mar the child’s academic development love if the parents love education and believed in human investment, they will go at any length to get the best of education for the child by: encouraging the child’s positive reading habit, employing qualified instructor at home to mode the child after school, pay or buy instructional materials for the chills, sending the child to good schools and following up the academics activities of the schools rather than doing the negative. The chills certainly will be productive in his or her academic programme or performances.

It is on this background, the researcher investigates the effect of parenting styles on the academic development of children in Omoku. 1.2 Statement of Problem  Okoroigwe (2011) lamented that it is clear to note that a high percentage of students are performing below average. Students embrace examination malpractice, and hence there is poor academic performance. Even characters wise, students are getting deviant and becoming societal rascals. It is because of these anomalies that the researcher wants to find out what kind of upbringing that the students gain at the family level before coming to school and what is the influence of parenting style to save these predicaments. The researcher is compelled by these problems that lead her to examine the role of parenting styles in the educational development of children.

1.3Purpose of the Study
The purpose of was to investigation is the effect of parenting styles on the academic development of children. Specifically the study is aimed at identifying: 1. The effect of patenting styles on student behaviours.

2. The effect of parenting styles on academic development of children. 3. The types of parenting styles used by parents.
4. The benefits of different parenting styles on children’s education

1.4Research Questions
The following research questions are designed by researcher to serve as a guide to the study and they are: 1. In what ways do parenting styles affect the children’s behaviour? 2. How do parenting style affect the academic development of children’s? 3. Which is the most prevalent parenting style used by parents in raising their children? 4. What are the benefits of different parenting styles on educational development of children?

1.5Significance of the Study
The study is expected to lead to better understanding of the effect of parenting styles on the educational development of children the study will be a great benefit to parents, community leaders, teachers, students and curriculum, planners. It will also broaden the scope of knowledge by increasing the body. 1.6Scope of the Study

This study covered parenting styles such as Authoritarian, Authoritative, permissive or indulgent, uninvolved and Helicopter parenting styles and will be carried out in Omoku, ONELGA, Rivers State, using teachers in Public Secondary Schools.

1.7Definition of Terms
This work was cantered on five main terms effect, parenting styles, academic, and development children.

Effect: This simply mans what impact parenting styles has had on the academic development of the children. It can also be seen as a change that somebody or something causes in somebody or something else. Parenting style: Parenting styles can be referred to as a particular way in which parents care for their child or children. Santrock (2007) explained that parenting style is a psychological contrast representing standard strategist that parents use in their child rearing. Parenting styles can be said to be all the method parents choose to train their child and ward. It could be derived from their various believes and way of life. Exposure can also influence the choice of parenting styles. Academic: This is connected with education, especially studying in schools and universities. It can also be seen as involving a lot of reading and studying rather than practical or technical skill. Development: This means the gradual growth of something so that it becomes more advanced, stronger, etc. it also be seem as a new-event or stage that is likely to affect what happens in a continuing situation. Child: This means a young human being who is not yet an adult. It can also mean a son or daughter of any age.

CHAPTER TWO

LITERATURE REVIEW

The review of related literature was discussed in this chapter in the following sub-headings: The concept of parenting
Factors that affect parenting decisions
Parenting styles
Parenting skills
The effect of parenting styles
Effect of parenting styles on the academic development of children Parents and Parental involvements

2.1The Concept of Parent
A parent according to Longman Dictionary of contemporary English, Implies the father or mother of a person or animal. It went on to disclose its view on parenting as the skill or activity of looking after your own children.

The term “parenting” most frequently refers only to “mothering,” and past research examining “maternal influences” clearly does not measure father’s influence (Stevenson- Hinde, 1998). Domenech-Rodriguez, Donovick, and Crowley (2009) demonstrated that parenting styles are beneficial for understanding complex behaviours and attitudes in categories, and these are associated with child outcomes. Thirty-seven years ago, Dawkins (1976) described parenting (in terms of parental behaviours) as the most functional activity. Parenting encompasses pleasures, privileges, and profits as well as frustrations, fears, and failures. Thus, parents can find an interest and derive considerable and continuing pleasure in their relationships and activities with their children (Dawkins, 1976).

Davis (2000) opined that parenting (or child rearing) is the process of promoting and supporting the physical, emotional, social and intellectual development of a child from infancy to adulthood. Parenting refers to the aspect of raising a child aside from the biological relationship. Bernstein (2008) pointed that parents is usually done by the biological parents of the chills in question, although, governments and society take a role as well. In many cases, orphaned or abandoned children receive parental care from non-blood relations. Other may be adopted, raised in poster care, or placed in an orphanage.

2.2Factors the Affect Patenting Decisions
Social class, wealth and income have the strongest impact on what method of child meaning are used by parents (Larenu 2002). Lack of money is found to be the defining factor in the style of child rearing that is chosen. As time change so do the way parents parent their children. It becomes essential to understand parenting styles as well as how those styles contribute to the behaviour and development of children.

In psychology, the parental investment theory suggests the basic differences between males and females in parental investment have great adaptive significance and lead to gender differences in mating propensities and preferences (Weiten 2002). A family’s social class plays a large role in the opportunities and resources that will be made available for a child. Working-class children often grow up at a disadvantage with the schooling, communities and parents attention made available to them compared to middle-class or upper-class. Also, lower working-class families do not get the kind of networking that the middle and upper classes do through helpful family members, friends and community individuals and groups as well as various professionals or experts (Doob, 2013).

2.3Parenting Styles
Development psychologist Diana Baumrind identified three main patenting styles in early chills development: authoritative, authoritarian, and permissive. These parenting styles were later expended to for, including an uninvolved style. These four styles of parenting involve combinations of acceptance and responsiveness on the one hand and demand and control on the other. (Santrock, 2007): Authorizations parenting styles can be very rigid and strict. Parents who practice authorization styles, patenting have a strict set of rules and expectations and require rigid obedience. If rules are not followed, punishment is most often used to ensure obedience (Fletcher & co. 2008). According to Fletcher and Co. 2008, stated that there is usually no explanation of punishment except that the child is in trouble and should listen accordingly.

“Because I said so” is a typical response to a child’s question of authority, and this type of authority is used more often in working-class families than the middle-class. In 1983, Diana Baumrind found out that children raised in an authoritarian style home were less cheerful more moody and more vulnerable to stress. In many cases, these children also demonstrate passive hostility. An authoritative parenting style relies on positive reinforcement and infrequent use of punishment. Parents are more aware of a child’s feelings and capabilities and support the development of a child’s autonomy within reasonable limits. There is a give-and-take atmosphere involved in parent child communication and both control and support are exercised in authoritative style parenting. Reach shows beneficial when parenting children.

Permissive or indulgent parenting is the most popular in middle-class families. In these family settings child’s freedom and their autonomy are valued and parents tend to rely mostly on reasoning and explanation. There tends to be little or no punishments or rules in this style of parenting and children are said to be free from external constraints. Children of permissive parents are generally happy but sometimes show low level of self control and self-reliance because they lack structure a home. An involved parenting style is when parents are often emotionally absent and sometimes even physically absent (Brown et’al, 2008). They have little to no expectation of the child and regularly have no communication. They are not responsive to a child’s need and do not demand anything of them in their behavioural expectations. They provide everything the child needs for survival with little to no engagement (Brown et’al, 2008).

Finkelhor et’al (2009) stressed that there is often a large gap between parents and children with this parenting styles, children with little or no communication with parents tended to be the victims of another child’s deviant behaviour and maybe involved in some deviance themselves. Children of uninvolved parents suffer in each of the following areas: social competence, academic performance, psychosocial development and problem behaviour. Helicopter parenting is a style in which parents hover over their children during the late adolescence to early adulthood years. Technology has contributed to this style with parents being able to keep watch over their kids through cell phones, emails and online grades. Kids in college
still feel their parent’s presence and involvement (Gordon, 2008).

2.4Parenting Skills
Parenting styles are only a small piece of what it takes to be a “good parents”. Parenting takes a lot of skill and patience and needs constant work and growth. Research shows that children benefit most when their parents: Communicate honestly about events or discussions that have happened, also that parents explain clearly to children what happened and how they were involves, if the were; Stay consistent, child need structure, parents hat have normal routines benefits children incredibly; Utilize those resources available to them, reaching out into the community. Taking more interest in their child’s emotional needs and early development; and. Keeping open communication and staying educated on what their child is learning and doing and how it is affecting them (Ken, 2007).
2.5 The Effect of Patenting Styles
Spera (2005) asserted that parenting styles emphasizes on the response parents provide to their children and the method which parents used to demand compliance from their children. Baumrind (2005) categorized types of parenting style based on two dimensions which are responsiveness and demandingness. According to Baumrind, responsiveness refers to the degree that parents promote self-assertion and individuality by showing care and acceptance to children’s desires. Care and acceptance includes kindness, support for independence, and logical contact. Demandingness refers to demands that parents make on children to be included into society (Baumrind, 2005). The demands are imposed through monitoring and controlling of children’s behaviors, as well as communicating the demands directly to the children

In addition to Baumrind’s initial style of 100 per school children, researchers have conducted numerous other studies that have led to a number of conclusions about the effect of parenting styles on children: Authoritarian parenting styles generally lead to children who are obedient and proficient but they rank lower in happiness, social competence and self-esteem (Idam, 2013). Authoritative parenting tend to result in children who are happy, capable and successful (Maccoby, 1992). Permissive parenting often results in children who are ranked low in happiness and self-regulation, these children are more likely to experience problems with authority and tend to perform poorly in school (Amado 2009). Uninvolved parenting styles rank lowest across all life domains. These children tend to lack self-control, have low self-esteem and less competent than their peers. Often, the process of child rearing deals with a give-and take system, whereby parents need to frequently decide on what is best for the child at a given point or circumstance – strictness or freedom.

2.6Effect of Parenting Styles on the Academic Development of Children It is generally agreed that parenting style influences self-efficacy, self-esteem, and identity development, which are associated with academic achievement (Brown & Iyengar, 2008). The progress in children’s achievement is influenced by the decision that is made by both parents and their children to cooperate or confront each other (Brown & Iyengar, 2008). Furthermore, children’s academic motivation and behaviour are directly influenced by family activities and parents’ behaviour, which are seen as the external factor. For instance, there is a positive outcome for both parents and children when parents interact in a fun and loving way during children’s homework time. Conversely, when parents are neglectful, academic disengagement and problem behaviour are generated (Brown & Iyengar, 2008).

One study found that mothers who were better to modulate emotion and ability to both intimacy and autonomy had children who had higher scores for verbal and math achievement (Skowron, 2005). Parents are seen to communicate their characteristics or explanations for their children’s achievement in terms of day-to-day interactions and behaviour with their children (Phillipson, 2006). Therefore, parents are influenced by their children’s academic achievement, and children’s achievement is, in turn, influenced by their parents (Phillipson & Phillipson, 2007). The foundation for parenting style and academic achievement is formed by the belief systems and attitudes in parents and their children (Brown & Iyengar, 2008).

Okiejurn (2008) noted that the primary goal of the programs offered by school is to help students achieve their full academic potential. Various factors have been examined in relation to students’ academic achievements. These factors ranged from family socioeconomic status, family structure, family functioning, peer association, to school and educational environment (Olige, 2008). Past studies (examples: Chao, 2001; Querido et al., 2002) have shown that parents, through their parenting styles built critical foundations for various aspects of children’s development and achievement. Jacobs and Harvey (2005) indicated that parenting style is one of the significant contributors to student’s academic achievement in school. Amadi (2009) opined that traditionally, family statues variables such as parents’ level of education have been regarded as predictors of children’s academic achievement.

Increasingly, research has suggested that, rather than having a direct association with children’s academic achievement, parents’ level of education is part of a larger constellation of psychological and sociological variables influencing children’s school outcomes. Attendant on higher levels of education may be access to resources, such as income, time, energy, and community contacts that allow for greater parental involvement in a child’s education. Thus, the influence of parent’s level of education on student outcomes might best the represented as a relationship mediated by interactions among status and process variable. The wide-ranging literature on the successes of different parenting solutions has led to a great deal of confusion amongst parents on the most effective strategies for their child’s academic performance. While many follow those actions of their own parents, others may choose to employ a different approach, often uncertain of which is best (Brown & Iyengar, 2008).

Therefore, it is essential to distinguish between these parenting styles, outlining their main characteristics and discussing their impacts, to allow parents to decide for themselves which outcomes they are hoping to achieve. Appropriate parental structuring or behavioural control during home-based learning activities such as homework promotes on-task behaviour, makes the environment predictable and consistent, and protects students from distraction (Hoover-Dempsey et al., 2001).

2.7 Parents and Parental Involvement

In this framework, parent involvement is defined as the dedication of resources by the parent to the child within a given domain. Grolnick and Slowiaczek (1994) underscored the importance of examining the child’s experience of the parent’s involvement because the child must experience the resources in order for the resources to have an influence. They identified three dimensions of parent involvement: behaviour, personal, and cognitive/intellectual. The behaviour component includes overt behaviours such as going to the school and participating in school activities. Parent’s personal involvement includes the child’s affective experience that the parent cares about school, and has and enjoys positive interactions with them around school. The cognitive/intellectual dimension involves exposing the child to stimulating activities and materials such as books and current events (Grolnick & Slowiaczek, 1994).

Much of the current literature focuses on parental involvement in schools. Parental school involvement is thought to decrease as children move to middle and high school, partly because adolescents increasingly become more autonomous and due to parents’ beliefs that they may not be able to assist with more challenging high school subjects (Eccles & Harold, 1996). Despite this belief, few parents stop caring about or monitoring the academic progress of their high school-age children, and parental involvement remains an important predictor of school outcomes through adolescence (Hill & Taylor, 2002). However, parents may experience a decrease in their feelings of efficacy as their children grow older. It is possible that parents may be less knowledgeable about the subject matter being taught in more advanced and specialized courses.

Parents may also feel that the methods used in teaching various subjects are very different from the methods used when they were in school. Consequently, parents may worry that they will mislead or confuse the children if they try to help (Ecclesia & Harold, 1993). Based on this theory, Shumow and Lomax (2002) posited that parents’ efficacy beliefs could predict reports of parental involvement, parental monitoring, and parent-child communication. Generally, as adolescents mature, they tend to gradually distance themselves from their parents (Steinberg & Silverberg, 1986) and increase their self-reliance (Epstein & Connors, 1995). Parental involvement practices that seem appropriate when children are at the elementary school level may become inappropriate when they enter high school, and it may be difficult for parents to determine which involvement activities are developmentally appropriate (Deslandes & Cloutier, 2002). Thus, parents may find ways to become involved in less direct, more developmentally appropriate ways (Hill et al., 2004). For example, although direct helping with homework declines in adolescence, parent involvement during middle and late schooling is associated with an increase in the amount of time students spend on homework and an increase in the percentage of homework completed (Epstein & Sanders, 2002).

Adolescents may also be resistant to certain forms of parental involvement as they strive for more independence. However, Deslandes and Cloutier (2002) found that adolescents are in favour of supporting most parental involvement in school activities across various family structures and parental education levels. Jeynes (2005) studied the effects of parental involvement on the academic achievement of African American students in the twelfth grade, the results of Jeynes’s (2005) study indicated that having “highly involved parents” contributes to the academic outcomes for African American students. In addition, most of this research has used global measures as opposed to a multidimensional representation of parent involvement. A more active and multidimensional view of the parent is inherent in the notion of parent involvement, because parental involvement subsumes a wide variety of parental behavioural patterns and parenting practices (Fan & Chen, 2001; Hong & Ho, 2005). Researchers have focused on it as a key mediator between background factors and achievement (Grolnick & Slowiaczek, 1994).

Table IV above shows that the mean score of the five questionnaire items (6-10) is 3.52, a point above the median point of 2.5. Base on the above statistics it have been established that there are academic sponsorship benefits with respect to parenting style.

4.2DISCUSSION
It has been established that parenting styles affects student’s behaviours, which could make them less cheerful, more moody and or vulnerable. It can as well instil in them competent social interactive skill, self reliant and independent problem solving skill. This is in agreement with Davies (2000) and Gordon (2008). Who opined that parenting (or child rearing is the process of promoting and supporting the physical, emotional social and intellectual development of a child from infancy to adulthood. And that Kids in college still feel their parent’s presence and involvement

Based on the result from table II of this work it is established that parenting style affects the academic performance of students positively or negatively. This above finding is in line with the works of Jacobs and Harvey (2005), who stated that parenting style is one of the significant contributors to student’s academic achievement in schools.

Statistics gotten from table III above, show that majority of the respondents agreed to monitor their children closely and caution them when they go wrong. This completely describes the authoritative style of parenting and indicates that it is the prevalent style of parenting and is in line with the works of Maccoby (1992) and Santrock (2007): who posited that parenting children with the authoritative style is beneficial, and added that Authoritative parenting tend to result in children who are happy, capable and successful.

Base on the statistics gotten from table four it was established that there are academic sponsorship benefits with respect to parenting style, parents knowledge, belief, values and goals about child rearing so that a variety of parental behaviours are directly related to children’s school performance. This is in consonant with Ken (2007), who opined that traditionally, family statues variables such as parents’ level of education have been regarded as predictors of children’s academic achievement.

CHAPTER FIVE
5.0SUMMARY, CONCLUSION, RECOMMENDATION AND SUGGESTION FOR FURTHER STUDIES 5.1Summary
The study focused on finding out the effect of parenting styles on the academic development of children

Considering the research question it is conceived that
Parenting styles affects student’s behaviours.
There are certain prevalent parenting styles.
Parenting style affects the academic performance of students. There are academic sponsorship benefits with respect to parenting style.

In order to carry out this research work effectively on the ideas conceived above, a set of four (4) research questions were drawn as shown in 1.4 of this research work. Chapter two of this study dealt with the review of related literatures, which were outlined under the following sub-headings: The Concept of parenting, Factors that affect parenting decision, parenting style, Parenting skill, Effects of parenting styles and Effects of parenting styles on the academic development of children.

The opinions and views of various researchers and authors in the topic and related ones were considered in order to ensure that objectivity in the study carried out is achieved. Data were collected using a twenty (20) item
structured questionnaire, which were administered to the sample population and hundred per cent retrieval of the instrument was ensured. The sample for his study is made up of one hundred teachers selected from the study population using the simple random sampling techniques. The data collected was subjected to mean method as a statistical tool.

The respondent’s opinions or responses were analysed and presented in tables for easy comprehension, and each of the research questions formulated earlier were analysed in the light of the data extracted from the respondents.

5.2Conclusion
Determined to establish the effect of parenting styles on the academic development of children and bearing in mind that parenting is an odious process of promoting and supporting the physical, emotional, social and intellectual development of a child from infancy to adulthood. The researcher painstakingly collected and analysed data with respect to parenting style and its effect on children academic developments, from the findings thereof the researcher concludes that:

Parenting style to a large extend affects the attitude of their children. Parent who has interest in the education of their children consciously or unconsciously adopts parenting that positively affects their academic performance. Parents can determine the academic height their children can attain as well as the attributes in later life through parenting style. Student’s attitude as well as academic achievement in school is a function of parenting style with or without the home.

5.3Recommendations
In order to attain a highly efficient and effective home that will serve as an adequate primary agent of the child academic development and socialization. The following recommendations are made:

That parent should adopt combination of different parenting styles for optimum result in the upbringing of their children. That parents should
maintain an open communication with their children as this well enable them have insight into their situation and give them the needed support at the appropriate time In order to help children reach their full academic potential, parents should go any length to get the best education for their children, encourage the child positive reading habits, employ a qualified home teacher for the children, buy them educative tolls and educational materials, and follow up their academic activities in school.

5.4Suggestion for Further Studies

The researcher is suggesting that future research replicates this study in other local governments in Rivers State, in order to enhance the understanding of the affect parenting style have on the academic development of children. Future researchers may also adopt other variables such as the impact socio-economic status of parents.

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