Predicting School Leadership Interests in Parents of English Learners: An Exploratory Study

Abstract

This study contributes to the literature on parent involvement by examining predictors of educational leadership interests of parents of English learners (ELs). Using a sample of 129 parents of ELs who represented diverse ethnic backgrounds, the researchers examined parent leadership interests with survey research. Parent leadership interests were significantly predicted by expectations for children's educational success, encouragement from teachers, and parents’ own level of education. Specifically, parents with lower educational expectations for their children, who were encouraged to be involved by their children's teachers, and with higher levels of formal education were more likely to express leadership interests. These data have implications for how schools could extend outreach efforts to encourage participation of parents who may see themselves as less effective leaders.

Reviewing School District and Caregiver Engagement: Toward Building Capacity to Serve English Learners

“…In addition to how to communicate with parents as required by legislation, teachers need to understand context of legislation that may be impacting caregivers of ELs. For example, González et al (2016) discussed that one out of every four students in the U.S. comes from a background of immigration and those students of immigrant families is the fastest growing segment of children in the U.S. (Vera et al, 2012;He et al, 2018). Caregivers of these students are facing multiple challenges related to legislation in the U.S., such as family separation, reunification, or issues with documentation (González et al, 2016;Lopez et al, 2001).…”

Parental support strategies and motivation in aiding their children learn the English language

“…Several recent meta-analytic studies have discovered that different types of parental participation (like monitoring and guidance) have an influence on achievement (Patall et al, 2008;Vera et al, 2012), and that parents' involvement changes as their children progress through the school system. Consequently, because the impact of parental involvement on achievement varies, it is critical to investigate various types of parental involvement (Hill and Tyson, 2009;Vera et al, 2012).…”

“…According to Vera et al (2012), failure to monitor the progress of their child (e.g., doing homework) was predicted by practical hurdles such as work schedules and availability. This is a logical conclusion, because it would be challenging to monitor their children's development if parents were not present at home when they were most likely to be doing their homework.…”

A Prevention Agenda for 2020 and Beyond: Why Environmental Interventions Matter Now More Than Ever

“…This work has included raising the awareness of parent and community leaders to better understand the nuances of engaging their immigrant parents in such structures and helping them to create better recruitment policies that result in these structures being more inclusive and representative of the diversity of the student base (Vera et al, 2017). Another focal point of our work has focused on empowering the constituency of parents of EL children, so that they are prepared to serve as advocates within the school system for their children (Vera et al, 2016).…”