Influence of Parental Digital Involvement on Primary School Children’s Academic Achievement in Edo State, South South Nigeria

This study examines the influence of parental digital involvement on the academic achievement of primary school children in Edo State, South South Nigeria. As digital learning tools extend from classrooms into homes, the role of parents as active participants in children's digital educational activities has gained increasing research attention. A cross-sectional survey design was employed with a sample of 250 Primary Five pupils and their parents from twelve public primary schools in Oredo, Egor, and Ikpoba-Okha Local Government Areas in Benin City. A Parental Digital Involvement Scale assessed frequency and type of parental engagement with children's digital learning activities, while academic achievement was measured using composite scores from the most recent terminal examination. Multiple regression analysis was used to test predictive relationships. Results reveal that active parental co-engagement, defined as parents participating in digital learning activities alongside children, is a significant positive predictor of academic achievement. Passive monitoring, such as time restriction without co-engagement, shows no significant achievement effect. Parental digital literacy was a significant moderating variable. The study recommends that primary schools in Edo State develop structured digital co-learning guides for parents and organise community digital literacy workshops to improve parental capacity for active digital involvement. Keywords: parental digital involvement, academic achievement, primary school, Edo State, family digital engagement