The Influence of Parental Involvement, Family Income and Learners’ Motivational Beliefs on English Learning Achievement of Primary School Students: A Structural Equation Modelling Approach
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17507/tpls.1609.24Keywords:
parental involvement, family income, motivational beliefs, self-efficacy, English language learning achievementAbstract
This study examined the influence of parental involvement, family income, and learners’ motivational beliefs on the English language learning achievement of primary school students in Thailand, utilising a structural equation modelling (SEM) approach. A total of 306 student-parent pairs from Grade 6 participated in the study. Data were collected using parent questionnaires on family income and parental involvement, student surveys on motivation and self-efficacy, and standardised measures of English achievement. The hypothesised model proposed that family income enhances parental involvement, which, in turn, influences students’ motivational beliefs and, subsequently, their English achievement. The results demonstrated a good model fit (χ² = 103.078, df = 85, p = .089; RMSEA = .026; GFI = .958), providing support for the hypothesised relationships. Family income had a significant positive effect on parental involvement (β = 0.463), while parental involvement strongly predicted students’ self-efficacy (β = 0.492) and moderately predicted motivation (β = 0.231). Both motivation (β = 0.221) and self-efficacy (β = 0.201) significantly predicted English learning achievement, whereas parental involvement did not have a direct effect on achievement. Mediation analyses argued that motivational beliefs fully mediated the effects of family and parental factors on English learning achievement. These findings highlight the critical role of learners’ psychological resources as proximal determinants of English learning outcomes. The study also underlines the importance of policies and interventions that promote parental engagement while enhancing students’ motivation and self-efficacy to sustain long-term English achievement.
References
Akamatsu, D., Nakaya, M., & Koizumi, R. (2019). Effects of Metacognitive Strategies on the Self-Regulated Learning Process: The Mediating Effects of Self-Efficacy. Behavioral Sciences, 9(12), 128. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs9120128
Al Murshidi, G., Daoud, S., Al Derei, R., Alhamidi, H., Jabir, W., & Sayed, N. (2023). Parental involvement in English as foreign language learners’ education: Challenges and solutions in a post pandemic era. International Journal of Educational Research Open, 5, 100297. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijedro.2023.100297
Andersen, S. C., Gregersen, M. K., Nielsen, H. S., & Thomsen, M. K. (2020). Parent involvement, socioeconomic status, and reading performance. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research, 65(7), 1279-1294. https://doi.org/10.1080/00313831.2020.1840429
Anguiano, R. P. V. (2004). Families and Schools: The Effect of Parental Involvement on High School Completion: The Effect of Parental Involvement on High School Completion. Journal of Family Issues, 25(1), 61-85. https://doi.org/10.1177/0192513X03256805
Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. W. H. Freeman/Times Books/Henry Holt & Co.
Bang, H. J., & Mackey, A. (2024). Chinese parents’ involvement in their young children’s app-based language learning. Language Teaching for Young Learners, 7(1), 106-130. https://doi.org/10.1075/ltyl.00052.ban
Boonk, L. M., Gijselaers, H. J. M., Ritzen, H., & Brand-Gruwel, S. (2018). A review of the relationship between parental involvement indicators and academic achievement. Educational Research Review, 24, 10-30. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.EDUREV.2018.02.001
Bourdieu, P. (1986). The forms of capital. In J. Richardson (Ed.), Handbook of theory and research for the sociology of education (pp. 241-258). Greenwood.
Bronfenbrenner, U. (1995). Developmental Ecology through Space and Time: A Future Perspective. In Examining Lives in Context: Perspectives on the Ecology of Human Development (pp. 619-648). American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/10176-018
Brown, H. D. (2014). Principles of Language Learning and Teaching (6th ed.). Pearson Education.
Chuane, Q., Shukor, S. S., Yuehong, T., & Xiaofen, Z. (2023). The relationship between motivation and English language test performance among secondary vocational schools’ students in China. Studies in English Language and Education, 10(1), 280-302. https://doi.org/10.24815/siele.v10i1.25741
Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (1985). Intrinsic Motivation and Self-Determination in Human Behavior. Plenum Press. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-2271-7
Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2000). The “What” and “Why” of Goal Pursuits: Human Needs and the Self-Determination of Behavior. Psychological Inquiry, 11(4), 227-268. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15327965PLI1104_01
Dörnyei, Z., & Ushioda, E. (2011). Teaching and Researching: Motivation (2nd ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315833750
Dörnyei, Z., & Csizér, K. (1998). Ten commandments for motivating language learners: results of an empirical study. Language Teaching Research, 2(3), 203-229. https://doi.org/10.1177/136216889800200303
Eccles, J. S., & Wigfield, A. (2002). Motivational beliefs, values, and goals. Annual Review of Psychology, 53(1), 109-132. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.53.100901.135153
Epstein, J. L. (2018). School, family, and community partnerships in teachers’ professional work. Journal of Education for Teaching, 44(3), 397-406. https://doi.org/10.1080/02607476.2018.1465669
Fan, X., & Chen, M. (2001). Parental involvement and students' academic achievement: A meta-analysis. Educational Psychology Review, 13(1), 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1009048817385
Gardner, R. C., Lalonde, R. N., & Pierson, R. (1983). The socio-educational model of second language acquisition: An investigation using LISREL causal modeling. Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 2(1), 1-15. https://doi.org/10.1177/0261927X8300200101
Gardner, R. C. (1985). Social psychology and second language learning: The role of attitude and motivation. Edward Arnold.
Harnwongsa, P., Sukying, A., & Hannapha, P. (2026). Validating the measurement model of parental involvement, motivational beliefs, and English learning achievement: An EFA and CFA approach. Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 17(1), 364-375. https://doi.org/10.17507/jltr.1701.36
Hill, N. E., & Tyson, D. F. (2009). Parental involvement in middle school: A meta-analytic assessment of the strategies that promote achievement. Developmental Psychology, 45(3), 740-763. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0015362
Hoover-Dempsey, K. V., & Sandler, H. M. (1995). Parental involvement in children’s education: Why does it make a difference? Teachers College Record, 97(2), 310-331. https://doi.org/10.1177/016146819509700202
Hoover-Dempsey, K. V., & Sandler, H. M. (1997). Why do parents become involved in their children’s education? Review of Educational Research, 67(1), 3-42. https://doi.org/10.3102/00346543067001003
Hu, L.-t., & Bentler, P. M. (1999). Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: Conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling, 6(1), 1-55. https://doi.org/10.1080/10705519909540118
Kline, R. B. (2016). Principles and practice of structural equation modeling (4th ed.). The Guilford Press.
Lareau, A. (2011). Unequal Childhoods: Class, Race, and Family Life (2nd ed.). University of California Press.
Li, X., Yang, H., Wang, H., & Jia, J. (2020). Family socioeconomic status and home-based parental involvement: A mediation analysis of parental attitudes and expectations. Children and Youth Services Review, 116, 105111. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2020.105111
Liang, C., Zhou, N., & Yu, S. (2024). Parental involvement and children’s L2 learning motivation and engagement: A person-centered approach. Language Teaching Research. https://doi.org/10.1177/13621688241279392
Mizumoto, A. (2013). Effects of self-regulated vocabulary learning process on self-efficacy. Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, 7(3), 253–265. https://doi.org/10.1080/17501229.2013.836206
Otani, M. (2020). Parental involvement and academic achievement among elementary and middle school students. Asia Pacific Education Review, 21(1), 1-25. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12564-019-09614-z
Park, G.-R., & Kim, J. (2024). Parental involvement and academic achievement of adolescents: The mediating roles of school adjustment. School Psychology International, 45(4), 447-462. https://doi.org/10.1177/01430343231207134
Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2020). Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation from a self-determination theory perspective: Definitions, theory, practices, and future directions. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 61, Article 101860. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cedpsych.2020.101860
Schunk, D. H. (1990). Goal setting and self-efficacy during self-regulated learning. Educational Psychologist, 25(1), 71-86. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15326985ep2501_6
Schunk, D. H., & DiBenedetto, M. K. (2020). Motivation and Social Cognitive Theory. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 60, Article 101832. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cedpsych.2019.101832
Sheridan, S. M., Knoche, L. L., & Boise, C. (2022). Getting Ready: A Relationship-Based Approach to Parent Engagement in Early Childhood Education Settings. In K. L. Bierman & S. M. Sheridan (Eds.), Family-School Partnerships During the Early School Years. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-74617-9_2
Sirin, S. R. (2005). Socioeconomic status and academic achievement: A meta-analytic review of research. Review of Educational Research, 75(3), 417-453. https://doi.org/10.3102/00346543075003417
Tao, J., & Xu, Y. (2022). Parental support for young learners’ online learning of English in a Chinese primary school. System, 105, 102718. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2021.102718
Usher, E. L., & Pajares, F. (2008). Self-efficacy for self-regulated learning: A validation study. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 68(3), 443-463. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013164407308475
Vadivel, B., Alam, S., Nikpoo, I., & Ajanil, B. (2023). The impact of low socioeconomic background on a child’s educational achievements. Education Research International, 2023, Article 6565088. https://doi.org/10.1155/2023/6565088
Walker, J. M. T., Wilkins, A. S., Dallaire, J. R., Sandler, H. M., & Hoover-Dempsey, K. V. (2005). Parental involvement: Model revision through scale development. The Elementary School Journal, 106(2), 85-104. https://doi.org/10.1086/499193
Wang, C., Kim, D. H., Bong, M., & Ahn, H. S. (2013). Examining measurement properties of an English Self-Efficacy scale for English language learners in Korea. International Journal of Educational Research, 59, 24-34. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijer.2013.02.004
Williams, K., Swift, J., Williams, H., & Van Daal, V. (2017). Raising children’s self-efficacy through parental involvement in homework. Educational Research, 59(3), 316-334. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131881.2017.1344558
Ye, W., Ye, Y., & Wu, M. (2024). More time or more money? A longitudinal examination of parental involvement in shaping academic success of China’s left-behind children from 2010 to 2020. Children and Youth Services Review, 166, 107983. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2024.107983
Zhang, F., Jiang, Y., Ming, H., Ren, Y., Wang, L., & Huang, S. (2020). Family socioeconomic status and children’s academic achievement: The different roles of parental academic involvement and subjective social mobility. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 90(2), 256-272. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjep.12374
Zhang, S. Z., Inoue, T., Cao, G., Li, L., & Georgiou, G. K. (2023). Unpacking the Effects of Parents on Their Children’s Emergent Literacy Skills and Word Reading: Evidence from Urban and Rural Settings in China. Scientific Studies of Reading, 27(4), 355-374. https://doi.org/10.1080/10888438.2023.2169147
Zimmerman, B. J. (2000). Attaining self-regulation: A social cognitive perspective. In M. Boekaerts, P. R. Pintrich, & M. Zeidner (Eds.), Handbook of self-regulation (pp. 13-39). Academic Press. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-012109890-2/50031-7
Zulfa, V., & Zahidah, A. N. (2023). Analysis of student motivation of English learning as a second language. International Education Trend Issues, 1(3), 165-170. https://doi.org/10.56442/ieti.v1i3.202