Income of Parents and Children Education Outcomes - Literature review Example

ASSIGNMENT ONE By Name Course Instructor Institution City/State Date Summary and Critical Evaluation 1.0 Introduction Recently, most studies have focused on the relationship between parent children’s education and their parent’s income disadvantage. Basically, increasing education may result in enhancement of later life outcomes like wealth, productivity and health. Arguably, the level of the parental educational level is a crucial predictor of children’s educational as well as behavioural outcomes. In this paper, Wightmana and Danziger (2014) and Chiapa et al. (2012) studies are summarised and evaluated in terms of approaches to research, research methods uses, ethical considerations involved in these studies, and analysis of e childhood educational. As argued by Chiapa et al. (2012, p.778) investing on the human capital is can facilitate in reduction of poverty, but still, lack of ability to aspire, has made the poor to underinvestment in education of their children. The argument is echoed by Wightmana and Danziger (2014, p.68) who asserts that parent income is associated with their children education outcomes. 2.0 Overview of Both Articles Wightmana and Danziger (2014) in their study argue that children brought up by poor families are inclined to score lower in cognitive tests and spend fewer years in schooling as compared to those from non-poor households. In the study, the authors’ data is got from three generations of participants with the intention of analysing the existing relationship between intergenerational young adult outcomes as well as socio-economic mobility. Particularly, the author examine whether childhood conditions of the parents are related to their children educational attainment. Furthermore, the author intends to prove that the different paths resulting in similar socio-economic position can impact the children outcomes’ differentially, especially those brought up under the same circumstances. The authors established that parents’ adolescent conditions together with that of young adults have an effect on the household environment, and to some extent educational attainment of their children. Imperatively, this connection is prevalent amongst the low-income households. According to the authors, when a family is exposed to neighbourhood poverty for two successive generations, the child cognitive ability is reduced by almost 50 per cent. In their investigation about the role played by changes in the status of income amongst young adults coming from the poor households between two generations, the authors noted some differences in both educational outcomes as well as household environment between for individuals brought up by parents who were raised in high income homes and poor families. On the other hand, Chiapa et al. (2012) investigated the impact of social program on poor parents’ educational aspirations for their children. Besides that, the authors’ investigate the significance of having a close relationship with educated professionals as a possible means of improving such aspirations. Citing a number of studies, the authors argue that education is an effective tool for reducing poverty considering that poverty generate constrains that affect the interest and attitudes of people towards education. In their study, the authors examine the impact of Mexican antipoverty program (PROGRESA) on educational aspirations by poor parents for their children and also whether such aspirations may be improved because of exposure persons having higher economic status and education level as compared to theirs. According to the authors, being exposed to highly educated professionals may facilitate the flows of information, which can enable parents to become conversant with education opportunities for their children. Therefore, the study is associated with the theoretical works that seek to find why economic status and exposure to a professional is important for increasing education aspirations as well as reducing poverty. Chiapa et al. (2012) is established that poverty affects how people make decisions as well as the way they think. In consequence, it leaves poor people with limited aspirations, which force them to underinvest in their children education; thus, creating a poverty trap, which is self-sustaining. Such shortcomings can be lessened if the poor education aspirations are increased by means of various channel(s) such as PROGRESA. The authors established that there was a relationship between parental aspirations for education attainment and exposure to individuals with high education level. According to the authors, parents’ educational aspirations is associated positively with the time spent by their children doing schooling activities such as homework, but it is negatively associated with the time their children spend working. 3.0 Methodology and Ethical Considerations In order to examine the existing relationship between various mobility experiences as well as young adults’ individual attributes and household environment, Wightmana and Danziger (2014) used information from the Child Development Supplement (CDS) as well as data from Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID) participants. The study uses a quantitative research method. The PSID interviews were carried out between 1968 and 1997 in nearly 5000 respondent households. The PSID interviews focussed mainly on income and employment experiences of the households while the CDS surveyed children aged below 12 years living in different households. The CDS survey focussed on children cognitive development and behaviour, their family relationships as well as the surrounding (school and neighbourhood) environments. The PSID interviews and CDS survey offered information about the parent generation and their children generation. There are a number of ethical considerations in the study; first, the authors have provided honesty report data PSID interviews and CDS survey, results, procedures and methods; secondly, there is objectivity since the authors have avoided bias in the research design, data analysis as well as interpretation. To examine the effect of PROGRESA on the poor educational aspirations and how such aspirations can be increased through exposure to educated professionals, Chiapa et al. (2012) used PROGRESA information from three periods. The study uses a quantitative research technique. The study used data from four survey rounds, whereby the first two rounds were based on baseline surveys while the other two rounds were conducted after PROGRESA started offering benefits to the entitled households. The author’s used 8106 households that had data on education aspirations so as to identify the effect of PROGRESA on educational aspirations. Some of ethical consideration evident in the study includes; social responsibility since the study intends to promote social good as well as prevent social harm, particularly poverty through research. Besides that, there is responsible mentoring where readers are educated about various issues affecting poor households. Critical Evaluation Even though Wightmana and Danziger (2014) and Chiapa et al. (2012) studies have different research objectives, they both focus on education and low-income households. Still both studies can be linked to 'positivist' approach because they use scientific evidence, like statistics and experiments to show how poverty is related to education aspirations. Chiapa et al. (2012) study is more towards randomised controlled trial (RCT) because the people studied were randomly allocated different treatments while Wightman and Danziger (2011) study only compares four types of families; therefore it is more of a comparison of sub-groups, AND NOT RCT. According to Wightmana and Danziger (2014) if parents were raised in low-income households there is high chance that their children will not finish high school education or join college. This is echoed by Chiapa et al. (2012) who argue that people from poor neighbourhoods get lower socioeconomic outcomes and education attainment levels is lower as compared to those from more affluent neighbourhoods. Such arguments are supported in other studies such as Smith (2006, p.44) who argue that academic success is much higher amongst upper- and middle-class parents as compared to low-income families. Therefore, Smith (2006, p.54) suggests that educators, especially those who serve low-income populations have to look for ways to provide services to their students’ families; thus, enabling parents to get involved in their children academic activities. Even though both studies provide evidence of the existing relationship between education attainment/aspiration and low-SES, they have failed to provide sustainable measure that can help alleviate this situation. According to both studies, children education is affected by socioeconomic status as well as educational background of their parents. This is supported by Kainuwa and Yusuf (2013, p.2) who argues that children education is affected by the parents’ education level, occupation as well as social status within the community. Family background as argued by Wightmana and Danziger (2014) can influence the life-course trajectories of children in different ways, but Chiapa et al. (2012) suggests that economic resources such as parental income may offer access to improved education opportunities. This is supported by Wightman and Danziger (2011, p.5) who argue that low income results in high parental stress as well as changeable parenting that are related to various impediments such as behavioural problems, which create obstacles to education attainment. Wightmana and Danziger (2014) arguments that parent education achievement have effect on the child education attainment has been supported by Dubow et al. (2009) Longitudinal Study. Dubow et al. (2009, p.235) established that parental education have an effect on their children’s aspirations as well as education accomplishment in college or university. With regard to Chiapa et al. (2012) study, there are no studies that support their argument that exposure to people with higher education and economic status can help increase education aspiration amongst poor people and can also reduce poverty. But Ermisch and Pronzato (2010, p.12) holds the view that, parent’s educational accomplishments have an enormous impact on their incomes, and this can consequently affect their children’s aspirations. All in all, both studies have successfully shown how poverty and education aspiration are related. 4.0 Conclusion In conclusion, both studies agree that young adults who are raised by disadvantaged families are not likely to finish their education. Parents’ education attainments have an effect on their children education aspirations. Both studies focus on how poverty negatively affects attainment of education, but this can be solved through parent involvement in their children education, exposure to individuals with high education level, and so forth. References Chiapa, C., Garrido, J.L. & Prina, S., 2012. The effect of social programs and exposure to professionals on the educational aspirations of the poor. Economics of Education Review, vol. 31, pp.778– 798. Dubow, E.F., Boxer, P. & Huesmann, L.R., 2009. Long-term Effects of Parents’ Education on Children’s Educational and Occupational Success: Mediation by Family Interactions, Child Aggression, and Teenage Aspirations. Merrill Palmer Q (Wayne State Univ Press), vol. 55, no. 3, pp.224–49. Ermisch, J. & Pronzato, C., 2010. Causal Effects of Parents' Education on Children's Education. Working Paper. Norway, Oslo: Institute for Social and Economic Research. Kainuwa, A. & Yusuf, N.B.M., 2013. Influence of Socio-Economic and Educational Background of Parents on their Children’s Education in Nigeria. International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications, vol. 3, pp.1-8. Smith, J.G., 2006. Parental Involvement in Education Among Low-Income Families: A Case Study. The School Community Journal, vol. 19, no. 1, pp.43-56. Wightmana, P. & Danziger, S., 2014. Multi-generational income disadvantage and the educational attainment of young adults. Research in Social Stratification and Mobility, vol. 35, pp.53–69. Wightman, P. & Danziger, S., 2011. Poverty, Intergenerational Mobility and Young Adult Educational Attainment. Working Paper. Michigan: Network on Transitions to Adulthood Research Network University of Michigan. Read More