Parenting Styles

As a future teacher, it is important for us to know the parenting styles of our students. Currently as studied by the researchers, there are two important differences among parents in the way they relate to their children.
First is their expectation and second is their responsiveness. Their expectations influence their children greatly. Some parents set high expectations on their children and want these expectations are met. Others set low expectations on their children and rarely encourage and support them by any means.
Second is parent’s responsiveness. Responsive parents will interact with their children frequently and try to accept the level of their children. On the other hand unresponsive parents tend to be rejecting or negative towards their children. Using expectations and responsiveness as a guide, researchers have identified four parenting styles and the patterns of personal development associated with them. Those are authoritative, authoritarian, permissive and uninvolved.
Authoritative parents are firm but caring. They encourage children to be independent but still places limits and controls on their action. They explain reasons for rules, and are consistent. They have high expectations on their children. The characteristics of the children of the authoritative parents are with high self-esteem, confident and secure and willing to take risks and are usually successful in school. This type of parenting style combines both high expectation and responsiveness is the most effective for giving the children healthy and personal development. Authoritative parents provide their children with challenge, structure and support in their lives.
Authoritarian parents are usually stress conformity. They are restrictive and punitive and are detached from their children. They give out rules to their children but do not explain their reasons. They also place firm limits and controls on their children and allow little verbal exchange. These parents do not encourage their children to give verbal give-and-take. The characteristics of the children from this type of parents are usually withdrawn from their peers. They worry more about pleasing their parents than solving problems. They are usually are defiant and lack of social skills. They also tend to be anxious about social comparison, fail to initiate activity and with poor communication skills. Problem posed by this type of parenting is often miscommunication between parents and child. Authoritarian parents are rigid and often unable to communicate with their children and negative characteristics that are posed by these children as above.
Permissive parents or indulgent parenting style usually give their children a total freedom. They are highly involved with their children but place few limits or restrictions on their behaviours. They have limited expectations of their children and make few demands on the children. These parents will often let their children do what they want to and get to do it their way because they believe the combination of nurturant support and lack of restraints will produce a creative, confident child. The characteristics of their children are usually immature and lack of self-control. They are usually impulsive and unmotivated in class. Problem posed by this type of parenting is, they are emotionally responsive but fail to set and maintain high expectations on their children. In result these children will usually don’t learn to control their own behaviour and the parents too do not take into account the development of the whole child.
Uninvolved parents usually have little interest in their children’s life. They do not involved in their children’s lives. They hold few expectations on their children. The characteristics of these children are lack of self-control and long-term goals. They also hold the belief that other aspects of their parents’ lives are more important than they are. They are easily frustrated and disobedient in class. Problem posed by this type of parents is that the parents aren’t providing neither structure nor emotional support. The children of neglectful parents usually are socially incompetent in which they have poor self-control, don’t handle their independence well and aren’t achievement motivated.
Children that grow in a healthy parent-child relationship will promote personal development by helping children acquire a sense of autonomy, competence and belongings. This type of relationship also support the development of personal responsibility where one possess the ability to control one’s own action based on developing values and goals. According to W. Doyle (1986), the interaction styles of effective teachers are similar to those of effective parents, and the description of authoritative parenting strongly parallels recommended classroom management practices for teachers. These teachers will usually have high expectations for their students, but they’re simultaneously supportive. Like authoritative parents, these teachers are firm but caring to their students. They establish rules and limits and they expect their students to develop and practice self-control.

Bibliography
1. Santrock, John W. (2001) Educational Psychology. Mc-Graw Hill : Boston p. 86 – 89.