Home Background Factors Related to Academic Success

Subject: what are the school and the home background factors that are related to academic success? Academic success can be defined as excellence in all academic disciplines in class as well as extracurricular activities. It includes excellence in sporting, behavior, confidence, communication skills, assertiveness, arts, culture… But to fulfill academic success, different factors must be achieved. What are these factors? From birth to age eighteen, children spend just a fraction of their lives in school.

Therefore, it is not surprising that many factors outside the school environment can significantly influence students’ prospects for academic success in school. That’s why home background is considered one of the important factors related to academic success. First, parents’ beliefs, expectations and attitudes about education have a profound impact on student’s conceptions of the significance of education in their lives. What parents think about the importance of doing well in school is often mirrored in student results.

In other words, if the parents were educated they know the consequences of education in the life; that’s why they encourage their children to study. A study by Metropolitan Life Insurance Company found that nearly all students (98%) who earned A’s and B’s on their report cards reported that their parents encouraged them to do well in school. Among students who earned mostly C’s said they received little parental encouragement.

Second, why children succeed or fail in school is related to the mother’s level of education which is one of the most important factors influencing children’s reading levels and other school achievements; therefore, quality of maternal care is one of the factors helping students to achieve academic success. Third, a relatively large family appeared to be not impediment to the educational achievements of middle-class children, but for those with less privileged home circumstances a small family was an essential ingredient for academic success.

In small families, parents have more resources to devote to their children and can more easily find time to spend with them and to encourage them. When the family have lots of children, finding time to read to the child, to encourage him to complete his homework or to participate in school functions, become more difficult. Forth, many children grow up in homes with an abundance of fiscal and material resources; but not all do.

Poverty takes a toll on students’ performance. Poor children are twice as likely as their more affluent counterparts to repeat a grade; to be suspended, expelled, or drop out of high school. In sum, children from more economically affluent home circumstances have a leg up in many areas in life, including education. Finally, for most students, school creates an important community setting a safe place where time structure and friends are present.

Families and neighborhoods complete a student’s community and consciously connecting schools, families and neighborhoods offer significant advantages for students, particularly those at academic risk. The broad stroke issues that can influence performance in school includes therefore parenting. Other things that may influence academic success include motivational and well-trained teachers. Teachers can make students either interested or not in the material to be learned.

For example, in this digital age, teachers can use computers to individualize learning so that lessons can cater to the different skill levels of each child. Gone are the days of simple worksheets and book work; teachers should encourage their students somehow to have excellent results. In addition, teachers should be well-organized and patient: they should repeat lessons and answer all students’ questions. Moreover, teachers should find interactive learning activities which can integrate into the classroom to help them present more information in a dynamic way.

In conclusion, schools do not exist in a vacuum. A host of factors contribute to students’ prospects for academic success and there are many theories as to what will increase the academic success of the child. Some students come to school with all they need: stable and supportive families, adequate financial resources and good surrounding. For students who do not enjoy these advantages, teachers can help them meet outside-of-school challenges and can provide the boost they need to succeed.