Chapter 3
Parents' primary reasons for participating in Even Start indicate both the parents' assessment of their needs for Even Start services and their goals for participation. The reasons also provide information about the types of services that the projects need to provide in order to maximize retention.
Fifty-six percent of new parents enrolling in 1996-97 cited educational advancement through Even Start adult education as their primary reason for enrolling in the program (Exhibit 3.21).
Exhibit 3.21: Percent of Parents, by Primary Reason for Participation and Parent Age: 1996-97 New Enrollees
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Exhibit reads: 56 percent of parents who enrolled in Even Start in 1996-97 stated their main reason for enrolling in Even Start was to improve their literacy skills and/or to further their education. Sixty-eight percent of teen parents cited this reason compared to 51 percent of parents 40 years or older. |
The next most common reason, although much less frequent than the first, was a desire to improve their children's early childhood education opportunities (19 percent) and their own parenting skills (14 percent).50 Eleven percent reported reasons such as improving employability (5 percent) and general self improvement (6 percent) as their primary reasons. This response pattern has been consistent for three years. Exhibit 3.21 also shows the primary reasons for enrollment given by parents of different age groups. Teen parents were more likely to emphasize adult education goals and less likely to stress early childhood education goals than were older parents.
It should be noted that the intake questionnaire asked parents to state the single most important reason for enrolling. Many parents who checked "Other" indicated that they had multiple reasons for enrolling, and many of the written answers were combinations of several reasons listed in the data collection instrument. Even then, the fact that adult education dominates parents' reasons for enrollment adds more challenges for projects: to maintain the balance of emphasizing the importance of all core service areas and to continue the efforts to integrate activities across the service areas.
Footnotes:
50. The enrollment reason related to adult education was based on combining two responses: "To further my education, to get a GED," and "To learn English." The reason related to early childhood education represents two responses: "To get my child into an infant/toddler/preschool program" and "To improve my child's chance of future school success." The reason related to parenting education represents two responses: "To become a better parent" and "To become a better teacher of my child." The reason related to self improvement represents two responses: "To improve my chances of getting a job" and "To generally improve myself."
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 [Part 6: Who Are the Neediest of Even Start Families?] |
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 [Part 8: What Are the Needs of Even Start Families?: A Review] |