This article explores the difference between parental involvement, where parents' activity levels at school are primarily structured by schools, and parental engagement, where parents have a more active voice in how they take part in what goes on in schools. This difference is underscored as a means of illuminating ways of addressing the issue of…

The parent-school relationship for families of students with disabilities is clearly prescribed by law and is one of the main tenets of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), 2004 (Newman, Cameto, & Hernandez, 2005). The measurement of this relationship presents a challenge in the context of what is meaningful participation,…

A longitudinal, 3-year study investigated the participation of African American parents of 24 preschoolers in special education programs in an urban school district. Interviews, observations of conferences, and examination of students' documents were used. Data showed consistent initial efforts by families to support their children's schooling,…

This paper argues that early interventionists' awareness of their own cultural beliefs is an essential first step in developing effective collaboration with culturally different families. Areas of potential dissonance between professionals and families include interpretation of the meaning of disability, concepts of family structure and identity,…

This study examined attitudes among Puerto Rican-American parents toward the processes of assessment, placement and instruction of students with disabilities. Twelve such families in a low-income, mostly Hispanic urban community were interviewed and observed and ethnographic methods used to assess the role of their culture in parents'…

This article contends that the equity and advocacy expectations embedded in the legal mandate for parent participation in the special education decision-making process directly contradict the hierarchy of professional status and knowledge on which the positivist paradigm of professionalism is based and are also in conflict with the values held by…

A 3-year study of the views of the parents of 18 African American preschoolers found parents in strong support for explicit instruction in "the three Rs," with an emphasis on phonics instruction. The need to include parents in the dialog about pedagogy and in making instructional decisions for their children is addressed. (CR)

In this article, we examine the behaviors and contrasting perspectives, attitudes, and expectations of three sets of stakeholders--school personnel and the two communities of parents that represented equal portions of the population at an elementary school that had recently undergone substantial restructuring resulting from a desegregation order.…

Two traditions that have combined to discourage participation of African-American parents in special education procedures are described: a deficit view of African-American families and a deficit view of children's learning difficulties. Including parents in assessment, placement, policy making, and advocacy is recommended to restore the balance of…

This article describes a preservice special education teacher education course at the University of Maryland which requires students to interact directly with parents of different social classes and cultural backgrounds. Three students recount their experiences and changed attitudes as a result of this requirement. (DB)

Ethnographic data were used to address the challenge of parent-professional interaction in the cross-cultural context of 12 Spanish-speaking Puerto Rican American families from low income backgrounds with learning-disabled or mildly mentally retarded children in special education. Illustrations from parent conferences show how parent participation…

An ethnographic study of 12 low-income Puerto Rican parents of children with learning disabilities or mild mental retardation found that different cultural meanings of disability and normalcy led parents to reject the notion of disability and focus on the impact of family identity, language confusion, and detrimental educational practices on…