Indian Dads Share in Parenting, Strengthen Kids' Achievement

Researcher Tori Sanghavi (above) studied 50 Connecticut families with children aged 3 to 6, who have lived in the U.S. for four to six years. Her goal was to determine why some Indian children are "high achievers." (Photo: CTindianLife.com)

The following is an excerpt from a story in CT Indian Life.

Gone are the days when Indian mothers in the diaspora bore the task of making children do their homework, accompanying them to extra curricular activities and also taking care of household chores.

According to a study by Milford [Connecticut] resident Toral Sanghavi, a Ph.D. candidate at Syracuse University, Indian fathers participate in equal measure.

Sanghavi is working on a thesis titled Parental Factors Affecting Asian-Indian Children's Academic and Social Development.

One of her key findings to date from a recent pilot study is the importance of a father's role in a child's development.

"My research shows that in families where fathers are more involved with their child's academics, their kids do significantly better than those kids where the father is not involved as much," she said.

The study revealed that Indian American parents value education and a majority of those surveyed help with their child's homework, restrict television time and are engaged in various learning activities, Sanghavi pointed out.

Sanghavi studied 50 Connecticut families with children aged between three and six, and who have lived in the U.S. for four to six years.

The goal was to determine why Indian American children, in general, wind up in the ‘high achievers' category.

"I specifically wanted to know what the mothers did and what fathers did," she said.

One of the participants, Sridhar Mudigati,a software engineer from Milford and father of Lasya, 6, said Lasya learned faster when he made learning more fun for her.

"We always knew that our child would be our priority. So we make it a point to see her homework everyday," said Mudigati,who reads bedtime stories and plans his daughter's study schedule.

Shelton-based Jasmine Chadwa, another participant, tutors her 5-year-old daughter Ruchi. Her husband shops for groceries, takes care of cooking and drives Ruchi to her skating and Bharatanatyam classes. A well-defined division of labor is important when it comes to school and extracurricular activities, Chadwa said.

To enroll in the research, contact Toral Sanghavi at toralsanghavi@gmail.com.

Amishi Shah is a freelance journalist based in New Britain, Conn.

CT Indian Life is a monthly magazine that serves the Asian Indian community in Connecticut.

Source: CTindianLife.com

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