Parents as Partners Not Pesters

Résumé du livre

Parental involvement in the life of a college student has often been stereotyped as negative, overbearing, and unnecessary. These stereotypes have depicted parents as helicopters, and more recently as stealth fighters. Consequently, higher education has often maintained an adversarial relationship when interacting with parents of college students. Despite this tension, research indicates that parents provide a unique perspective and resourcefulness that can aid in student success, when engaged and managed appropriately. This study explored one way in which an institution partnered with parents of new students for the mutual goal of student success using a closed Facebook group. Guided by Hoover-Dempsey & Sandler's Parental Involvement Framework (1995), this qualitative investigation implemented document analysis and semi-structured one-on-one interviews to examine the lived experiences of individuals who participated in a Facebook group for parents of new, first-year students attending a single university. The data revealed that when parents were engaged by the institution, several impactful outcomes occurred: students experienced common first-year challenges; participants supported each other using their own personal experiences; the group contributed to parents' understanding of college transition and campus resources; and members appreciated the convenience and accessibility of a Facebook-based group. Each of these outcomes were found to be advantageous toward the goal of new student retention facilitated by parental support. Finally, this study provided a counter narrative that highlighted the strengths and opportunities of parental involvement when appropriately managed and engaged. The findings of this study also revealed that additional research is needed to enhance and inform higher education's understanding of parental involvement in the life of modern-day college students, along with the tools that enhance and facilitate engagement.