Establishing the Construct of Work-School Interaction to Connect School, Work, and Home (Poster 42)

• In Event: AERA Poster Session Saturday 9:50 a.m.
  In Poster Session: Division L Section 8 Social Policy and Education: Poster Session

Abstract

Educational research has examined implications of parents’ educational involvement on child outcomes while other fields have examined mothers’ paid employment and child wellbeing. Neither body of research acknowledges the other, failing to capture lived realities of working mothers who navigate the institutions of work, home, and school in the course of their paid and unpaid labor. This study, drawing on low-income, mostly Black mothers’ (N=20) experiences, bridges these silos to establish the novel construct of work-school interaction. We use this construct to analyze how working mothers attempt to balance the demands of paid employment and school involvement, both of which they do for the benefit of their children. Implications will help policy advocates push for policy change across social institutions.

Authors

• Kathryn M. Wright, Wayne State University

• Kess Ballentine, Wayne State University