The Impact of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) on Parent Involvement in Selected East Tennessee Title I Schools: A Mixed Methods Study

To the teacher the prospect of the participation of parents in the educational process carries a wide range of emotions. From satisfaction to fear and loathing, the novice teacher to the teacher nearing retirement never seems to be totally satisfied with the product. The parent sees the child not quite being taught to the high expectations they desire, and the teacher sees a student that was not at a level where he should have been when he/she first received them.

This study focused on the impact of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) on parent involvement in selected East Tennessee Title I schools. This mixed methods case study included both thematic development and verification based on data obtained by both qualitative and quantitative means. The research questions posed at the beginning of this study include: (1) How has NCLB influenced the views of administrators, parents, and teachers regarding the roles of parents in schools?; (2) How has the implementation of NCLB impacted the aspects, characteristics, and components of parent involvement?; and (3) What are the reasons parents of students in East Tennessee Title I schools cite for their involvement or lack of involvement? A theoretical framework based on the work of Epstein et. al. (2002) was used to focus the study’s design, and the data collection and analysis, and the reporting of the findings.

Subsequently, the themes that were developed in this study describe the role of leadership in the school and the transmission of information. Also, parents and teachers, cite their lack of knowledge of what the NCLB Act contains about creating opportunities for parents, and the inability of schools to structure roles for parents at the school to enhance parent involvement. A third major theme was the changing culture’s impact on parenting and the realization that the society of the new millennium has caused all contributing parties to look at involvement or lack of involvement from a new perspective.