The Influence of School Contextual Factors on Caregivers’ Involvement in Four Schools in Durban, South Africa

Abstract The study explores caregivers’ perspectives and experiences around the barriers or facilitating factors to their involvement in their children’s schooling lives. Qualitative semi-structured focus group discussions with fifteen caregivers from four different socio-economic status schools in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, were conducted and analyzed using Thematic Content Analysis. Caregivers were selected via purposive sampling. The study’s findings were that caregivers perceived their children’s educators as easy to collaborate with, viewed school meetings as important and the school reception as welcoming, which encouraged their involvement. Setting up meetings with the school was seen as a challenge which discouraged caregiver-involvement. There are thus facilitating factors for caregiver-involvement in place in schools which demonstrates that the schools sampled, are aware of the important role of caregiver-involvement in reducing the risky-behavior engagement by youth in these communities. Caregivers are also more inclined to be involved, given the encouraging efforts made by the schools; and aware of their children’s schools’ LO education, policies which are in support of the messages taught in the LO curriculum and extra-curricular activities to prevent learners’ engagement in unhealthy behavior. Caregivers are therefore, better able to reinforce the messages taught via the LO curriculum. Caregivers are more likely to perceive their children’s LO educators as credible sources of life skills education and to partner with educators, to reduce the health risks in their children’s lives. More awareness for the importance of caregiver-involvement in reducing adolescent engagement in risky behavior engagement can be provided by schools and the government.