| When it comes to parent involvement, schools continue to use traditional methods and strategies to engage parents in their children's education. Parent-teacher conferences, curriculum nights, open houses, literacy nights, and room parent volunteer opportunities are just some of the standard ways schools aim to involve parents. These examples of prescriptive involvement often do not facilitate meaningful engagement opportunities for working-class and low-income parents. In order to move past the status quo and examine parent engagement through the lens of social class, educators must learn about the experiences and needs of the parents they serve. This qualitative research study examined how social class impacts parent engagement from the perspectives of two working-class, African American mothers. Using narrative inquiry methodology, semi-structured interviews were conducted with both women to elicit narratives about their experiences of being involved in their children's schools, what they want for their children's futures, and what they want from their children's schools. The data was analyzed using narrative inquiry methods. The themes that emerged showed that a) social class impacts how parents advocate for their children's safety and security, b) social class impacts a parent's role construction, and c) working-class parents position themselves to be partners with their children's teachers. Both women indicated their desire to form partnerships with their children's schools in order to give their children the best chance possible at success. This study found that working-class parents are interested in much more from schools than attending school events and getting homework help. These parents want to be partners with their children's teachers. Educators can establish these partnerships by first confronting their own biases about race and social class, and then they can begin to develop a philosophy of parent engagement that values parents' stories and building relationships. Through the reflection process, educators can learn what parents want for their children and partner with parents to create supportive and positive relationships. |
