Abstract:
The purpose of this study was to examine the Parental Perceptions towards Early
Childhood Education Program in Government Pre-primary Schools of South West Shoa,
Zone Oromia Regional State. A quantitative research approach with survey design was
employed to investigate the perception of parents towards ECE programs. Six pre-primary
schools were selected using purposive sampling technique. Data were collected from
parents whose children were attending Pre-primary school (N=165), using a
questionnaire designed to measure parental perception towards ECE programs. Data
obtained through the questionnaire was collected using a five-point Likert scale. The
major findings of the study revealed that: parents’ had a positive perception of the benefits
of pre-primary education for their children. However, parents’ had a negative perception
of the quality of pre-primary school education. There is a significant difference between
male and female parents in their perceptions about the perceived reason to send their
children to government pre-primary school education and perceptions of the quality of
government pre-primary school education. Parents' perception of the perceived reason to
send their children to pre-primary education and the quality of pre-primary school
education differ significantly between parents of different educational levels. There is no
significant difference between parents’ perception of the perceived reason to send their
children to pre-primary school and its quality across various categories of parents’
income. Finally, it is recommended that the stakeholders need to organize awareness raising programs for parents on the one hand and enhance the quality of educational
provisions on the other hand to develop more positive perceptions in parents and thereby
foster the education of the children in the early years that lays a strong foundation for
later years.
