Impact of Mothers Age on Academic Performance of Children - Research Paper Example

? Impact of Mother’s Age on Academic Performance of Children Impact of Mother’s Age on Academic Performance of Children Introduction General purpose The parenting age remains a question of debates on whether it should be done at an early age or at a later age. Many theories have been formulated in favour of child bearing among mothers at a later age. Some of the reasons that support late child bearing include emotional preparedness of mothers. It usually comes at a time when one has gathered sufficient knowledge and wisdom which they do not have at an early age. Kaye (1980) argues that the late parenting age presents the best time to put into practice what has been gained over time. In their book Gordon & Hiroto (1989) come to understanding that women always need a lot of emotional as well as psychological preparedness compared to men, thus, they would prefer to give birth at a later age when they feel ‘equipped’ to do so. This usually happens at a later age in life. These and other factors will form the general purpose of this study. Specific Purpose According to Charles & Robert (1986) there are many factors that affect the academic performance of children at different levels of schooling. They are nutritional values, the influence of peers, the level of mental and physical health, socioeconomics, and the parental influence among others. It is evident that the parental influence plays a major role in predicting the academic performance of children. Through their inspiration and contribution, parents are able to impact the academic excellence of their children greatly. It is obvious that the age of mothers has a significant influence on the academic performance of their children as well. It is argued that older mothers are more experienced in terms of taking care of their children. Older mothers concentrate on the basic needs of their children as opposed to luxuries which is a common phenomenon with young mothers. However, some researchers have diverged from this view. They argue that older mothers may have learnt through older systems and syllabuses which may not be operational at the onset of their children’s academic life. Thus, they will not be able to assist in the academic work of their children. The yearning to find out whether the age of mothers affect the academic performance of their children forms the main and specific purpose of this study. Literature Review In their work in the Journal of Educational Psychology Sin-Sze Cheung & Pomerantz (2012) state the parental involvement in children’s learning predicts their motivation at school over a period of time. They argue that children who are motivated by their parents are more likely to be involved in things that will prevent punishment from their parents and are inclined to carry on with the activities that will bring children rewards from parents. According to Zielinsky & John (2009), the involvement of parents outlines the academic achievement of their children by stimulating not only autonomous reasons, but also parent-oriented reasons which are important for maintaining their children’s commitment at school as well as enhancing their academic performance. Allen & Aber (1987) on his part distinguishes a parent- oriented motivation and an autonomous motivation at school. He concludes that parents’ involvement in the studies of their children can enhance their academic performance and achievement if they heighten their parent-oriented reasons for a good performance at school. Gottfried et al. (2009) argue that poverty has a significant effect on the performance of children. Many children who struggle to acquire necessary resources for their studies do not necessarily attain high academic qualifications. They argue that children from low economic status families usually score below average in class and, therefore, achieve a lower high school Grade Point Average (GPA). This will greatly affect their admission into colleges. The government can help such students by providing them with the necessary assistance to be able to achieve high performance. However, Hofer (1984) revealed that some mothers would wish to have children at an early age due to the problems with their health conditions and due to the time term they would be able to spend living long enough to witness their children growing to maturity. Hypothesis  The following hypothesis will be tested to achieve the objectives of this study: When women have children at an older age, their children possess higher academic motivation. Children born by older mothers tend to attain good Grade Point Average (GPA) in high school. When women have children at an older age, their children achieve better Grade Point Average (GPA) in college. Method Participants For the purpose of this study 64 participants were interviewed by the use of questionnaire. Out of the total number, 30 were women who had their first children at the age of 37 and above. 20 participants were women who had their first children at the age of 35 and below. 7 were men who had their first born at the age of 40 and above. The remaining 7 respondents were men who had their first children at the age of 30 and below. The participants were mainly taken from large international organizations as well as non-governmental organizations. After the purpose of this study was explained to them, they fully understood its importance and were willing to fill in the questionnaire forms without any compensation. None of the participants who were asked dropped out of the study. This was due to the fact that the purpose of the study was well-elaborated and they were eager to take part in it. Measures The means of data collection used is a questionnaire method. It is chosen because it provides a cost effective and more convenient means of data collection. The target groups are also predicted to be very familiar with the questionnaire, and, therefore, they feel apprehensive. The method turns out to give the true picture in the field. The questionnaire is aimed to measure the effect of mother’s age on the academic performance of their children. This measurement was found to be more reliable than other forms of data collection and analysis. This is because the results obtained from the field can easily be analyzed scientifically. A sample of the questionnaire that is designed for this study has been attached below. Procedure The participants were presented with a set of questions to which they were to give their honest answers. The questions were well formulated and precise so that the respondents might not provide vague responses as well as might not spend a lot of time answering the questions. This assisted in ensuring that no participant would withdraw from the study due to long questions requiring too much time to complete the form. It took 10 minutes for each participant to cope with the questions after which the data was analyzed scientifically through the use of computer based statistics analysis programs. This experiment was conducted in Nairobi Kenya among the expatriates in the international organizations and non-governmental organizations. The whole study took one day to collect the data and another day to conduct and present the analysis. Results Result 1 90 percent of women above 40 admit that they consider giving birth at an older age better as it results in higher academically motivated children. 60 percent of women aged between 19 and 29 agree that mothers who give birth at an older age have their children greatly academically motivated. 80 percent of women aged between 30 and 39 admit that giving birth at a later age results in a high academic motivation of children. 85 percent of the male above 40 admit that they consider giving birth at an older age as a positive impact on the academic motivation of children. 55 percent of the male aged between 19 and 29 agree that mothers’ age at the time of giving birth greatly affects their children’s academic motivation in a positive way. 78 percent of the male aged between 30 and 39 admit that giving birth at an older age results in a high academic motivation of children progressively. Result 2 91 percent of the female above 40 admit that they consider giving birth at an older age, which results in a good high school GPA. 70 percent of the female aged between 19 and 29 agree that mothers who give birth at an older age always have their children attaining an excellent high school GPA. 86 percent of the female aged between 30 and 39 admit that giving birth at a later age results in children getting a good high school GPA. 82 percent of the male above 40 testify that they consider giving birth at an older age a key component for a better high school GPA. 60 percent of the male aged between 19 and 29 agree that those mothers who give birth late in their life have children who attain a good GPA in high schools. 80 percent of the male aged between 30 and 39 admit that giving birth at an older age results in extraordinary high school GPA scores. Result 3 91 percent of the female above 40 say that they consider giving birth at an older age, which results in a good college school GPA. 70 percent of the female aged between 19 and 29 agree that mothers who give birth at an older age always have their children attaining an excellent college school GPA. 86 percent of the female aged between 30 and 39 admit that giving birth at a later age results in children getting a good college school GPA. 82 percent of the male above 40 show that they consider giving birth at an older age a key component to a better GPA in college. 60 percent of the male aged between 19 and 29 agree that those mothers who give birth late in life have children who attain a good GPA in college. 80 percent of the male aged between 30 and 39 admit that giving birth at an older age results in extraordinary college school GPA scores. Discussion From the results, it emerges that mothers who give birth at an older age bear children who are highly motivated academically. This is because the mothers have adequate time to advise their children accordingly and to monitor their academic progress. Young mothers are so occupied with other activities such as pursuing their career at the expense of careful observing the academic progress of their children. A good high school GPA requires an adequate care and concern about the academic work of children by their parents. From this research it is evident that children born by older mothers usually attain a good high school GPA. A college GPA heavily relies on the performance in high school. Therefore, it is expected that children who have already attained a good high school GPA will achieve the same in college. Implications of Findings These findings prove that mothers who have children at an older age are able to ensure that their children turn out great achievers in academics. However, this study did not seek to establish if mothers should be encouraged to give birth at a later age in life. For there are many factors that made those mothers to give birth at those late ages. Limitations of Study This study was limited by the number of participants as well as societal factors that are not related with the variables. These factors limited the accuracy of the results. Future Directions The current situation depicts that there is a rise in the number of women giving birth at an older age. However, some researchers have expressed their reservation as for this trend claiming that it portrays doom to the human generation. They cite genealogical factors which show the old parents in a negative manner. Summary of Main Finding It was established that many mothers feel that at late age they have already excelled in some areas of their lives, for example, their career. Therefore, they will be in a position to devote their time as well as their energy to their children to monitor every step of their growth and development closely. Finally, the research found out that at a later age, mothers are in a position to enjoy greater financial security and, therefore, are able to sufficiently meet the financial needs of their growing children. These factors explain why a great academic progress is a common phenomenon among children born by older mothers. References Gottfried, A.E., Marcoulides, G.A., Gottfried, A.W., Oliver P.H. (2009).A latent curve model of parental motivational practices and developmental decline in math and science academic intrinsic motivation. Journal of Educational Psychology, 101 (3), 729-739. Sin-Sze Cheung, C.& Pomerantz, E.M. (2012). Why does parents’ involvement enhance children’s achievement? The role of parent-oriented motivation. Journal of Education Psychology, 104 (3), 820-832 Charles, R. H., & Robert, C. T. (1986). Improving the delivery of prenatal care and outcomes of pregnancy. A Randomized Trial of Nurse Home Visitation, Pediatrics, 77 (1), 16-27. Gordon, D. D., & Hiroto, D. M. (1989). Observations of interactions of depressed women with their children. American Journal of Psychiatry, 146, 50-55. Hofer, W. K. (1984). Relationships as regulators. Psychosomatic Medicine, 46, 183-197. Allen, J.P., & Aber, J.L. (1987).Effects of maltreatment on young children’s socioemotional development: An attachment theory perspective. Developmental Psychology, 23 (3), 406-414. Kaye, K. M. (1980). The infant as a projective stimulus. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 50, 732-736. Zielinsky, D. S., & John, E. N. (2009). Nurse Home Visitation and the Prevention of Child Maltreatment. Impact on the Timing of Official Reports. Development and Psychopathology, 21, 441-453. QUESSTIONNAIRE QUESTIONS INVESTIGATING THE IMPACT OF MOTHER’S AGE ON ACADEMIC MOTIVATION, HIGH SCHOOL GPA AND COLLEGE GPA. Kindly respond to the following questions appropriately. Your feedback will be used in the analysis of this research paper. Thank you. 1. Which sex do you belong? Male Female 2. At what age bracket did you have your first child? 19-29 Years 30-39 Years Above 40 years 3. Has your delivery age affected the academic motivation of your first born child positively? Briefly explain your answer. Yes No 4. Has your delivery age affected the high school GPA of your first born child in a positive manner? Briefly explain your answer. Yes No 5. Has your delivery age affected the college GPA of your first born child positively? Briefly explain your answer Yes No 6. In your own opinion, do you think mother’s age has a considerable influence on academic achievement of their children? Briefly explain. Yes No Read More