Home Elements for a Diagnosis of the Spanish Educational System
6 - Family and school (continued)


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How families face their children's education

The study concentrated on the attitudes, opinions and valuations of Spanish families as to their children’s education. The panorama arising from the results of the survey is certainly optimistic. However, one must take a certain amount of care as to evaluation of the data, in which there is a mixture of reality and good wishes, logical, understandable bias in parents’ opinion of their offspring.


HOW CHILDREN’S EDUCATION IS PROGRESSING

Indeed, 70% of parents believe their children are doing well or very well in their studies in comparison with other children of their age; 57% answered that their children are motivated (always or frequently) to study; 76% of fathers and 83% of mothers are satisfied with their relation with their children as to their studies; 70% of the fathers and 71% of mothers are satisfied with their children’s academic performance.

The assessment of their children’s academic progress is high: a quarter consider it "very good", almost half "good", somewhat less "regular" and only 6% "bad". This situation is a contrast with the results of other surveys, as almost half of Spanish youths recognise that one of the most frequent reasons for conflict with their parents is precisely the matter of their studies, what suggests that approximately half of Spanish parents with children of those ages have reasons to be unsatisfied.

According to their parents, girls obtain better academic results than boys, which coincides with the data from other research related to the age band researched. On the other hand, the greater the social and cultural level of parents, the better their perception of their children’s studies. To sum up, in the same vein, the greater availability of books at home has a motivating effect on children’s curiosity (graph 5 and table 6).



Graph 5: How parents consider their child’s academic progress (by educational and professional level)



Table 6: How parents consider their child’s academic progress
(by number of books at home)
 
0 to 25 26 to 100 101 to 200 > 200
Very good
Good
Regular
Bad / very bad
11%
35%
44%
11%
18%
49%
26%
7%
25%
47%
23%
6%
31%
44%
19%
5%
Source: Family-School Questionnaire. INCE 1997.



STUDENT MOTIVATION

Student motivation is a relevant factor in the process of education. The problem of students lacking motivation isa concern in all countries, without our own being an exception, as shown by diverse research into the matter. Such a positive viewpoint provided by the parents is thus surprising, if one considers the answers to the questionnaire on the matter. Indeed, only 5% of parents assume that their children lack motivation and 39% consider this is "sometimes" so, while 56% state that their children are "always" or "frequently" motivated. Girls seem to be more motivated than boys. In families with father, mother and children the degree of motivation is greater (58% compared with other models) and, indeed, the cultural level of the parents has a positive effect on the children’s motivation.




RELATIONSHIP WITH CHILDREN AS TO EDUCATION

The degree of satisfaction of parents, as to the educational relation they have with their children and the performance of the latter in their studies, is fairly high (table 7). However, this valuation contrasts with the opinion the parents themselves spend studying outside school. Indeed, 75% of boys and 60% of girls spend less than ten hours a week studying. Moreover, private school students spend more time studying than state school ones and children from families with a higher social and cultural position also spend more time studying, especially those whose parents have very qualified higher educational and vocational standard.



Table 7: Parents who declare they are "very" or "fairly" satisfied as to their educational relationship and their children’s academic performance
 
Mother Father
Parent/Child educational relationship
Children’s academic performance
83%
71%
76%
70%
Source: Family-School Questionnaire. INCE 1997.


As to the educational responsibility within the family, the opinion of the parents consulted is almost unanimous in considering it is shared by mother and father. There is a significant fact that the mother always assumes the educational responsibilities, however the educational level, a circumstance that does not arise in the case of the father (table 8).



Table 8: Who takes the educational responsibility for the children by parent’s level of education
 
Total Primary
or less
Secondary Higher
Father
Mother
Both
Another person
4%
21%
75%
1%
3%
24%
72%
1%
25%
4%
79%
--
4%
15%
80%
--
Source: Family-School Questionnaire. INCE 1997.


The majority of the parents (71%) consider that education is a responsibility that must be shared equally with the school. 25% grant greater responsibility to the family and 4% to the school.




HELPING CHILDREN TO STUDY

53% of father and 60% of mothers personally help their children to do their homework. Private support, by a teacher or equivalent is acknowledged by a third of families. In one case and the other parents with a greater educational and professional level seem to provide more support for their children’s education, which confirms the influence of the cultural and economic context on academic performance.

The family educational strategy is characterised by consistent help and by monitoring of their children’s studies. The help takes shape in three usual practices, which may be expressed thus by order of frequency: 97% of parents provide their offspring materials and resources, 92% encourage them to continue to study after obligatory education and 91% encourage them to be constant in their studies. The availability of Spanish parents seems to be unanimous, to the extent that differences as to municipality and school, region of residence, education and profession seem to have a scarcely noticeable influence.

To sum up, the educational potential of the Spanish family may be classified as most positive. The high level of expectation as to their children’s education is thus not unrelated to this. The study shows, in this aspect, that 73% of parents wish their children to obtain a university degree.




CHECKING AND MONITORING THE CHILDREN

Checking and monitoring children’s studies receives very serious attention and dedication by the parents (table 9). Families whose children study at private schools, above all if religious, tend to have a greater control and monitoring. In general terms, however, the majority of parents tend to let their children organise their studies and homework themselves: 77% "always" does this, 17% "fairly frequently" and 7% "sometimes" or "never".



Table 9: Parents who check and monitor their children’s studies "fairly often" and "always"
 
Fairly often Always
Check their studies
Check their homework
Monitor class attendance
Monitor learning progress
32%
29%
10%
21%
48%
40%
76%
67%
Source: Family-School Questionnaire. INCE 1997.


There are undoubtably no lack of conflicts arising from all exercise of control, in educational relationships between parents and children. The solutions are preferably reached through dialogue (table 10). Imposition of paternal criteria is less popular and a third alternative, imposition of the children’s own criteria, even less so.



Table 10: Frequency ("always" or "frequently") for the different family solutions to conflict in the studies
Solutions Total State schools Lay schools Religious schools
Dialogue and joint search for a solution 81% 80% 85% 85%
Parents set the criteria 48% 47% 45% 48%
Children set the criteria 35% 38% 30% 26%
Source: Family-School Questionnaire. INCE 1997.



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