Nigel Bagnall

The role of invitations to parents in the completion of a child’s home reading challenge

Abstract The role parents can play in supporting early reading attainment is well documented. There is still, however, a need to understand what motivates parents to become involved in reading at home with their child. Past research, based upon correlational studies, has mixed findings regarding the influence of the teacher and the child on parents’ motivation at home. Through two quasi-experiments, the present study explored the influence of teacher invitations in Kindergarten classes, and child invitations in Grade 2 classes on completion rates of a home reading challenge. The completion of the home reading among families was investigated across two metropolitan schools in Sydney, Australia. Both of the interventions resulted in significantly higher completion rates compared to control groups (teacher invitations: d = .68; child invitations: d = .73). This paper adds to existing research by providing a clearer picture of the cause-and-effect relationship between schools’ use of invitations to facilitate children’s home reading.

Know Thyself: Culture and Identity in Comparative Research

Undertaking comparative research is a risky business. The researcher is often working in a foreign country or making comparisons outside the comfort of their own culture. Making bad or good assumptions based on perceived cultural differences can bring any study unstuck. As Kathleen Hall eloquently states ‘In the field of education, questions of identity, identification, and culture figure centrally within a range of debates, controversies and innovations.’ This chapter extends Welch’s discussion in Chapter 17 and looks at the role of the individual researcher who may have the best intentions but realise the worst outcomes. It discusses a number of key points that comparative scholars should consider when undertaking research in other countries and argues that comparative researchers need to develop intercultural sensitivity and critical cultural reflection of their work.