An Investigation Of The Influence Of The Use Of Literacy Bags Upon The Parental Involvement And Children’s English Learning

This study explores the use of ‘literacy bags’(LBs) to promote parental involvement in children’s English learning. And also find out the strategies adopted by parents to support their children’s language learning during this procedure. It was conducted with a fourth-grade and fifth-grade class consisting of 20 students and their parents in elementary school. Data resources were obtained from teaching questionnaires, classroom observation, home visits, and parental interviews. Each LB contained an English language children’s picture book and CD or audiotape, along with some extension activities. Students took an LB home every Friday and parents spent time reading and doing the activities with their children. Therefore two research questions were raised based on these previous foundations. They are: What strategies are adopted by parents to support children’s English learning? How do the LBs foster parental involvement and engagement in their children’s English language development and literacy learning? The results of this study highlighted the way in which LBs encouraged, supported, and enriched book reading and literacy learning in families. This study found out the strategies adopted by parents to support their children’s language learning. This study also demonstrated that parents expanded their understanding of how a child develops a new language, and they were able to apply effective literacy strategies to engage and discuss books with their children. Reading activities promoted social interactions between parents and children, parents and teachers, and peer interactions. The project also influenced parental attitudes and perceptions of their children’s English literacy development, viewing themselves as teachers of their own children.Parental involvement in children’s language learning which has emerged as a major finding from an interpretative enquiry into their English-learning experiences. The data confirm that parents and other family members are closely involved in the study participants’ language learning, in particular, their development as competent English learners. They are indirectly involved the participants’ development as English learners as language learning advocates, language learning facilitators, and language teachers’ collaborators. Furthermore, they are directly involved in their children’s development as language learning advisors, language learning coercers, and language learning nurturers. The findings suggest language teachers to be more proactive in establishing a school-family/teacher-parent partnership in learner development programs.