Bandura (1977) argued that people were neither “powerless objects controlled by environmental forces nor free agents who can become whatever they choose. Both people and their environments are reciprocal determinants of each other” (preface, p. vii). In short, Bandura (1977) does not view the individual as a victim of behavioral or environmental stimuli but active participants in changing the world around them by setting realistic goals and maintaining a high level of self-efficacy. However, if a person was stripped of this consciousness or decision making capabilities; then this consciousness was regulated to merely subjective responses, devoid of any purpose or direction.
A study of 25,000 eight graders confirmed that students watched 21 hours of television weekly but only spent 2 hours weekly on homework outside the classroom. (National Center for Education Statistics, 1990). Overall, the research indicated that there was a strong correlation between learning in the home and learning proficiency at school. In fact, a United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) report stated, “it is clear that educational disadvantage is born not at school but in the home” (Mather, 2002, p. 1). Therefore, the home environment played a critical role in a child’s learning and literacy.

When Blunket (DfEE, 2000) stated that “equality of opportunity is not simply a moral objective – it is an economic imperative” (p. 1), this was a clear reference to moral or social responsibility taking precedence over economic objectives.