ATTITUDES OF PARENTS TOWARDS EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION: A CASE STUDY OF AKOKO METROPOLIS ONDO STATE
Abstract
This study investigated the attitudes of parents towards Early Childhood Education (ECE) in Akoko Metropolis, Ondo State, Nigeria. The research was prompted by the continued patronage of ECE centers despite widespread systemic issues, raising questions about the factors shaping parental decisions. The primary purpose was to examine prevailing parental attitudes and to determine the influence of socioeconomic status and educational attainment on these attitudes. The study was guided by three research questions and three corresponding null hypotheses.
A descriptive survey research design was adopted for the study. A sample of 120 parents was selected from public and private ECE centers using a multi-stage sampling technique. The main instrument for data collection was a structured questionnaire titled "Parental Factors and Attitudes towards ECE Questionnaire (PFAQ)." Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics (mean, percentages) for the research questions and inferential statistics (Pearson Correlation and Multiple Regression) to test the hypotheses at a 0.05 level of significance.
The findings revealed that parents generally possess a positive attitude towards ECE (Grand Mean = 3.09). The hypotheses tests showed that parents' socioeconomic status and level of education jointly contribute significantly to their attitudes (F(2, 117) = 29.801, p < .05), explaining 38.2% of the variance. Individually, both socioeconomic status (r = .545, p < .05) and level of education (r = .488, p < .05) were found to have a significant positive relationship with parental attitudes towards ECE.
Based on the findings, it was concluded that while parental attitudes towards ECE are positive, they are significantly influenced by their social and economic backgrounds. This suggests that advantage and disadvantage are reinforced from the earliest stages of education. It was recommended, therefore, that government and school administrators implement targeted awareness campaigns and policies to subsidize costs and improve access for low-income families, thereby fostering greater educational equity.
Keywords: Attitudes, parents, Early Childhood Education.
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