The number of English Language Learner (ELL) students in U.S. public schools are increasing yearly. More than 75% of ELL student's home language is Spanish. Their academic performance and graduation rates are lower than their non-ELL peers. Parent involvement contributes to student success in school, and urban leaders must examine how they involve ELL students and parents in school. The purpose of this study was to identify perceived strategies urban high school teachers use to involve ELL parents and to identify whether perceived barriers exist. School leaders can benefit from this qualitative study to address the achievement gap between ELL and non-ELL students. Five ESL teachers, six content teachers, and three Graduation Coaches participated in three focus group interviews. Seven findings arose from the interviews. A few findings include 71% (10 out of 14) of participants perceived that all educators in the building are responsible for ELL students, 93% (13 out of 14) of participants perceived there are practices and policies established to aid teachers with communicating and involving ELL parents, and 80% percent (4 out of 5) of ESL teachers interviewed believed parents are more trusting of the school when schools partner with other community agencies to host events. Teachers perceived barriers exist that inhibit them from involving and communicating with parents. Ninety-three percent (13 out of 14) of participants noted time as a barrier. Almost 43% (6 out of 14) participants noted parents being unaware of their rights as a barrier. / Doctor of Education / Hispanic English Language Learners (ELL) are the fastest-growing group of students in U.S. public schools. There is an achievement gap between ELL students and non-ELL students. The graduation rates and academic performance of ELL students are lower than non-ELL students. Parent involvement is one factor that increases students' academic performance. The research in this study explored the impact and perception of parent involvement. The purpose of this qualitative study was to identify perceived strategies urban school teachers use to involve ELL parents and whether teachers perceive the strategies are effective. Content Teachers, Graduation Coaches, and ESL teachers from two high schools within one eastern Virginia school division participated in focus group interviews. The study indicated seven findings and eight implications. A recommendation for future studies is to explore and examine the practices of more diverse areas of Virginia and the impact of ELL parent involvement.

Parent involvement in school has proven its effectiveness (Jeynes, 2012). Students whose parents are involved tend to present better behavior at school and achieve higher quality of homework and schoolwork (Cancio, West and Young, 2004; Epstein 2001). In the case of children transitioning to kindergarten, parent involvement can help them overcome adjustment difficulties and receive the support they need to succeed (Patel and Corter, 2013). In order to increase parent involvement among parents of children transitioning to kindergarten, school counselors, teachers and other school personnel can benefit from understanding how parents perceive parent involvement and what experiences they are having as their children transition to kindergarten. The purpose of this study was to describe, using a qualitative approach, how parents of children transitioning to kindergarten perceive parent involvement and how they have been experiencing parent involvement during this transition. This study included the participation of ten parents whose children were enrolled in kindergarten in a public school in Southern California. Semi-structured interviews were conducted and analyzed through the process of coding. Findings showed that there are different ways of parent involvement and that such involvement is the result of a teamwork that happens through interactions between the parent, the child, and the school. Moreover, discussions of the findings also revealed that schools that offer services and support to parents during the kindergarten transition help them become more involved parents. Lastly, it was brought to knowledge that parents of children transitioning to kindergarten do not always know about the existence or the role of the school counselor, who could be serving as an important support to these parents and their children. Important implications are offered for school counselors, counselor educators, and kindergarten teachers, as well as recommendations for future research. / Ph. D.

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Parental engagement with schools is often considered one of the major contributing factors to a child’s success in school. There is not, however, a definition of parental engagement that takes into account the social, historical, and cultural factors that shape a parent’s view of their own engagement. This qualitative case study examines how African American parents in a high poverty, urban, charter middle school, come to understand practices and beliefs at their child’s school, while building relationships with other parents and school staff. Through the lenses of critical race theory and cultural-historical activity theory, the researcher analyzes how the convergence of race, power, history, and culture frame perspectives of policy makers, those who work in schools, and parents. Through the voices of African American parents, in a socioeconomically disadvantaged school community, they define their own engagement.

The problem with which this investigation was concerned was that of surveying the attitudes of parents, teachers, and principals toward parental involvement in school activities. The study had a threefold purpose. The first was to determine the attitudes of parents toward involvement in school activities. The second was to determine the attitudes of teachers and principals toward parental involvement in schools. The third was to identify attitudes of parents, teachers, and principals toward various methods of involvement.

Despite an extensive body of literature on the relationship between parents’ education and a child’s academic outcomes, there is considerably less research into the factors that influence parent involvement. The purpose of this study is to examine the correlates associated with parent involvement with their child inside and outside of school. I use Pierre Bourdieu's theory of the Forms of Capital and Habitus, specifically focusing on cultural capital, to frame my analysis. I use data from the 2007 National Household Education Survey of Parent and Family Involvement (n=10,628), a nationally representative sample, to examine if mother’s level of education is associated with different dimensions of parent involvement. I examined six dimensions of parent involvement: parent involvement at school, parent volunteering, cultural activities, cultural outings, group activities, and homework help. Mother’s level of education was significantly associated with all types of involvement except homework help.

This study examines the perceptions of low socioeconomonic status, high academic achievement Vietnamese middle grades students in the Vietnamese community with respect to the roles that their parents and communities play in supporting academic achievement. Previous research has established the positive relationships between parent involvement and student achievement, and between high SES and student achievement. However, this study explores the perceptions of high achieving middle grades students with low SES. Through focus group discussions and interviews, this study examines student achievement within the theoretical framework of social capital.

Thesis advisor: Irwin Blumer / Public and private schools are adopting new technological software to manage student information in a web-based format. These programs have the capability to provide students and parents with on-line access to grades and higher quality assessment information with the hope that students take information about their grades and use it formatively to improve in the classroom. Teachers, however, have historically kept their grade books private and increasing transparency into grading represents a major change in teachers' communication of student achievement. This qualitative case study examines the impact of increasing transparency in assessment by providing parents and students access to web-based grading information on teachers' perceptions of the quality and effectiveness of communication with parents and students, teachers' perceptions of student motivation, teachers' application of the program, and teachers' perceptions of their communication with each other. Seven teachers participated in this research study over the course of one semester at a large, suburban New England high school. The data from this study showed that increasing transparency in assessment to students and parents resulted in changes in the nature and substance of communication between teachers, parents and students. Teachers reported changing their use of the program over the course of the semester in order to provide greater clarity of assessment data to students and parents and, as a result, students were able to use it formatively to improve student learning. Teachers reported that the greatest impact of this program was in improved communication with students leading to increased student effort and a sense of student ownership over grades. Teachers also felt that increasing transparency in assessment influenced communication and collaboration among teachers. The findings of this research study provide implications for educational practice, policy, future research and leadership. / Thesis (EdD) — Boston College, 2009. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Educational Administration.

The pursuit of higher education has become a highly desirable aspiration for many children in the United States, yet majority of these children are not provided the opportunity to make this a reality. Research reveal Students of Color and lower socio-economic status are largely under-represented in institutions of postsecondary education (Camacho Liu, 2011; Choy, 2001; U.S. Department of Education, 2001). Latina/o students, in particular, continue to experience some of the lowest levels of educational attainment in this country. Education scholars contend that a college-going culture can help counteract the educational limitations experienced by working-class, Students of Color, and especially first-generation college students. Using a participatory action research approach, this study shows how an inclusive parental engagement framework can push research forward in understanding the experiences of an educational leader and Latina/o parents. As they collaborate to co-develop strategies to support college-going practices within an elementary school, parental engagement is key. Data collected from two focus group interviews were analyzed for salient themes and findings pertaining to parental engagement and practices supporting higher educational attainment for Latina/o students. These findings indicate Latina/o parents experience an increase of knowledge regarding higher educational opportunities for their children. Furthermore, when parents gained important knowledge about postsecondary education, this resulted in additional collaborative efforts. For example, the collaborative development of a survey instrument aimed to determine the varying levels of college knowledge needs experienced by parents of elementary school aged children. The objective is to critically understand the intent of developing and implementing college-going practices by an (1) educational administrator and Latina/o parents within an elementary school.