Abstract
Purpose. The purpose of this correlational quantitative research study was to useEpstein’s (1995) framework for the six types of parent involvement to examine the
impact of parental involvement on student achievement for economically disadvantaged
families who participated in the Home Instruction for the Parents or Preschool
Youngsters (HIPPY) program. The goal was to use the current educational strategy of
full-service community schools as the lens to examine the long-term outcomes of the six
types of parent involvement through the integrated support of HIPPY regarding student
achievement.
Methodology. A quantitative correlation research design was used to analyze sample data
from HIPPY programs in California, Maryland, and Texas. The sample comprised 171
HIPPY program alumni who had completed at least 1 year and had children in
transitional kindergarten through eighth grade. Data analysis was completed with a
multilinear regression examining the relationship between parental involvement and
student achievement for HIPPY program alumni.
Findings. HIPPY alumni retain high levels of parent involvement in learning at home,
volunteering, and parenting, which has a statistically significant relationship with student
achievement when measured by parent self-efficacy for helping their child succeed,
parent expectations, and parent perceptions of academic achievement.
Conclusions. This study reinforces and adds to the information from the literature
review. This study provides evidence that HIPPY alumni retain high levels of parent
involvement in learning at home, volunteering, and parenting, which has a statistically
significant relationship with student achievement when measured by parent self-efficacy
for helping their child succeed, parent expectations, and parent perceptions of academic
achievement.
Recommendations. Future studies should have a larger sample size to better represent
the demographics of HIPPY participants throughout the United States. With more
participants, the study would better represent the diversity of the target population,
reducing the impact of outliers. Future research should use the causal comparative
research design to examine the HIPPY program’s impact as an integrated service to
improve parent involvement and student achievement compared to a control.