Nuestras Escuelas: Family Involvement for Undocumented Families

• In Event: Critical Educational Change: Culturally Responsive Leadership and Research Trends in the Borderland Context and Beyond

Abstract

This paper sheds light on constraints of family involvement in special education faced by undocumented Mexican immigrant. Motivated by national debate and the current political climate, the researcher provides undocumented Mexican immigrant families an opportunity to voice their experiences and challenges when attempting to participate in their children’s special education program. The researcher formulated a theory that explains the difficulty parents encounter to become involved in their child’s school.

Perspective(s) or theoretical framework:
By applying grounded theory as a qualitative methodology, a theory was allowed to emerge from the data collected. The data and stories of those normally silent, allows the researcher to lend a voice to participants (Charmaz & Belgrave, 2018), and led to the formulation of an institutional barrier theory.

Methods:

To identify barriers to family involvement faced by families a qualitative grounded theory approach was conducted, which included simultaneous data collection and analysis, developing codes and categories, constant comparison, theme identification, memo-writing, and purposeful sampling. An important characteristic of grounded theory is setting aside any hypothesis that the researcher may have to allow the theory to be grounded in the data (Charmaz, 2006).
Data sources and evidence:
Individual interviews of five family members from different families were made possible through collaboration with two non-profit organizations serving families of children with special needs in Southwestern United States. Interviews opened with the grand tour question, “what barriers undermine family involvement of families with children receiving special education services?”. The researcher constantly compared and analyzed the data derived from interviews to identify differences and similarities of participants until a theory could be formulated.

The study resulted in 149 barriers, with seven common themes emerging from interviews and analysis. Themes included disrespectful behavior, lack of English language, discrimination, intimidation, Admission, Review, and Dismissal process, information, and direct denial. An institutional barrier theory emerged, the “Gauntlet theory”, which inhibited a family's ability to participate in the education of their children. As parents attempt to participate in the education of their children, they encounter many difficulties that minimize their involvement and further increase the divide between families and educational institutions. These obstacles and systems allow for some families to participate while others are excluded. It is only through persistence and sometimes force, in the form of advocates, that the Gauntlet can be navigated successfully.
Scholarly significance of the study or work:

Parent support is a predictor of academic achievement for Mexican descent adolescents (Altschul, 2011). This study identified obstacles to family involvement that undocumented Mexican immigrant families face and suggest leadership approaches and policy changes that facilitate school and family interactions. Although research has described the impact of having family involvement in the education of children, there is little research focused on the experiences of undocumented Mexican immigrants. The theory formulated from the themes identified show the importance of developing training that enhances the understanding of school faculty and staff who work with undocumented Mexican immigrant families.

Author

• Santiago Morales, El Paso Community College
  Presenting Author