A review of academic research

 The ways parent education programs shapes their children’s well- being are multifaceted and complex  We summarize the main themes from a review of the literature on two-generation programs, parental education and children’s development  We also focus on why and how CASP might help kids – these are referred to in the research literature as “processes” or “mechanisms”  We hope you come away with a better understanding of how the CASP program may benefit children

 Most research that exists on this topic is correlational, not causal  This means that the research can establish a connection between - for example - parents’ education and child outcomes (as parents get more educated, their children do better in school)  But, it can not say for certain that it is parents’ education per se that is causing the child to do better (it could be some other factor) For example: Imagine that Lena and Rhonda are both mothers of young children. Lena decides to go back to school to get her HSE and Rhonda does not. Teachers observe that Lena’s child is behaving better in class. Rhonda’s child is not. What they don’t know is that Lena is able to go back to school because her husband got a much better job and there is now a lot more money in the house. We see a connection here between education and child behavior, but it is not causal: We don’t know for sure whether it’s Lena’s education that’s making her child do better in class, or if it’s the extra money coming into the house.

 While we can’t always know for sure that it is parental education that is improving children’s well-being, we still have a lot of confidence in this research  This is because 1. There have been a large number of studies that have all found consistent results 2. When there have been experimental studies (which allow you to establish causality) they find the same thing as the correlational research

 Overall, the more years of school a mother has before having children:  the better their children perform in math and reading  the lower the chance of their children having behavioral problems  the lower the chance of their children having to repeat a grade  Going back to school once you have kids also improves kids’ educational outcomes  There is strong (causal) evidence children whose mothers go back to school (compared to those who don’t) have better cognitive development (the ability to think and understand)

 How or why does parental education improve children’s educational outcomes?  Researchers think that the skills parents develop through their own education are applied to their children’s home and learning environment  The idea is that parent education changes parenting practices which then helps children: parental education  parenting practices  better kid outcomes  In addition to fostering education, CASP may also directly target parenting practices (e.g. though family literacy workshops; improving English Language ability)

 Stimulate their children’s cognitive development:  Reading more and more often  Playing games more and more often  Use more advanced and complex speech  Provide more books and educational materials  Have higher expectations for their children’s educational attainment  Become more involved – and more effectively involved – in their child’s school and homework  More involved in school and greater knowledge of educational system  More comfortable interacting with school and teachers  Better able to help with homework and other school-related activities  All of these lead to better educational outcomes for kids

CASP participation  Adult education  College advising and support  Family literacy  Financial literacy  Social norms around educational achievement Parenting practices  Cognitive stimulation  Educational expectations for the child  Involvement in child’s schooling Children’s outcomes  Cognitive development  Reading skills  Speech development  Better grades  Better performance on standardized tests  More on-time progression through elementary grades

 Social capital involves the relationships and networks that parents develop with other people – in short, who they have to turn to for advice, support, information and resources  Parents’ social capital has been shown to effect children’s behavior and achievement  It creates a consistent set of expectations for children across different contexts  It fosters a deeper involvement with the school system (parents provide each other with information, skills and resources to navigate the school system)  It provides parents with help and resources  If CASP improves parents’ social capital and fosters new norms around educational achievement, children’s outcomes should improve

 Through increasing education and providing financial literacy workshops, CASP likely improves families’ economic security  Parents with more economic security have less stress and greater ability to pay for educational resources and services  Both of these have been found to benefit the emotional and academic development of kids

 There is increasing evidence that the quality of a parent’s job matters for children’s learning  Factors such as the amount of autonomy one has on the job, wages and work schedules, have all been found to effect how parents interact with their children  The complexity of mother’s tasks at work is associated with her children’s reading and math scores (higher complexity = higher scores)  The ultimate goal of CASP is to improve education to help parents get better jobs. CASP may also improve the quality of parents’ jobs through job training.  This should, in turn, improve children’s outcomes

 Immigrants (on average) are:  more likely to be low-income and live in under-resourced neighborhoods  less likely to participate in services and subsidies for which they are eligible  less familiar with American cultural practices and the English language  CASP could be particularly beneficial to them through:  ESOL and language supports  Increase comfortability in and understanding of American settings (including their children’s schools)  Ability to help with homework  Linking them to services they otherwise would not take-up