A Valid and Reliable Scale for Measuring Parental Involvement in Primary School Children’s Literacy Development

This study aims to develop a valid and reliable measurement tool to assess parental involvement in the literacy development of primary school students. Recognizing the multifaceted nature of literacy and the crucial role of families in supporting children’s learning, the Parental Involvement in Literacy Development Scale (PILDS) was constructed based on Epstein’s parental involvement model and key theoretical frameworks. A 28-item scale was developed and refined through expert review and pilot testing to ensure content validity. The scale was administered to 400 parents of children in Grades 1 to 4 attending public primary schools in a city located in the eastern region of Türkiye. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) supported the six-factor structure, yielding satisfactory fit indices (RMSEA = .06, SRMR = .06, CFI = .98, NFI = .97, NNFI = .98, χ 2 / df = 2.61). The internal consistency coefficient for the overall scale was .95, and convergent validity was supported through significant correlations with an established measure of family involvement. Cutoff scores were also determined to classify low, moderate, and high levels of parental involvement. Although the findings offer strong evidence for the validity and reliability of PILDS, they should be considered together with the contextual characteristics of the participating families. Overall, PILDS provides researchers, educators, and policymakers with a comprehensive and culturally grounded tool for assessing multidimensional, literacy-focused parental involvement and for informing targeted interventions and family-school-community partnership practices.