Parent and Teacher Perceptions About What Leads to Mastery in Reading at Classical Charter Schools in Texas

Abstract

Throughout the United States and in the State of Texas there are high percentages of students who are not reading at grade level. This study looked at the activities done at home by families of students who scored above grade level on the Third Grade Reading STAAR from classical charter schools. In this quantitative study, a survey was given to the parents of fourth-grade students and the teachers of elementary students. The families used in the study were from classical charter schools located in Texas. The literature review discusses the curriculum used in classical schools and how reading is taught. In addition to parents of fourth-grade students being surveyed elementary school teachers at three classical charter school in Texas were surveyed. The study was seeking to discover activities linked to high reading scores but also to find if teachers were aware of activities parents of struggling readers could do at home to improve reading skills. The study found that parents of students scoring above grade level were highly involved in reading with their children, speaking with them often, and modeling an enjoying for reading. Teachers reported support for doing many activities related to reading and talking with the child. The survey found a vast majority of teachers reporting sharing reading strategies with parents. Interestingly, an equally large percentage of parents reported that teachers had not shared reading strategies with them