Making Math Fun: Fostering School-Home Partnerships Between Caregivers and Teachers

• In Event: Creating Spaces for Parents of Multilingual Children to Showcase Their Expertise and Understanding

Abstract

Objectives. Strong school-home partnerships benefit student learning (Author, 2025; Anhalt & Rodríguez-Pérez, 2013; Author, 2017; Kelley, 2020). Our project engaged Spanish-speaking caregivers (parents and guardians) of elementary aged children in authentic and meaningful learning around mathematics literacy that positioned caregivers as active and knowledgeable participants in their children’s education (Author, 2019). Caregivers attended five 2-hour workshops focused on 1) evidence-based instructional approaches that promote content learning for English Learners (Vaughn et al, 2009); 2) parental engagement that focuses on Latinx parents’ cultural and linguistic resources with particular attention to their home biliteracy and mathematics practices; and 3) caregivers beliefs and perceptions about the teaching and learning of mathematics literacy in dual language settings (Brenner & Moschkovich, 2002; Civil & Menéndez, 2011; O’Toole & Abreu, 2005). We explore the following question: How do Latinx caregivers process experiences when engaged with their children’s dual language teachers in authentic mathematics tasks?

Theoretical Framework. Each workshop was designed to draw upon caregiver knowledge and experiences, or Funds of Knowledge (Civil, 2007; González et al., 2005; Olivos, 2006; Valdés, 1996), grounded in socio-cultural theory. We leverage Civil and Andrade’s work (2003) which weaves together funds of knowledge and the need to listen to parents’ voices in mathematics by utilizing the funds of knowledge framework to theorize the importance of creating a two-way dialogue between home and school, in schools that serve culturally and linguistically diverse students in underserved communities.

Methods & Data. At the conclusion of the workshops, a team of five bilingual individuals conducted Spanish interviews with 22 caregivers in order to understand their experiences with supporting their elementary aged child’s mathematics and biliteracy development. Recordings were transcribed and translated to English. The team organized transcript data using an inductive coding framework designed around the interview questions. At three intervals, the team gathered to deductively update the framework (adding, removing, or modifying codes) to more authentically reflect caregiver responses.

Findings. Emerging themes from these interviews indicate the workshops 1) empowered caregivers to support their children’s mathematics success, 2) fostered authentic engagement between caregivers and teachers, 3) supported caregiver’s funds of knowledge, and 4) facilitated collaborative learning among caregivers. Commenting on the workshop’s efficacy, one participant noted: “My daughter now has more confidence to say, “Mom, can you teach me this?” Because she then says, “Because I know that they already explained this topic in school, in your class.” Another said: “It is important for the kids to see that math is not difficult, but instead like they used to say, “math is fun!”…You don’t have to be nervous or frustrated by a result you can’t get but instead try to understand math.”

Scholarly Significance. Lessons learned from the workshops and analysis of caregiver responses extends scholarship on community-based mathematics learning in bilingual populations. The findings enable us to iterate the workshop design to support caregiver’s funds of knowledge but also indicates the need to refine designs that empower caregivers agency with the learning mathematics.

Authors

• Madeleine Coole, SRI International

• Kathleen Jablon Stoehr, Santa Clara University

• Sara Rutherford-Quach, SRI Education

• Katherine Necochea-Tinco, SRI International

• Claudia Rodriguez-Mojica, University of California - Davis

• Allison Briceno, San José State University