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Citation:

Chrispeels, J. H., & Rivero, E. (2001). Engaging Latino families for student success: How parent education can reshape parentsÕ sense of place in the education of their children. Peabody Journal of Education, 76(2), 119-169. EJ654790.

Annotation:
This study examined the impact of a parent education program on 198 Latino immigrant parentsÕ perceptions of their role and place in their children's education. As a result of participating in the Parent Institute for Quality Education (PIQE), all families surveyed reported shifts in their parenting styles and developed higher levels of engagement both with their children and with the school, especially with the teachers. The PIQE program consisted of eight 90-minute parent information sessions using a prescribed curriculum translated into the parents' language. Data were collected through pretest and posttest surveys of 95 families, in-depth interviews with 11 families, observations and videotapes of the training sessions, and a review of artifacts. As a result of the study, the researchers propose a conceptual framework of five variables that motivate parents to become involved with their children's education: a) actual and perceived school invitations and opportunities to be involved, b) parent's sense of place in their child's education, c) parent's knowledge and skills about how to be involved, d) parent's concept of parenting, and e) parent's aspirations and love for their child. Future research should empirically test how these variables interact with each other and to what extent they are able to predict parent involvement in education and childrenÕs success in school. Of interest to school practitioners is the finding that culturally-based concepts, such as parentsÕ sense of place in their childrenÕs education and parenting styles, are not necessarily fixed; they can shift when opportunities are provided for examining and re-constructing these concepts, beliefs and practices. The PIQE program provided such an opportunity through the use of instructors, who because of their similar life experiences to the parents and success in the U.S. educational system, could interpret this system for the Latino parents. These instructors acted as Òcultural brokers,Ó a term adopted from Delgado-Gaitan (1996), whose research suggests that a cultural broker can be effective in helping parents learn strategies for interacting with teachers and expanding their view about their role in their childrenÕs education.