Relation of parental education and life status to academic achievement by Xhosa children.

This study investigated the relationship between parental education and academic achievement of 1021 Xhosa pupils (369 boys and 652 girls) whose ages ranged from 13 to 17 years (M age, 15.6 yr.). The sample included 712 children for whom both parents were alive and 308 children for whom either or both parents were deceased. Children were chosen at random from the Standard 7/Year 9 population of Transkei, South Africa. A simple questionnaire was administered students to identify whether one or both parents were dead or both parents were living. A second questionnaire was administered parents or parent surrogates to obtain their formal education. The marks obtained by the pupils in the Standard 7 external examination conducted by the Department of Education of the Government of Transkei in seven subject areas were aggregated as the criterion measure. Analysis of variance showed significant effects of parental education on academic achievement of children regardless of whether the children's parents were deceased or alive.