Using Early Childhood Education to Build Social Capital among Immigrant Families

• In Event: Adults and Families in Early Childhood

Abstract

Recent studies offer insight into how ECE programs may serve a social function, or provide support for parents in terms of building social capital (Small, 2009) and for immigrant parents, integrating into U.S. society (Vandenbroeck, 2006). In particular ECE programs can offer opportunities for families to interact with others from diverse backgrounds, and for immigrants, spaces where they can learn about and develop resources for navigating a new host society with young children. Consequently, using qualitative methods this paper explores: 1) immigrant families’ experiences with early childhood education; and, 2) describes how immigrant families use ECE programs to build and maintain social capital important to raising young children in a new country.

Author

• Colleen Vesely, George Mason University