THE EFFECT OF PARENT TRAINING ON THE SELF-ESTEEM, SELF-CONCEPT OF ACADEMIC ABILITY AND ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT OF LOW-ACHIEVING EARLY ADOLESCENTS

Abstract

Abstract : The purpose of this study was to determine whether an eight-week, 20-hour parent training program could teach parents to increase self-esteem, self-concept of academic ability (SCAA), and academic achievement in their low-achieving early adolescents. A parent training program was designed based on the findings of the major self-esteem and SCAA researchers. The format of the program was small group and interactional, utilizing cognitive presentations, discussion, role-playing, and written responses. A sample of 108 low-achieving early adolescents was identified from a total population of 1,380 junior high school students. Invitations sent to the parents of these 108 students yielded 24 positive responses to participate in training. Each child of the 24 parents was matched with a control member on intelligence, age, sex, grade level, and parent occupational status. The research design selected for the study was reported by Kerlinger (1966), number 17.7, as was the pretest-posttest control group design Nineteen parents of the original 24 completed the program. Students' scores on the Coopersmith Self-Esteem Inventory (SEI), Brookover Self-Concept of Ability Test (SCAT), and second- and fourth-quarter Grade Point Averages (GPA) in English, Social Studies, Mathematics, and Science served as dependent variables for the Experimental and Control groups. In the analysis of the data, appropriate t-tests were used to ensure that the Experimental and Control groups did not differ significantly on any of the dependent variables prior to parent training. One-way analysis of variance and direct mean comparisons were used to test the null hypothesis that there would be no significant differences between the Experimental and Control groups posttest scores on the SEI, SCAT, and GPA. The findings show that the parent training program was not effective in increasing self-esteem, self-concept of academic ability, or grade point average of the low-achieving, early adolescents. Although mean comparisons did indicate a weak trend on the part of the Experimental students to outpace the Control students on pre-to-post assessment SEI and SCAT score increases. This trend was not observed for changes in GPA These results tend to confirm the notion of stability in the self-esteem and SCAA of early adolescents. They also demonstrate the complexities involved in working with the parents while taking data only from their children. Future researchers in this area would be wise to consider lengthening the overall training period, although not necessarily increasing the absolute number of hours spent in training. They would also do well to take some salient measures on the parents, particularly attitudinal and child-perceived behavioral measures. Clearly such personality variables as self-esteem and SCAA in early adolescents are going to take time to change, and it seems unlikely that there are going to be significant changes in the academic achievement of such students prior to their enjoying positive changes in their self-estimations.