Publication year
2014
Citation Title
Military parents' perceptions of public school support for their children.
Journal Name
Children & Schools
Journal Volume
36
Issue Number
1
Page Numbers
e1-e8
DOI
10.1093/cs/cdt024
Summary
Survey data from parents from 8 school districts in the San Diego area were utilized to compare military-connected (MC) and nonmilitary parents perceptions of their children's school climate and needs in public schools. Compared to non-MC parents, MC parents reported more concerns with school climate and less encouragement of parental involvement by the schools. The primary problem identified by MC parents was a lack of knowledge on the schools part in terms of the military lifestyle and the unique needs of military children.
Key Findings
MC parents expressed a consistent, slightly less positive assessment of school climate than non-MC parents, and expressed a desire for increased educational resources and training specific to military culture and military families.
MC parents expressed a high level of overall satisfaction with schools despite their lower reported levels of satisfaction with their connection to other families in the school.
Parents in both groups identified physical fights between students and the use of drugs and alcohol as the greatest problems experienced at the school, though MC parents reported observing these problems to a lesser degree than non-MC parents.
Implications for Program Leaders
Facilitate activities for MC families and other families in the school in an effort to help connect families
Offer workshops for MC parents to learn about the school, staff, and faculty as a means of increasing parent knowledge and school involvement
Provide education to military families regarding how to advocate for their child's needs within the school system
Implications for Policy Makers
Encourage collaboration between MC schools and military-based organizations to improve support for MC students
Recommend training educators about the special needs of MC students, particularly in districts with high populations of military families
Promote the development of programs that provide military families with school liaisons to work on their behalf within schools
Methods
Quantitative quasi-experimental data was obtained from the Core Model and Military Module of the California School Climate Survey for Parents administered online and in-person in both English and Spanish.
The questions were grouped into six categories (background characteristics, school climate, parent involvement, school problems, need for service, and military parent satisfaction).
This study sought to examine the differences in MC and non-MC parents views of school climate, parental involvement, school problems and need for services in schools.
Participants
Participants included 3,914 parents from 8 school districts in the San Diego area; 11% of participants (n = 448) were MC, and 75% of MC respondents were on Active Duty at the time of the survey.
Length of childrens enrollment in current school was one two to years.
No other demographic information (e.g., race, gender, ages) of infants or children were provided.
Limitations
Only MC parents were invited to respond to school satisfaction questions and MC families made up a relatively small proportion of the overall sample, weakening generalizability.
Measurement made it unclear whether MC parents perception of few school problems is due to an actual low incidence of problems, or to parents lack of knowledge due to their reported feelings of relative disconnect from the school.
No information is provided about the representative nature of the sample, which limits the generalizability of results.
Avenues for Future Research
Extended to other geographic areas and school districts with large concentrations of MC families
Include school satisfaction questions for non-MC families to facilitate more robust comparisons of data
Continue to examine why MC parents perceive their children's school as encouraging parental involvement less so than non-MC parents, as well as how schools might improve that perceived relationship
Focus
Multiple Branches
Target Population
Population Focus
Military Branch
Military Component
Abstract
This study examined how military-connected (MC) and nonmilitary parents perceive civilian schools' climate, schools' encouragement of parental involvement, problems in school, their needs in school, and their school satisfaction. The sample comprised 3,914 parents from eight school districts in the San Diego area. The parents completed the core and MC parent modules of the California School Climate Survey for Parents. Approximately 10 percent identified themselves as MC. Military parents provided significantly more negative assessments of schools' climate and encouragement for parental involvement compared with nonmilitary parents in the same schools. Nevertheless, they saw fewer violence problems in schools compared with nonmilitary parents. Military parents' most pressing need was for information on educational resources for military families. Although military parents were satisfied with many aspects of the school, a relatively large proportion expressed dissatisfaction with a sense of connection to other families in the school, the degree of understanding that staff showed them, and the responsiveness of the school administration to their concerns. Educators and social workers may need more training regarding military culture and the needs of military students and families. Programs should be developed to effectively involve military parents in schools and address their needs.
Attach