Parental Expectations and Involvement During the Transition to Kindergarten

• In Event: Marriott Roundtable Session 26
  In Roundtable Session: Kindergarten Transition

Abstract

We assess the role that parental expectations about kindergarten readiness skills and parent-child home activities have on their child’s academic and social achievement. We examine variation in expectations and home activities during the kindergarten transition through latent profile analyses using ECLS-K parent interviews (n=12,670). LPA reveals three distinct profiles: 1) high expectations, fewest home activities; 2) lowest expectations, most home activities; 3) highest expectations, most home activities. We interpret findings that parent and family demographics predict profile membership using an ecological perspective. We also present findings on predictive relationships between profile membership and kindergarten reading and mathematics performance. This person-centered approach provides a useful framework for understanding family systems and designing outreach and interventions for families during the kindergarten transition.

Authors

• Gerilyn Slicker, University of Delaware

• Christina Areizaga Barbieri, University of Delaware

• Zachary Kendall Collier, The University of Delaware