A Phenomenological Study of Parental Involvement from Students’ Perspectives in Secondary-Level English Learning in Nepal

 A Phenomenological Study of Parental Involvement from Students’ Perspectives in Secondary-Level English Learning in Nepal

Chandra Bahadur Limbu

https://orcid.org/0009-0002-0015-9866

Department of English

Simara College, Bara

Corresponding: limbuatib2070@gmail.com

Abstract

Parents' involvement in learning English to their children is taken as a key factor. Parental involvement also fosters the academic achievement of their children. The study aims to explore the secondary-level English students' perspectives regarding the involvement of their parents. The research questions of this study were how secondary-level students consider the involvement of their parents in learning English and in what ways they learn English with the support of their parents. The philosophical stance of the study is constructivism. This study used the phenomenological approach to explore the lived experiences of the students regarding the involvement of their parents in learning English. Semi-structured interviews and document analysis were used to collect the responses. And purposive sampling is adopted to select the 10 secondary-level students from the two government secondary schools. This study used thematic analysis for interpreting the qualitative data. The findings found that students were not only helped in learning English by their educated parents but also supported with learning materials. This study also revealed that the socioeconomic conditions of the students' parents enhance their way of learning English.

Keywords:  parental involvement, learning English, secondary level, students' perspectives, phenomenological study

Introduction

Learning English is influenced by various factors. Culture, industrialisation, education, scientific discoveries, health, politics, and business are important factors in developing the English language globally.  Regarding the global expansion of English language learning, Neeley (2012) illustrates that Aventis, a French pharmaceutical company, has chosen English as its primary language of communication, rather than French or German. However, Sifakis and Sougari (2003) state that there is a need for two distinctive groups, such as the first group of people who learn English as a first language and others who learn it as a second language, to teach English in Greece. In European countries such as Germany, Denmark, Luxembourg, Spain, and Portugal, the English language has become a unit that addresses the multicultural and multilingual aspects of these countries.

Moreover, the  use of English in Argentina is related to British culture, with several functions such as international communication, tourism, commercial fields, and sports, especially the names of famous clubs (Porto, 2014). Similarly, South African parents prefer schools with English as a medium of instruction because they consider English a basic language for them (Hornberger & Vaish, 2009).  English is used as a medium of instruction in schools, colleges, and universities in the UAE, yet Arabic is the main spoken language there, and Arabic Speaking Private Schools also use English to make education world-class (Baker, 2017). India has four types of schools in every state, where the English language is used as the first language in some states or the second language in others. Similarly,  Bangladeshi Students learn English as a second language (Chowdhury & Kabir, 2014). Giri (2010) argues that introducing English in the course of Grade 1 to a Bachelor’s Degree has placed English in education, business, tourism, and foreign policy. 

for rest part, Please, click here: https://doi.org/10.3126/ajs.v1i1.91471

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