Yeshi Dekar

The Influence of Parents’ Educational Background on the Academic Achievement of the Government
High Schools Students in Thimphu.
The Influence of Parents’ Educational

Background on the Academic Achievement
of the Government High School Students in
Thimphu.
Submitted by Trainee ID: 2751
(In partial fulfillment of requirements for Post Graduate Diploma in

Public Administration)
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
This research would not be possible without the guidance of my research supervisor, Madam.
Palmo Thinley, who gave constructive feedback and helped me to fabricate this whole project. I
would like to sincerely thank madam for being always available and being a great guide for this
study.
My gratitude goes to Mrs. Karma Tshomo, Program Assistant for helping me to with the
technical procedures and being accessible all the time.
I would like to thanks the Principal, Teachers and students of Motithang and Yangchenphug
Higher Secondary School for their invaluable cooperation during data collection.
My sincere thanks to my classmates Chencho Dorji, Karma Gyeltshen, Tawla, Jigme Dorji,
Tshering Pem, Sonam Rabgay, Yonten Dendup and Wangchuk for their help in research design,
framing of questionnaires and with the data processing in SPSS. The research also would not be
possible without you all.
I also would like to thank Sherab Dorji for helping me to find some good sources for my
literature review and for always being there for me. I am also really grateful to my respondents
without whom my research would be futile. I am very much indebted to them for lending me
their precious time and being so cooperative with me.
Thank you so much everyone.
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Abstract
This study was conducted to examine the influence and impact of parents’ educational level on
students’ academic achievement at secondary level of education. Numerous researches have
been conducted around the world on this aspect but not in Bhutan. Even the research that had
been done worldwide focus the socio-economic status of the parents which includes income,
education, and occupation to be the factors influencing children’s academic success. This study
is different as it will only focus the parents’ literacy influencing the academic achievement of the
children. With only one factor in placed, the researcher strives to find out the correlation
between those two variables.
A quantitative research method was employed for this study with class 12 students of government
high schools in Thimphu being randomly selected. This study attempted to survey both the
students and their parents by distributing two sets of questionnaires. The rationale behind this
was to triangulate the data in order to provide more insight on this topic and to ensure validity
while complementing similar data.
In the pursuit of finding the correlation between educational qualification of the parents and
children’s success, the researcher found out vividly that the former variable is not the only
determinant for the latter one. After analysis of the data the research finds moderate positive
relationship between parents’ education level and academic achievements of students. Some of
the findings somehow contrast the literature in terms of helping children with homework and
arranging tuitions since not all of the parents with high educational background follow that
ascribed trend. Most of the findings do support the literature yet the correlation does not surface
as a strong one.
Child’s education is imperative not only to oneself but also to the nation as a whole. The future
leaders or pioneers need to be educated to be intellectually smart and sail the nation towards the
path of prosperity. In order to accomplish this, parent should play a pivotal role in it by getting
oneself acquainted with the needs of their children in the academic front. Concerned agencies
should initiate programmes to upgrade the literacy of the parents which will eventually affect
their children positively.
Key words: Parents’ literacy, children’s success, relationship, academic performance
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LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES
Table 1: Fathers’ qualification with children’s scores
Table 2: Mothers’ qualification with children’s scores
Table 3: Correlation between parents’ educational qualification and the children’s scores
Figure 1: Gender of the respondents
Figure 2: Age of the respondents
Figure 3: Father’s qualification
Figure 4: Mother’s qualification
Figure 5: Students’ scores at school
Figure 6: Graph visualization of a cross tabulation of homework and likert scale.
Figure 7: Graph visualization of a cross tabulation of school attendance and likert scale.
Figure 8: Graph visualization of a cross tabulation of jobs/professions and likert scale.
Figure 9: Graph visualization of a cross tabulation of teaching methods and likert scale.
Figure 10: Graph visualization of a cross tabulation of tuition classes and likert scale.
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Table of Contents
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ............................................................................................................................. i
Abstract ........................................................................................................................................................ iii
LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES ............................................................................................................ iv
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................. 1
Statement of the problem .......................................................................................................................... 3
Purpose of the study .................................................................................................................................. 3
Research Question: ................................................................................................................................... 3
Conceptual Framework ............................................................................................................................. 4
Objectives: ................................................................................................................................................ 4
Significance............................................................................................................................................... 4
CHAPTER 2: Literature Review .................................................................................................................. 5
The Influence of Parents’ Education on Parenting ................................................................................... 5
Parental Involvement and Student Achievement ...................................................................................... 8
CHAPTER 3: Methodology ........................................................................................................................ 11
Instruments.............................................................................................................................................. 11
Study area and Population ...................................................................................................................... 11
Assumptions............................................................................................................................................ 11
Sample .................................................................................................................................................... 11
Data Collection ....................................................................................................................................... 12
Methods .................................................................................................................................................. 12
Ethical considerations ............................................................................................................................. 12
1. Informed consent ........................................................................................................................ 12
2. Voluntary participation ............................................................................................................... 13
3. Confidentiality ............................................................................................................................ 13
CHAPTER 4: Data Findings and Analysis ................................................................................................. 14
4.1 Respondents Profile .......................................................................................................................... 14
4.1.1 Respondents by gender .............................................................................................................. 14
4.1.2 Respondents by Age................................................................................................................... 14
4.1.3 Respondents by father’s qualification ........................................................................................ 15
4.1.4 Respondents by Mother’s qualification ..................................................................................... 15
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4.1.5 Respondents by marks score ...................................................................................................... 16

4.2 Results and Discussion ..................................................................................................................... 16
4.2.1 Fathers’ qualification and children’s score ................................................................................ 16
4.2.2 Mothers’ qualification and Marks score .................................................................................... 17
4.2.3 Parents’ help with their children’s homework ........................................................................... 18
4.2.4 Parents’ monitoring their children’s school attendance ........................................................... 19
4.2. 5 Parents’ level of interest with their children’s job interest........................................................ 20
4.2.6 Parents’ enquiring about the teaching methods of their children’s teacher ............................... 21
4.2. 7 Tuition classes arrangement for their children and the educational qualification of parents. ... 22
4.3 Descriptive Statistics ......................................................................................................................... 23
4.4 Correlations ....................................................................................................................................... 23
Limitations .............................................................................................................................................. 24
Chapter 5: Discussion ................................................................................................................................. 25
CHAPTER 6: Recommendations................................................................................................................ 26
CHAPTER 7: Conclusion ........................................................................................................................... 27
References ................................................................................................................................................... 28
Appendix ..................................................................................................................................................... 32
Children’s Questionnaire ........................................................................................................................ 32
Parents’ Questionnaire ............................................................................................................................ 36
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CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
Education plays an essential role in the acquisition of knowledge and skills. It is a tool which can
be used to train the future generations to inculcate skills and competencies. The way a child is
raised has an adverse impact not only to oneself but to the whole society. While growing up the
child spends most of his time at home and the type of environment he or she is brought in also
hamper their cognitive development. In order to help a child grow in good health, parents should
come into the picture in shaping the child’s character and frame of mind. Literature around the
globe shares that the level of education which the parents have achieved can also affect the
child’s growth as literate parents have the ability to instill wisdom acquired by them to their
children. Literate and illiterate parents differ in the sense of being able to read and write and the
accumulation of skills and knowledge of certain fields of study. As stated by Khan, et al, (2015)
education of a child needs multidimensional efforts. Students, teachers, institute and parents all
have their importance in their process of learning. Parents’ education is such a crucial factor for a
child for his/her future. It has been shown that the children of educated parents are more
confident, resourceful and experienced than the children whose parents with no formal
education.
Even in the report presented by the Ministry of Education, it is stated that children with highly
educated parents do fairly well in schools than those with less educated parents. Academic
performance is essential to get promoted to the next level in school and the turning point of the
lives of the students is when they get into secondary level of schooling. From that stage the
students get to perform well in academics in order to have a secured life by getting enrolled in
tertiary education. Students with high grades would not have any hindrances while applying for
jobs compared to their counterparts with low grades as the first criteria which the employers seek
is the grades.
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According to Kimani et al. (2013) low academic performance especially at secondary school
decreases the opportunity to join colleges and out at risk the chances for job placement. Rabgay
(2015) further claims that students who have poor academic records would find it difficult to
cope in a competitive society. Similar is the case in Bhutan since unemployed youths struggle to
meet their basic needs and would be labeled negatively by the society. As Dorji (2005) in his
research on juvenile delinquency found that marginalized youths are pressurized to consume, act
and live in a similar manner to those of their contemporaries of better status. As they being
deprived, it becomes harder for them to compete with those who are better off. He further states
that this results in stress and strain of wanting to outrival others. The only option for them is to
resort to illegitimate channels such as robbery and violent crime to some extent.
After getting the clear picture of the long term effects of students not doing well in schools, the
only solution which can be adopted is parents. Parents have to be diligent to keep their children
away from such activities. The general overview of the parent-student dynamics is that the
parental educational levels influence their children’s academic achievement. Past research has
shown clearly that parental possession of a college degree leads to higher incomes, higher
educational attainment, and a choice of more selective colleges for their children (Gruca et al.,
1989).as cited by Gooding (2001). Many researchers do imply that there is a relationship
between the level of education of parents and the academic achievement of the parents.
The role of parents is really huge not only on educating their children but also grooming them to
be a better human being.
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Statement of the problem
As stated in the introduction that education of the parents play an integral part on shaping the
thoughts and behavior of their children. Parents with high involvement can positively influence
the children and societal issues would not emerge. With low grades unemployment is bound to
occur and currently the youth unemployment rate has increased to 10.7 percent from 9.4 percent
in 2014 as reported by the latest National Labour Force Survey Report. (Bhutan Broadcasting
Service,2016). Unemployment is budding concern in the country and the job scenario is that jobs
are available yet youths are reluctant to take up owing to its nature of the jobs. Parents with high
education background can instill the notion of dignity of labour thereby minimizing the rate of
unemployment.
Purpose of the study
The purpose of the study was to examine the relation between the educational levels of parents
on the academic achievement of their children. Students were categorized into five groups based
on their parents’ qualification. The groups were as follows: a) class ten or below, b) class 12, c)
no formal education, d) Bachelors and e)Masters or above.
Research Question:
Does the educational background of the parents influence the academic achievement of their
children? Or
Is there a relation between the educational background of the parents and children’s academic
achievement?
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Conceptual Framework
Independent variable Dependent variable
Parents’ educational background
 Parental involvement:
1. Help with children’s Children’s academic
homework, achievement
2. Monitoring school  Scores in school
attendance,
3. Enquiring about teaching
methods,
4. Asking about their job
interest and
5. Arranging tuition classes.
6.
The figure above displays the conceptual framework between Parents’ educational background
(independent variable) and children’s academic achievement (dependent variable). The
indicators of the independent variables are how much help they render to their children with
homework, monitoring school attendance, enquiring about teachers’ teaching methods, asking
about their job interest and arranging tuition classes. The indicator of the dependent variable is
the scores which the children get in schools.
Objectives:
1. Determine the level of academic achievement among the high school students measured
by their grades scored in the school.
2. Find out the relationship between the parents’ literacy and the academic achievement of
their children.
Significance
Given the limited research done on the impact of parents’ educational level on their children’s
academic attainment in Bhutan, this study has a potential value in learning the parents-children
dynamics. This study will assist to determine the possible factor affecting the academic success
of the students in school.
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CHAPTER 2: Literature Review
The educational background of the parents basically means the types of educational level which
the parents have attained from primary to tertiary level. Academic achievement is mainly the
grades or the marks which the students score in schools. Academic achievement is defined as
level of expertise attained in the academic work in the school (Kohli, (1975) as cited by Usman
(2012). As the study strives to find out the relationship between these two variables, the literature
will further substantiate the main objectives of the study.
The Influence of Parents’ Education on Parenting
It is well known that education is vital for one’s self development and for the development of the
children. To be academically triumphant many researchers have proved that parents’ literacy
play a pivotal role in it. Khan et al, (2015) cites Jencks (1972) that the role played by family is an
essential in both formal and informal education and further shared that socio-economic status of
parent is the best predictor of student academic achievement with parental education being the
crucial aspect of socio-economic status. This point out that parents’ educational attainment
influences their children’s academic achievement.
Dickson, Gregg and Robinson (2013) share
“It is a consistent finding across numerous countries that individuals with higher levels of
schooling have children who also attain higher levels of schooling. There are two main sources
of this intergenerational correlation and distinguishing between them is of considerable
importance. The first explanation of the intergenerational link is a selection story –
characteristics that lead parents to select into higher levels of education may also impact their
abilities in child-raising or be related to other genetic and environmental factors shared with their
children that will lead the children to also achieve higher levels of education. The second
explanation is a causal story – as a result of attaining more education, the parents with high
levels of schooling provide a better childhood experience and home environment and
consequently their children do better in school.”
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These statements are supported by Board, J (n,d) educational attainment of the parents determine
their understanding about parenthood and child care. Students with highly educated parents have
optimistic attitude towards learning and can integrate extra learning strategies compared to
children of parents with lower level of education. Parents with higher levels of education are also
more likely to believe strongly in their abilities to help their children learn. Therefore, a positive
correlation exists between parental behaviors and children's school performance.
Eccles & Kean (2005) state that the relationship between parent’s education and their children’s
academic success is on the notion that the parents gain knowledge of parenting and this influence
their interaction at home. And cites Alexander et al., (1994) “parents with more education also
have higher expectations for their children’s education which, in turn, predict greater educational
attainment for their children.” There exist a contradiction between parent’s education and
academic success of the children since parents with lower levels of education become concerned
so that their children have upward mobility and accomplish goals which they could not.
According to Kainuwa & Yusuf (2013) there exist a difference between children of educated
parents and students with parents having completed only primary school or not. They further
stated that fathers of with university degree, their children perform considerably well and get the
highest score in examination. This was supported by Musgrave (2000) “a child who comes from
an educated home would follow the steps of his or her family and by this, work actively in his or
her studies. Educated parents provide library facilities to encourage the child to show examples
in activities of intellectual type such as reading of newspapers, magazines and journals. They are
likely to have wider vocabulary by which the children can benefit and develop language
fluency.” Eccles (2005) adds educated parents adopt methods which will help children to gain
exposure to various educational opportunities. For example, highly educated parents in the US
enroll their children in music lessons, science and computer programs, and educationally relevant
summer camps. They are also more likely to enroll their children in the best private schools and
to get tutoring help if their children start to have difficulty in school.
Even Azhar et al (2014) state that parents’ educational qualification is linked with their language
competence, which has a significant influence in manner in which parents communicate with
their children. This explains the point that parental education poses a key influence on children’s
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academic achievement. As mother shares more close bond with her children than the father, so
mother’s education is more important. On the other hand education is necessary for fathers as
well as they are bread winner of the family and Socio economic status (SES) rest on their
shoulders. Azhar (2014) carried out research & came up with the results that SES indicators as
well as parent’s education, correlate significantly with students’ academic achievements.
Kainuwa & Yusuf (2013) cite Okumu et al (2008) and share that in a study of Socioeconomic
Determinants of Primary School Dropout found that there was a reduction of primary school
drop out for children in rural and urban areas with highly educated parents. Educated parents are
more concerned and effective in helping their children with academic related works. They are in
the position to monitor their children’s academic progress. Due to insufficient knowledge,
parents with low educational background fail to monitor their children’s performance and hence
this can demotivate children to study and might drop school. Mutoddi (2014) cites Fantuzzo &
Tighe, (2000) who conclude that educated parents can better communicate with their children
regarding the school work, activities and the information being taught at school. They can better
assist their children in their work and participate at school. Taiwo (1993) as cited by Kainuwa &
Yusuf (2013) support this because the parents with educational background would be in a good
position to be second teachers to the child; and even guide and counsel the child on the best way
to perform well in education and provide the necessary materials needed by the child.
Gratz (2006) asserts that because of the involvement with the children educated parents strongly
affects their children’s academic success and less educated parents has unmanaged stress in their
lives. This stress meddle the opportunity to get involved with their child. He explains that as the
parents get higher in the education ladder they are more equipped to handle stress as they get to
experience in schools and colleges. But this is not the case with low educated parents as they got
to earn and this add more to the existing problem thereby reducing the involvement with their
children.
Some of the reasons for children of highly educated parents doing really well in school than
compared to parents with lower levels of education as stated by Davis-Kean (2005) are, the prior
one are more likely to explicitly define higher levels of education as desirable, encourage their
children to do well in school, and have higher expectations for their children’s academic
achievement. They possess teaching styles that promote children’s development, engage their
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children in higher quality verbal interaction, provide cognitively stimulating learning

environment and literacy activities in the home, and are more comfortable and involved with
their children’s education, teachers, and educational institutions. Nevertheless, they are
associated with higher levels of warmth in parent-child interactions, and lower levels of hostility
in parent-child.
Parental Involvement and Student Achievement
Khajehpour (2011) stated that parental involvement is a significant variable that positively
influences children’s education. An inclusive view of involvement is presented by Epstein’s
model. Epstein (1997) shares that children get to learn and develop through three overlapping
spheres of influence: family, school, and community. It is very essential for these three spheres
to form associations so that the children get the best of it. He defined six types of involvement
based on the relationships between the family, school, and community: parenting (skills),
communicating, volunteering, learning at home, decision making and collaborating with the
community. And he stressed that all of these six types of involvement need to be integrated to
have successful partnerships. As cited by other researchers that parents got huge role and now
school and community got to be active in raising the children in a better way.
As cited by Mutoddi (2014) the academic performance of students depends upon the parental
involvement in their academic activities to attain the higher level of quality in academic success.
This is acknowledged by Kreider, Kennedy & Weiss (2007) that when parents read to their
children at home, children can grasp letters of the alphabet quicker than the children of parents
who do not read to them. The usage of difficult sentences by the parents in their everyday
conversations has a positive impact on children as they get to score high in literacy-related tasks
in kindergarten.
Shapiro(2009) states that regardless of the parents’ education level, when parents are more
involved with their children, their academic performance get higher. This helps them to get
higher in schools and in life. Some studies show that when the parents who have lower levels of
education are more involved, the effect is greater and more positive than when parents who have
higher levels of education are involved. “Parental involvement may include activities like
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helping children in reading, encouraging them to do their homework independently, monitoring

their activities inside the house and outside the four walls of their house, and providing coaching
services for improving their learning in different subjects.” (Wakasrafiq et al, 2013). The positive
attributes of early age positive parental involvement include building of stronger personalities as
children replicate what they see.
Cotton and Wikelund (2005) as cited by Khajehpour & Ghazvini (2011) explain that when
parents really get involved and monitor homework, encourage participation in extracurricular
activities, and help children develop plans for their future; children are more likely to respond
and do well in school. Henderson and Berla’s study stated that as per a review of 66 studies
about the relationship between the parental involvement and the children’s education at school
and in the community, the results include high scores, better attendance, more positive attitudes
and behavior in school and greater enrollment in secondary education” (1994). This evidence
according to them confirmed that the most accurate predictor of student achievement is the
extent to which the family is involved in the child’s education.
Khajehpour& Ghazvini (2011) also shares that family involvement improves aspect of children’s
education such as daily attendance, student achievement, behavior and motivation. Rahman
(2001) shares that numerous studies have been conducted to confirm the assumption that
students do better when their parents are involved in their education. Velez & Jones (1997) as
cited by Rahman., (2001) stated that the research concluded that parent/child interaction lays a
firm foundation for academic achievement. The stronger the relationships, especially as they
relate to educational issues, the higher the academic achievement.
Gratz et al, (2006) shared that parents have a huge role on their children’s education since they
are their children’s first teachers. Children’s brains are like sponges and absorb in everything
surrounding them in the early years of development. So what they see, hear and feel will have a
great impact on them till the rest of their lives. Parents got to be extra cautious while raising a
young child. Research illustrates that parents with educational background find it easy preparing
their children for school compared to parents lacking this background.
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Azhar et al (2014) cited Moszamo (2003) stated that the home atmosphere also have an effect on
the academic performance of students. Educated parents can create conducive environment
children to learn and do well in school. Educated parents can communicate better with their
children and enquire about the teaching methods in school thereby improving the academic
performance of the children. Wamala (2013) asserts that the active participation of the parents
improves discipline in schools and promotes student academic achievement. The findings reveal
that children of educated parents have a higher level of life satisfaction and fewer problems and
are relatively more confident, self-reliant, and free from anxieties and other psychological
problems.
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CHAPTER 3: Methodology
Instruments
My research employed the quantitative approach with a survey questionnaire to get numerical
data (statistics) from respondents. Two sets of survey questionnaires were given to the primary
respondents (students) and to their parents. This was done to get the comprehensive information
about the study and to triangulate the data for further insight in the study. A total of 24 questions
for were set and responses were based on the five point likert scale ranging from 1- strongly
disagree, 2-disagree, 3-neutral, 4-agree and 5-strongly agree.
Study area and Population
The target population comprised of government high school students residing in the capital of
Bhutan. Motithang Higher Secondary School and Yangchenphug Higher Secondary School were
chosen for this study. The main rationale behind selecting government high schools was to find
out if the government selected students through Bhutan Certificate of Secondary Education
(BCSE) performance have any relation with their parents’ level of education.
Assumptions
The following assumptions were made for the study:
1) The respondents (both parents and students) would return all the questionnaires to the
researcher.
2) Students wrote their grades honestly and accurately stated their parents’ qualification.
3) Parents and students filled up the questionnaire genuinely knowing their confidentiality
would be maintained.
Sample
The sampling technique used was the random sampling method. The respondents were selected
using the Krejice & Morgan 1970 sample size method for a known population where the
sampling size was 285 for a population of more than 1000. With a 50-60% confidence level,
around 600 questionnaires should be distributed in order to get the required number of
questionnaire back. This size was further run through the random sampling size calculator and
11
with a 90% confidence level; the sample size required was 219. As mentioned in the
questionnaire that the participation is voluntary, the response rate was 83.39%. This study
accumulates the responses from 175 respondents.
Data Collection
The primary data was collected through self-constructed questionnaire and a total of 240
questionnaires were distributed which mainly consist of choosing the right from the options give
and filling up the likert scale responses. As mentioned earlier only 175 responded and all the
questions were filled up as there were no complicated questions.
Methods
The data collected from the High School students of Motithang and Yangchenphug Higher
Secondary Schools was punched in Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) to generate
cross tabulation between the required variables. And then it was imported to Microsoft excel for
the graphical representation and tabulation of the data. The imported data were coded and
labeled with the requirement of the study. Correlation is what was done for the study as the main
purpose of the study was to figure out the relationship between the independent and dependent
variables.
Ethical considerations
While carrying out any research involving people, it is very essential that certain code of ethics is
followed. As stated by the Center for innovation in research and training (n,d) that the integrity,
reliability and validity of the research findings rely heavily on adherence to ethical principles.
The three main ethical considerations for this study include informed consent, voluntary
participation and confidentiality.
1. Informed consent
This study mainly targeted the High school students and as they fall under the category of
vulnerable group, it was very crucial for the researcher to get approval from the concerned
authorities to carry out the research activities. The researcher got the consent letter from the
Institution where she is currently undergoing Post Graduate Diploma and then contacted both the
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heads of the two government high schools in Thimphu. After getting the approval from the
concerned authorities, the researcher briefed the respondents about the purposes and goals of the
research.
2. Voluntary participation
The respondents of this study were informed that their participation in this study is voluntary and
they can withdraw any time they want to and they can omit any question if they feel are
unnecessary. They were also informed that there are no risks attached to it and if they feel they
can withdraw anytime.
3. Confidentiality
They were all informed that their identity and information will be treated confidentially and
anonymity maintained. The credibility of the research was maintained by assuring that the
responses collected are treated without any biasness. It was all stated on the cover page of the
survey questionnaire and shared that the identity of respondents will remain confidential, unless
the respondents permit their revelation.
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CHAPTER 4: Data Findings and Analysis
The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) was used for interpreting the data in the
study.
4.1 Respondents Profile
4.1.1 Respondents by gender
Male Female
Out of 175 respondents from both the
Government schools, majority of it was
45% female with 55% and 45% was male.
55% All the respondents were students of
Motithang and Yangchenphug Higher
Secondary School.
Fig.1: Gender of the respondents
4.1.2 Respondents by Age
The age of the respondents (students)

ranged from 16 years to 23 years.
40 36.6 38.3
Majority of the students were under the
Percentage
20 16.6 age of 18 (38.3%) followed by 17 years

2.3 4.6 (36.6%) and 19 years (16.6%).
1.1 0.6
0
16 17 18 19 20 21 23
Age of the respondents
Fig.2: Respondents’ age
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4.1.3 Respondents by father’s qualification
From the 175 respondents, 29.7% of the

fathers have Masters and above degrees,
34.9
29.7 9.7% have Bachelors degree, 11.4% have
passed class 12, 34.9% of them have
14.3 education qualification till class 10 or
11.4 9.7
below and 14.3% had no formal
education.
Class 10 or Class 12 No formal Bachelors Masters or
below education above
Figure 3: Fathers’ qualification and respondent
4.1.4 Respondents by Mother’s qualification
Majority of the mothers of the

41.8 respondents are with no formal
33.1 education (41.7%) followed by
class 10 or below (33.1%), mothers
with Bachelors and Masters or
above degree comprise 9.1% each
9.1 9.1
6.9 and 6.9 % of the mothers are with
Class 12 qualification.
No Formal Class 10 or Class 12 Bachelors Masters or

Education below above
Fig.4: Mothers’ qualification.
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4.1.5 Respondents by marks score
Students' scores at school

40
27.4
14.9
13.1
1.7 2.9
90% and above 80%-90% 70%-80% 60%-70% 50%-60% 50% or below
Fig.5: Students’ scores at school
The combined scores of the both the schools show that majority (40%) of the students score
between 60%-70%, 27.4% score between 80%-90%, 14.9% score between 70%-80%, 13.1%
(50%-60%), 2.9% (50% or below) and 1.7% (90% and above).
4.2 Results and Discussion
4.2.1 Fathers’ qualification and children’s score
Qualification
< 90% 80%-90% 70%-80% 60%-70% 50%-60% < 50%
Class 10 or 49.1%
1.6% 8.19% 19.67% 21.31% 0
below
Class 12 5% 30% 10% 45% 5% 5%
No formal
0 24% 4% 48 16% 8%
education
Bachelors 0 23.52% 35.29% 29.4% 11.7% 0
Masters or
1.92% 51.9% 9.61% 26.9% 5.76% 3.84%
above
Table 1: Father’s qualification versus in relation to child’s scores at school
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According to the findings students with class 10 certificates or below qualified fathers scored the
highest (49.1%) in the range between 60%-70% and zero in 50% or below. Students of fathers
with class 12 certificates’ students scored the highest between 60%-70%. Similar to the prior
case but the number of students scoring between 80%-90% is higher with the current one i.e. the
fathers with class 12 certificates. Students having fathers with no formal education also scored
high between 60%-70% and one below 50%. Students of fathers having Bachelors Degree do
really well scoring between 60%-90% despite of their less population. Students of fathers having
Masters Degree or above scored the highest in the range between 80%-90%, and 1.92% scoring
90% and above.
Majority of the children with educated parents fairly do well and this finding does support
literature as highly educated parents motivates positively to do well in schools.
4.2.2 Mothers’ qualification and Marks score
Qualification
Above 90% 80%-90% 70%-80% 60%-70% 50%-60% < 50%
< class 10 1.72% 32.7% 18.9% 37.9% 6.89% 1.72%
Class 12 8.33% 33.33% 8.33% 16.66% 25.00% 8.33%

No formal
0 13.69% 13.69% 50.6% 19.17% 2.73%
education
Bachelors 6.25% 50% 12.5 18.75% 6.25% 6.25%
Masters or
0 43.75% 12.5% 37.5% 6.35% 0
above
Table 2: Mother’s qualification and child’s scores at school
Out of 175 respondents, students of mothers with class 10 and below qualification score well in
the range between 60%-70% and 80%-90%. The highest grade for students of class 12
certificates’ mothers is between 80%-90%. For the mothers with no formal education, the high
score for majority of the students is between 60%-70% and then 50%-60%. The highest
population scoring between 80%-90% with 50% is with the students of mothers with Bachelors
Degree. Then it is followed by students of mothers having Masters Degree and above.
17
4.2.3 Parents’ help with their children’s homework
Class 10 or below Class 12 No formal education Bachelors Masters or above

47.5
50
40
30 35.29
28
25 25 23.53
29.41 21.15
18 17.3
16 15
12 13.11
9.8 9.62
11.47 11.76 5 4
0 1.92
Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly agree
Figure 6: Parents’ help with their children’s homework

The graph showing the cross tabulation between the parents’ qualification and how much they
help with their children’s homework displays a little contrast with the literature. Majority (50%)
of the children with parents having masters’ degree or above are not given help with the
homework. Even parents having Bachelors Degree comes second with 29.41% for not helping
their children with their homework. Though their percentage of helping children with homework
is higher than the rest yet the part in disagreeing strongly is higher. As per the literature the
parents with high educational background tend to help their children with homework so that they
score good marks in school. Parents with class 10 certificates or below score the highest in
“strongly agree” scale with 13.11 compared to the rest of the parents. Parents with no formal
background do not fall on the two extremes of “strongly disagree” and “strongly disagree”,
which means that they do help their children with homework.
18
4.2.4 Parents’ monitoring their children’s school attendance
44.23
40
36.06 36
31.15
29.41
28
25 25
24 23.07
19.67
23.53 17.647 17.64
15.38
11.76
10
8.20 15.38
4.9 4
8
1.92
0
Figure 7: Parents’ monitoring their children’s school attendance
The graph shows the regularity of parents with the school attendance of the children. The level of
involvement by the parents with low qualifications is somewhat equal with high qualifications.
In the “stronly agree” scale, parents with no formal background has the highest followed by class
12 certificates’ parents with 25% and then parents with Masters Degree with 23.07%. In the
“agree” scale, parents with Masters Degree tops the chart with 44.234% followed by parents with
no formal bakgroound. These findings somehow balances the finding regarding the level of
parental involvement in their children’s lives. In both the “strongly disagree” and “disagree”
scales, there percentage of not monitoring their children’s school attendance is higher among the
parents with educational background. This finding also contradict with many of the researchers
who resorted that parents with high educational background would be more concerned about the
children’s behaviour in school.
19
4.2. 5 Parents’ level of interest with their children’s job interest
58.8
51.9
45
39.34
31.14
36
44 35
17.64
15
14 23.52
9.83 16
4.9 5 4 14.75
3.84 4 9.61
0 0 0 0
Figure 8: Parents’ level of interest with their children’s job interest
As per the findings majority of the parents are interested in asking about the job or professions
which their children are interested in. The highest number which totally support the statement is
from the parents with Masters and above degree with 51.9% followed by parents with high
school diploma and below with 39.34%. Parents with no formal education also follow the trend
with the already mentioned groups as they are also concerned with about the jobs which interests
their children with 36%. One of the significant finding about this is that few parents with high
educational background seem not to be interetsed in asking about the jobs which interest their
children but none from the parents with low educational background (Parents with no formal
education and class 12 certificates).
This proves that the concern of parents for their children in terms of the jobs which interest them
does not get restricted only with the parents with high literacy.
20
4.2.6 Parents’ enquiring about the teaching methods of their children’s teacher
42.3 50
40 39.344
36
32
29.411
26.229
23.5 23.5 23.5 23.5
20 20
15.3 25
18.03 13.11 13.46
16 10
8 8
3.2 3.846
Figure 9: Parents’ enquiring about the teaching methods of their children’s teacher
Communicating with the children regarding the teaching methods of the teachers is also an
essential way to improve the scores in schools. Parents with Masters Degree or above, Bachelors
and Class 12 certificates strongly agree that they do enquire about the teachers’ way of teaching
in school whether the students can comprehend the content of the subject with 13.36%,23.5%
and 50% respectively. And they do arrange tuition classes for their children to grasp more ideas.
Research demonstrates that parent involvement in children’s learning strongly correlates with
student academic achievement. Programs which engage parents in reading with their children,
providing support on homework assignments, or tutoring their child using materials and
instruction offered by their child’s teacher, were shown to be successful (Cotton, 1989) as cited
by Timkey (2015).
21
4.2. 7 Tuition classes arrangement for their children and the educational qualification of
parents.
56
40 41
33 33
29 30
28
24 25 24
23
21 20 20
17
8 7
5 5 6
4
2
0 0
Figure 11: Arrangement of tuition classes by the parents for their children and the educational
of parents.
Out of the total respondents, 56% of the respondents with parents’ having Masters Degree
strongly agree that their parents arrange tuition classes for them to learn more. And majority of
the respondents with parents having class 10 and below certificates and Bachelors degree agree
to it. This relate to the literature as parents with educational background know the importance
of education and in order to improve their children’s knowledge, they arrange tuition classes.
Most importantly to pull up their children’s grades. Majority of the respondents of parents with
no formal education disagree and strongly disagree that their parents arrange tuition classes
with 24% and 8% respectively.
22
4.3 Descriptive Statistics
Mean Std. Deviation N

Father’s Qualification 11.37 5.481 175
Mother's Qualification 7.06 6.353 175
My child's scores at school? 65.60 11.575 175
4.4 Correlations
Father’s Mother's My child's scores

Qualification Qualification at school?
Father’s Qualification Pearson
1 .401** .262**
Correlation
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000
N 175 175 175
Mother's Qualification Pearson
.401** 1 .295**
Correlation
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000
N 175 175 175
My child's scores at school? Pearson
.262** .295** 1
Correlation
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000
N 175 175 175
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).
Strength of Correlation: 1: Perfect, 0.7-0.9: Strong, 0.4-0.6: Moderate, 0.1-0.3: Weak, 0: Zero
A moderate positive correlation was found in mother’s and father’s education level with
academic scores with the Pearson correlation of 0.295 and 0.262 respectively with
significance level at 0. From the analysis of the relationship between fathers’ and mothers’
education with academic achievement, it is understandable that there is a significant
correlation between the parents’ educational background with the academic achievement of
the children. This analysis proves the hypothesis of the study and the literature which
strongly support it.
23
Limitations
 Owing to the setting of the research being conducted, it would not be practical to
generalize it to the whole population.
 The scores of the students were based on their responses and its validity is minimal.
 Due to the small sample size, it may be difficult to find significant relationships from the
data. The small sample size may not ensure an accurate representative distribution of the
population.
 As stated earlier the factors affecting the academic achievement of the children have been
restricted to only one factor which is the educational qualifications whereas many
researchers have included many factors determining children’s academic success.
24
Chapter 5: Discussion
The findings of this study confirm that the educational background of the parents do influence the
academic achievement of the students. Basically it means that when parents are literate, they adopt certain
methods to improve the educational attainment of their children. To figure it out how the highly educated
parents differ from low educated parents in terms of influencing the academic achievement of their
children, this study adopted five essential subjects. Those include 1) How much help the parents render
with their children’s homework, 2) Parents monitoring their children’s school attendance, 3) Arranging
tuition classes for the children, 4) Enquiring about the teaching methods of the teachers, and 5) Enquiring
about the jobs or professions which interest their children. As per the five subjects, parents with high
educational qualification does matter with the children’s academic achievement but the main significant
finding from this study is that, parents with no educational background even have a significant impact on
their children. This finding was important because one get to know that parents’ education is not the sole
factor in the educational success of the children. This was proven by the correlation test done in SPSS and
there was moderate correlation between the independent and dependent variables. None the less parents’
education does have a significant impact on their children’s educational attainment
25
CHAPTER 6: Recommendations
1. As there is a correlation between the parents’ education level and the academic
achievement of the children, the teachers and the concerned authorities should organize
awareness campaign about the parents to promote their involvement at home. Future
researchers should include home visits to collect data concerning parent-child
interactions. Home visits could provide future researchers ample information of students’
home lives and experiences.
2. As per the findings the parents’ educational background has a moderate relationship with
children’s academic achievement, this indicates that there are other factors strongly
affecting the children’s academic success. Therefore, this requires future researchers to
get involved in this.
3. Owing to its research setting in Thimphu, the findings cannot be comprehensive of both
rural and urban setting. There is a great opportunity for the future researchers to carry out
research incorporating the findings of urban setting and comparing it with the rural one.
4. As both the findings and the literature support the importance of parental involvement
with their children, I strongly urge the parents to be more involved and take part in their
school activities so that they feel connected and perform well in life.
26
CHAPTER 7: Conclusion
After the correlation between the parents’ level of education and the academic achievement of
the students it can be concluded that, there is a relationship between these two variables. One can
also conclude that the education level of parents does influence their children’s success in
school. The result of the two variables which examined the parents’ educational background and
the effects on students’ academic performance indicated that there was significant relationship.
This finding complements the finding from other researchers that stated that status of parents
does not only affect the academic performance of students but also make it impossible for
children from low socio-economic background to compete well with their counterpart from high
socio economic background under the same academic environment. (Adewale, A. M. (2012).
It was fortunate that the findings and the literature complemented each other really well. One
important remark that the researcher can make is that education of the parents is not the sole
factor of the children’s academic achievement.
27
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31
Appendix
Children’s Questionnaire
Dear Respondent,
You are being invited to participate in a research study titled “The Influence of Parents’
Educational Background on Academic Achievement of Government High School students in
Thimphu”. This survey is carried out as a partial fulfilment of the Post Graduate Diploma in Public
Administration course at the Royal Institute of Management, Semtokha.
The purpose of this research study is solely for academic purposes, and will take you
approximately five minutes to complete. Your participation in this study is entirely voluntary and
you can withdraw at any time. You are free to omit any question.
We believe there are no known risks associated with this research study. The identity of individual
Respondents as well as Respondent identifiable information will remain confidential, unless the
Respondent specifically requests or permits such disclosure. Your responses are completely
anonymous. The data will be reported only in the aggregate and no individual will be identified.
Thank you so much for your time.

Please tick your response for each questions and select only one response.
Respondent Details
Gender
Male Female
School _____________________ Class _________ Stream_______________

Age_________
Your father’s level of education completed:
Class X or below Bachelors
Class XII Masters or above
No formal education
32
Your mother’s level of education completed:
No formal education
Are they employed?
Full-time Not employed
Part-time Retired
How many sibling(s) do you have? _____________
In school, how much did you score in your last examination or test?
90% & above 60%-70%
80%-90% 50%-60%
70%-80% 50% or below
Directions: Please circle the number which fits perfectly with your response. The rating includes:
1. strongly disagree; 2. disagree; 3.neutral; 4. agree; 5. strongly agree.
Strongly Strongly
Disagree Neutral Agree
Disagree Agree
1 I expect to complete college. 1 2 3 4 5
My parents’ enjoy interacting with my

2 1 2 3 4 5
teachers.
It upsets my parents when I don’t get above
3 1 2 3 4 5
75%
4 Parent/teacher meetings are a waste of time. 1 2 3 4 5
33
5 My parents help me with my homework. 1 2 3 4 5

My parents’ consider monitoring my
6 homework as an important part of my 1 2 3 4 5
education.
Extra-curricular activities are more
7 1 2 3 4 5
important than getting my homework done.
I feel it’s important to be active in school
8 1 2 3 4 5
programs as well.
My parents regularly monitor my school
9 1 2 3 4 5
attendance
My parents enquire about the teaching
10 1 2 3 4 5
methods of my teachers
My parents contacts my teachers to check
11 1 2 3 4 5
my attendance
I know my parents feel that grades are
12 1 2 3 4 5
important too.
13 They reward me for good grades. 1 2 3 4 5
My parents sometimes have difficulty

14 1 2 3 4 5
helping me with my homework.
They seek assistance from my teachers
15 when they face difficulty in helping me with 1 2 3 4 5
my homework.
I think that it is the school’s responsibility to
16 see that children get their work done, not the 1 2 3 4 5
Parents’.
I think parents have a responsibility to see
17 that their children have their homework 1 2 3 4 5
done.
I feel that child’s education is very
18 1 2 3 4 5
important.
My parents arrange tuition classes for me to
19 1 2 3 4 5
learn more
My parents and I discuss things I read at
20 1 2 3 4 5
school
My parents ask about the jobs/ professions
21 1 2 3 4 5
that interest me.
My parents talk negatively about my school
22 1 2 3 4 5
in front of me.
If you have any comments please do share.
34
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
Thank you for completing the questionnaires please return it to the concerned individual.
If you have any concerns regarding this research please contact me first instance. If you are not
entirely happy with a response please contact 17360452 or mail it to dekaryeshi@gmail.com.
I would really appreciate if you could be sincere while responding the questions and thank you
so much for taking part.
35
Parents’ Questionnaire
Please tick your responses for each question and select only one response.
Respondent Details
Gender
Male Female
Age _______
Your qualification
No formal education
Your spouse’s level of education completed:
No formal education
Are you employed?
Full-time Not employed
Part-time Retired
How many children do you have? _____________
In school, my children usually scores:
90% & above 60%-70%
80%-90% 50%-60%
70%-80% 50% or below
36
Directions: Please circle the number which fits perfectly with your response. The rating includes:
1. strongly disagree; 2. disagree; 3.neutral; 4. agree; 5. strongly agree.
Strongly Strongly
Disagree Neutral Agree
Disagree Agree
1 I expect my children to complete college. 1 2 3 4 5
Communicating with my children’s teacher

2 1 2 3 4 5
is a pleasant experience.
It upsets me when my children doesn’t get
3 1 2 3 4 5
above 75%
4 Parent/teacher meetings are a waste of time. 1 2 3 4 5
5 I help my children with homework. 1 2 3 4 5
Monitoring my children’s homework is an

6 1 2 3 4 5
important part of his/her education.
Extra-curricular activities are more
7 1 2 3 4 5
important than getting homework done.
I feel it’s important for my children to be
8 1 2 3 4 5
active in school programs as well.
I regularly monitor school attendance of my
9 1 2 3 4 5
children.
I enquire about teaching methods of the
10 1 2 3 4 5
teachers.
I Contact with teachers for checking on the
11 1 2 3 4 5
attendance of my children
My children know that I feel grades are
12 1 2 3 4 5
important too.
13 I reward my children for good grades. 1 2 3 4 5
I sometimes have difficulty helping my

14 1 2 3 4 5
children with homework.
I seek assistance from my children’s teacher
15 when I face difficulty in helping my children 1 2 3 4 5
with his/her homework.
I feel it is the school’s responsibility to see
16 that children get their work done, not the 1 2 3 4 5
Parents’.
I feel parents have a responsibility to see
17 that their children have their homework 1 2 3 4 5
done.
2751,PGDPA Page 37
18 My children’s education is very important. 1 2 3 4 5
I arrange tuition classes for my children to

19 1 2 3 4 5
learn more
The time I spent with my children has
20 1 2 3 4 5
adverse effect on his/her academic success.
I discuss things my children is reading at
21 1 2 3 4 5
school
I talk with my children about the jobs/
22 1 2 3 4 5
professions that interest him/her
I talk negatively about the school in front of
23 1 2 3 4 5
my children
Parents’ literacy is important for the
24 1 2 3 4 5
upbringing of the children.
If you have any comments please do share.
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
Thank you for completing the questionnaires please return it to the concerned individual.
If you have any concerns regarding this research please contact me first instance. If you are not
entirely happy with a response please contact 17360452 or mail it to dekaryeshi@gmail.com.
I would really appreciate if you could be sincere while responding the questions and thank you so much for
taking part.
2751,PGDPA Page 38

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The Influence of Parents’ Educational Background on the Academic Achievement of the Government

High Schools Students in Thimphu.

The Influence of Parents’ Educational

Submitted by Trainee ID: 2751

(In partial fulfillment of requirements for Post Graduate Diploma in

Thank you so much everyone.

LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES

Table 1: Fathers’ qualification with children’s scores

Table 2: Mothers’ qualification with children’s scores

Figure 1: Gender of the respondents

Figure 2: Age of the respondents

Figure 3: Father’s qualification

Figure 4: Mother’s qualification

Figure 5: Students’ scores at school

Figure 6: Graph visualization of a cross tabulation of homework and likert scale.

Figure 8: Graph visualization of a cross tabulation of jobs/professions and likert scale.

4.1.5 Respondents by marks score ...................................................................................................... 16

Statement of the problem

Purpose of the study

Independent variable Dependent variable

Parents’ educational background

CHAPTER 2: Literature Review

The Influence of Parents’ Education on Parenting

Dickson, Gregg and Robinson (2013) share

children in higher quality verbal interaction, provide cognitively stimulating learning

Parental Involvement and Student Achievement

helping children in reading, encouraging them to do their homework independently, monitoring

Study area and Population

CHAPTER 4: Data Findings and Analysis

4.1 Respondents Profile

4.1.1 Respondents by gender

Fig.1: Gender of the respondents

4.1.2 Respondents by Age

The age of the respondents (students)

20 16.6 age of 18 (38.3%) followed by 17 years

Age of the respondents

Fig.2: Respondents’ age

4.1.3 Respondents by father’s qualification

From the 175 respondents, 29.7% of the

Figure 3: Fathers’ qualification and respondent

4.1.4 Respondents by Mother’s qualification

Majority of the mothers of the

No Formal Class 10 or Class 12 Bachelors Masters or

Fig.4: Mothers’ qualification.

4.1.5 Respondents by marks score

Students' scores at school

90% and above 80%-90% 70%-80% 60%-70% 50%-60% 50% or below

Fig.5: Students’ scores at school

4.2 Results and Discussion

4.2.1 Fathers’ qualification and children’s score

Class 12 5% 30% 10% 45% 5% 5%

Bachelors 0 23.52% 35.29% 29.4% 11.7% 0

Table 1: Father’s qualification versus in relation to child’s scores at school

4.2.2 Mothers’ qualification and Marks score

< class 10 1.72% 32.7% 18.9% 37.9% 6.89% 1.72%

Class 12 8.33% 33.33% 8.33% 16.66% 25.00% 8.33%

Table 2: Mother’s qualification and child’s scores at school

4.2.3 Parents’ help with their children’s homework

Class 10 or below Class 12 No formal education Bachelors Masters or above

Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly agree

Figure 6: Parents’ help with their children’s homework

4.2.4 Parents’ monitoring their children’s school attendance

Class 10 or below Class 12 No formal education Bachelors Masters or above

School _________________ Class _ Stream___________