First Advisor
Ritchotte, Jennifer
Document Type
Dissertation
Date Created
12-2018
Department
College of Education and Behavioral Sciences, Special Education, Special Education Student Work
Abstract
The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore parents’ perceptions of their experiences engaging in their gifted children’s education in Saudi Arabia. Qualitative research design was utilized, and a phenomenological approach was employed to answer the research questions. Ten Saudi parents were interviewed to explore their engagement in the education of their gifted children. Following thematic analysis, four themes emerged regarding the roles parents played in the engagement of their gifted children’s education. These roles were: Guiding their Gifted Children, Challenging their Gifted Children, Encouraging their Gifted Children, and Advocating for their Gifted Children. Additionally, five themes emerged regarding why parents engaged in the education of their gifted children. Their motivation for engaging were: A Sense of Responsibility, To Ensure their Children’s Success in the Future, Lack of Confidence in the School, To Preserve the Gifted Label, and When They Felt Included by the School. Finally, parents talked about the necessity of being engaged in the education of their gifted children and shared some of the obstacles that undermined such engagement. Discussion of these findings provides a more detailed understanding of how parents perceive their engagement in their children’s education in Saudi Arabia. Additionally, implications for practice are discussed to help parents become more engaged in their gifted children’s education in the future and to help teachers become more supportive at the school level in order to help gifted children reach their full potential. One important implication is that schools should support parents in being more engaged in their children’s education by communicating with parents frequently and inviting parents to participate in school functions. Finally, limitations and areas for future research are discussed. This research provides a much-needed glimpse of what parental engagement in gifted children’s education looks like in Saudi Arabia and how parents perceive their experiences of engaging in their children’s learning at home and at school.
Extent
168 pages
Local Identifiers
Alyahya_unco_0161D_10699.pdf
Rights Statement
Copyright is held by the author.
Recommended Citation
Alyahya, Aiman Ali, "Parental Engagement in the Education of Gifted Children in Saudi Arabia: A Phenomenological Study" (2018). Dissertations. 539.
https://digscholarship.unco.edu/dissertations/539