Fostering the Home-School Connection Between Preservice Teachers and Culturally/Linguistically Diverse Families Through “Family Suitcases”

• In Event: Roundtable Session 2
  In Roundtable Session: Building Preservice Teachers’ Understanding of Family Involvement Through Meaningful Pedagogy

Abstract

In this paper I share the results of a qualitative study that aimed to identify the impact of implementing a home-school connection project in which pre-service teachers, through a 16 week long field placement, were able to work with culturally and linguistically diverse students and families and learn from them. Findings demonstrated that these pre-service teachers gained a better appreciation for these families, met the academic needs of the children with whom they worked through the creation of materials that targeted specific needs (as opposed to perceived needs), and helped them change their (mis)conceptions of diverse parents and students as they worked with them.

Author

• Carla Amaro-Jimenez, The University of Texas - Arlington