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ERIC Number: EJ1201922
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2018
Pages: 26
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1059-308X
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Parent-School Engagement in a Public Elementary School in Southern Arizona: Immigrant and Refugee Parent Perspectives
Snell, Amanda Marie Shufflebarger
School Community Journal, v28 n2 p113-138 2018
This project invited parents who spoke languages other than English at home to share their perspectives (in their native languages) with the elementary school their children attended. The researcher--a volunteer at the school affiliated with a local university--collaborated closely with school staff on this project. Using a funds of knowledge framework, parents were asked about their goals for their children, their children's strengths, and things they taught their children at home, as well as things they liked about the school and concerns they had. Results revealed that parents had high respect for their children's teachers and often saw themselves as collaborators with the school. They viewed themselves as responsible for teaching children respect and manners and the teachers as responsible for academic growth, which at times caused misunderstandings with teachers, who expected parents to support children in specific, academic ways. In addition to sharing how much they believed teachers loved their children, parents expressed interest in maintaining their native languages and concerns about not understanding communication from the school. The following article describes themes in the interviews as well as recommendations based on parent feedback. It also discusses ways the school and the researcher worked together to address this feedback. This research provides a model for other schools wishing to solicit immigrant and refugee parent perspectives, as well as a model for university-school collaborations.
Academic Development Institute. 121 North Kickapoo Street, Lincoln, IL 62656. Tel: 1-800-759-1495; Web site: http://www.schoolcommunitynetwork.org/
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research; Tests/Questionnaires
Education Level: Elementary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Arizona
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A