This qualitative study describes educator perspectives on student development, resource allocation, and parental knowledge for furthering understanding about parent involvement for English-language learners. The critique of schoolcentric parent involvement programs offered in literature is examined and recommendations advanced for focusing parent–educator collaboration on addressing student academic, affective, and physical needs. The study exposes the slippery slope of deficit thinking that confronts educators who step forward to assist in meeting the needs of students and their families, and it provides insights for strengthening the home–school connection that resist division and inhibit blame.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
AbramsL., & GibbsJ. (2002). Disrupting the logic of home-school relations: Parent involvement strategies and practices of inclusion and exclusion. Urban Education, 37(3), 384–407.
2.
BeckL., & MurphyJ. (1999). Parental involvement in site-based management: Lessons from one site. International Journal of Leadership in Education, 2(2), 81–102.
3.
BeckerH., & EpsteinJ. (1982). Parent involvement: A survey of teacher practices. Elementary School Journal, 83(2), 85–102.
4.
BushnellM. (2001). This bed of roses has thorns: Cultural assumptions and community in an elementary school. Anthropology and Education Quarterly, 32(2), 139–166.
5.
ChavkinN. F. (Ed.). (1993). Families and schools in a pluralistic society.Albany: State University of New York Press.
6.
ChavkinN. F., & WilliamsD. (1987). Enhancing parent involvement: Guidelines for access to an important resource for school administrators. Education and Urban Society, 19(2), 164–184.
7.
ChrispeelsJ., & RiveroE. (2001). Engaging Latino families for student success: How parent education can reshape parents’ sense of place in the education of their children. Peabody Journal of Education, 76(2), 119–169.
8.
ComerJ., & HaynesN. (1991). Parent involvement in schools: An ecological approach. Elementary School Journal, 91(3), 271–277.
9.
DauberS. L., & EpsteinJ. L. (1993). Parents’ attitudes and practices of involvement in inner-city elementary and middle schools. In ChavkinN. F. (Ed.), Families and schools in a pluralistic society (pp. 53–71). Albany: State University of New York Press.
10.
DaviesD. (1987). Parent involvement in the public schools: Opportunities for administrators. Education and Urban Society, 19(2), 147–163.
11.
de CarvalhoM. (2001). Rethinking family-school relations: A critique of parental involvement in schooling.Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
12.
Delgado-GaitánC. (1992). School matters in the Mexican-American home: Socializing children to education. American Educational Research Journal, 29(3), 496–513.
13.
Delgado-GaitánC. (1993). Researching change and changing the researcher. Harvard Educational Review, 63(4), 389–411.
14.
DeslandesR., RoyerE., & TurcotteD. (1997). School achievement at the secondary level: Influence of parenting style and parent involvement in schooling. McGill Journal of Education, 32, 191–207.
15.
DrummondK., & StipekD. (2004). Low income parents’ beliefs about their role in children's academic learning. Elementary School Journal, 104(3), 197–213.
16.
EcclesJ., & HaroldR. (1996). Family involvement in children's and adolescents’ schooling. In BoothA., & DunnJ. (Eds.), Family-school links: How do they affect educational outcomes? (pp. 3–34). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
17.
EdwardsP. (1993). Before and after school desegregation: African American parents’ involvement in schools. Educational Policy, 7(3), 334–369.
18.
EmersonR., FretzR., & ShawL. (1995). Writing ethnographic fieldnotes.Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
19.
EpsteinJ. L. (1986). Parents’ reactions to teacher practices of parent involvement. Elementary School Journal, 86(3), 277–294.
20.
EpsteinJ. L. (1987). Parent involvement: What research says to administrators. Education and Urban Society, 19(2), 119–136.
21.
EpsteinJ. L. (1995). School/family/community partnerships: Caring for the children we share. Phi Delta Kappan, 76(9), 701–712.
22.
EpsteinJ. L., & DauberS. (1991). School programs and teacher practices of parent involvement in inner-city elementary and middle schools. Elementary School Journal, 91(3), 289–305.
23.
FeuersteinA. (2000). School characteristics and parent involvement: Influences on participation in children's schools. Journal of Educational Research, 94(1), 29–39.
24.
FineM. (1993). [Ap]parent involvement: Reflections on parents, power, and urban public schools. Teachers College Record, 94(4), 682–710.
25.
GarciaE. (1993). Language, culture, and education. Review of Research in Education, 19, 51–98.
26.
GatesG., & LichtenbergK. (2005). Accountability data and decision making in Texas bilingual education programs. Journal of Latinos and Education, 4(4), 271–282.
27.
GriffithJ. (1998). The relation of school structure and social environment to parent involvement in elementary schools. Elementary School Journal, 99(1), 53–80.
28.
HawkinsM. (2004). Researching English language and literacy development in schools. Educational Researcher, 33(3), 14–25.
29.
HendersonA., & MappK. (2002). A new wave of evidence: The impact of school, family, and community connections on student achievement.Austin, TX: Southwest Educational Development Lab.
30.
HenryM. E. (1996). Parent-school collaboration: Feminist organizational structures and school leadership.Albany: State University of New York Press.
31.
Hoover-DempseyK. V., BasslerO. C., & BurrowR. (1995). Parents’ reported involvement in students’ homework: Strategies and practices. Elementary School Journal, 95(5), 435–450.
32.
Hoover-DempseyK.V., & SandlerH. M. (1997). Why do parents become involved in their children's education?Review of Educational Research, 67(1), 3–42.
33.
JeynesW. (2003). A meta-analysis: The effects of parental involvement on minority children's academic achievement. Education and Urban Society, 35(2), 202–218.
34.
Kessler-SklarS., & BakerA. (2000). School district parent involvement policies and programs. Elementary School Journal, 101(1), 101–118.
35.
Ladson-BillingsG. (2001). Crossing over to Canaan.San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
36.
LareauA. (1989a). Family-school relationships: A view from the classroom. Educational Policy, 3(3), 245–259.
37.
LareauA. (1989b). Home advantage: Social class and parental intervention in elementary education.New York: Falmer Press.
38.
LareauA., & HorvatE. (1999). Moments of social inclusion and exclusion race, class, and cultural capital in family-school relationships. Sociology of Education, 72(1), 37–53.
39.
LareauA., & ShumarW. (1996). The problem of individualism in family-school policies. Sociology of Education, 69, 24–39.
40.
LawsonM. A. (2003). School-family relations in context: Parent and teacher perceptions of parent involvement. Urban Education, 38(1), 77–133.
41.
LewisA., & FormanT. (2002). Contestation or collaboration? A comparative study of home-school relations. Anthropology and Education Quarterly, 33(1), 60–89.
42.
LightfootD. (2004). “Some parents just don't care”: Decoding the meanings of parental involvement in urban schools. Urban Education, 39(1), 91–107.
43.
LightfootS. L. (1978). Worlds apart: Relationships between families and schools.New York: Basic Books.
44.
LinekW., RasinskiT., & HarkinsD. (1997). Teacher perceptions of parent involvement in literacy education. Reading Horizons, 38, 90–107.
45.
LockwoodA., & SecadaW. (1999, January). Transforming education for Hispanic youth: Exemplary practices, programs, and schools (NCBE Resource Collection Series No. 12). Washington, DC: National Clearinghouse for Bilingual Education.
46.
LópezG. R. (2001). The value of hard work: Lessons on parent involvement from an (im)migrant household. Harvard Educational Review, 71(3), 416–437.
47.
LópezG. R., ScribnerJ. D., & MahitivanichchaK. (2001). Redefining parent involvement: Lessons for high-performing migrant-impacted schools. American Educational Research Journal, 38(2), 253–288.
48.
MappK. (2003). Having their say: Parents describe why and how they are engaged in their children's learning. School Community Journal, 13(1), 35–64.
49.
MattinglyD., PrislinR., McKenzieT., RodriguezJ., & KayzarB. (2002). Evaluating evaluations: The case of parent involvement programs. Review of Educational Research, 72(4), 549–576.
50.
McDermottR., GoldmanS., & VarenneH. (1984). When school goes home: Some problems in the organization of homework. Teachers College Record, 85(3), 391–409.
51.
McDermottR., & VarenneH. (1995). Culture as disability. Anthropology and Education Quarterly, 26(3), 324–348.
52.
MolesO. C. (1993). Collaboration between schools and disadvantaged parents: Obstacles and openings. In ChavkinN. F. (Ed.), Families and schools in a pluralistic society (pp. 21–49). Albany: State University of New York Press.
53.
NakagawaK. (2000). Unthreading the ties that bind: Questioning the discourse of parent involvement. Educational Policy, 14(4), 443–472.
54.
OgawaR., & StuderS. (2002). Bridging and buffering parent involvement in schools: Managing exchanges of social and cultural resources. Theory and Research in Educational Administration, 1, 97–102.
55.
OlivosE. (2004). Tensions, contradictions, and resistance: An activist's reflection on the struggles of Latino parents in the public school system. High School Journal, 87(4), 25–34.
56.
RamirezA. Y. F. (2003). Dismay and disappointment: Parental involvement of Latino immigrant parents. Urban Review, 35(2), 93–110.
57.
ScribnerJ. D., YoungM. D., & PedrozaA. (1999). Building collaborative relationships with parents. In ReyesP., ScribnerJ. D., & ScribnerA. P. (Eds.), Lessons from, high-performing Hispanic schools: Creating learning communities (pp. 36–60). New York: Teachers College Press.
58.
Simich-DudgeonC. (1993). Increasing student achievement through teacher knowledge about parent involvement. In ChavkinN. F. (Ed.), Families and schools in a pluralistic society (pp. 189–203). Albany: State University of New York Press.
59.
SmrekarC., & Cohen-VogelL. (2001). The voices of parents: Rethinking the intersection of family and school. Peabody Journal of Education, 76(2), 75–100.
60.
SosaA. S. (1996). Involving Hispanic parents in improving educational opportunities for their children. In FloresJ. L. (Ed.), Children of la frontera: Binational efforts to serve Mexican migrant and immigrant students (pp. 341–352). Charleston, WV: ERIC Clearinghouse on Rural Education and Small Schools.
61.
StraussA. (1993). Qualitative analysis for social scientists.New York: Cambridge University Press.
62.
Sui-ChuE., & WillmsJ. (1996). Effects of parent involvement on eighth grade achievement. Sociology of Education, 69(2), 126–141.
63.
TaylorS. J., & BogdanR. C. (1998). Introduction to qualitative research methods: A guidebook and resource (3rd ed.). New York: Wiley.
TorrezN. (2004). Developing parent information frameworks that support college preparation for Latino students. High School Journal, 87(3), 54–62.
67.
TrotmanM. (2001). Involving the African American parent: Recommendations to increase the level of parent involvement within African American families. Journal of Negro Education, 70(4), 275–285.
68.
TyackD., & HansotV. (1982). Managers of virtue.New York: Basic Books.
69.
ValdésG. (1996). Con respeto: Bridging the distances between culturally diverse families and schools.New York: Teachers College Press.
70.
ValenciaR., & BlackM. (2002). Mexican Americans don't value education! The basis of the myth, mythmaking, and debunking. Journal of Latinos and Education, 1(2), 81–103.
71.
ValenciaR., & SolórzanoD. (1997). Contemporary deficit thinking. In ValenciaR. (Ed.), The evolution of deficit thinking (pp. 160–210). London: Falmer Press.
72.
VillenasS., & DeyhleD. (1999). Critical race theory and ethnographies challenging the stereotypes: Latino families, schooling, resilience and resistance. Curriculum and Inquiry, 29(4), 413–445.
73.
WaggonerD. (2000). The demographics of diversity in the United States. In Dueñas GonzalezR. (Ed.), Language ideologies: Critical perspectives on the official English movement (pp. 5–27). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
74.
WagstaffL. H., & FusarelliL. D. (1999). Establishing collaborative governance and leadership. In ReyesP., ScribnerJ. D., & ScribnerA. P. (Eds.), Lessons from, high-performing Hispanic schools: Creating learning communities (pp. 19–35). New York: Teachers College Press.
75.
WeissR. (1994). Learning from strangers: The art and method of qualitative interview studies.New York: Free Press.
