1. Parents’ engagement is dominated by “self-help,” especially through home or out-sourced tutoring, rather than partnership with schools.

Parents mainly support assessments through family-led strategies, in particular tutoring, because it feels like the most concrete and controllable way to help their children. In contrast, home-school engagement around assessment is limited, largely one-way, and constrained by time, norms, and mutual boundary-keeping between parents and teachers.

2. Parents’ engagement is shaped by both rational calculation and deep emotional-moral concerns.

On the “mind” side, parents respond strategically to a meritocratic system where assessments carry real stakes. On the “heart” side, engagement is tied to parental identity, care for children’s well-being, and a moral tension between holistic ideals and fear of doing too little in a high-stakes environment. This creates a persistent double-bind rather than simple resistance to reform.

3. Assessment reform will falter without addressing parents’ concerns and assessment literacy.

The findings suggest that the call to change parents' "mindset" is simplistic. Many parents share progressive ideals but act pragmatically under perceived risk. Strengthening reform requires better support for parents willing to commit to progressive beliefs, developing a shared assessment vocabulary for teachers and parents that focuses on learning, and continuing the progress of structurally lowering assessment stakes rather than relying on rhetoric alone.