Educational equity for all : a qualitative case study exploring the perceptions of Hispanic parents regarding parental engagement at a rural Title I high school in Southwest Texas.

The implications of decreased educational attainment among Hispanic students and the growth of this demographic necessitate examining Hispanic parental involvement initiatives. Parental involvement increases the chances of success for K–12 students from racially minoritized groups and assists educators in fostering equitable education for all students (Epstein, 1995; Hoover‐Dempsey et al., 2005). Emphasizing parental involvement is necessary to reduce the achievement gap and support students from racially minoritized groups. This study investigated the perceptions of Hispanic parents and the factors that influence their involvement in their child's education. This qualitative descriptive case study used the first two levels of the Hoover-Dempsey et al. (2005) model of parental involvement, which involve parents' motivational beliefs, perceptions, life context, location of involvement, and types of parental involvement, to examine Hispanic parents' perceptions and shed light on the positive and negative factors that could facilitate or impede their involvement. Using the framework as a guide, I collected through surveys and semi-structured interviews. I analyzed the data manually using Microsoft Excel. The findings indicated several factors that impeded and facilitated Hispanic parents' involvement. The research revealed that feelings of welcomeness, inclusion, comfort, and confidence in the subject matter facilitated parental involvement. Conversely, a lack of invitation from teachers, apathy from the child, unidirectional communication from the school, uncertainty of impact, and low parental self-efficacy all impeded involvement. Ways to increase the quality of parental involvement included providing parents with guidance in assisting their child with homework, opportunities to build genuine parent-teacher relationships, and avenues to discuss their child's school progress with them. The findings of this study contribute to promoting educational equity for Hispanic students by fostering robust parental involvement initiatives, thus supporting positive student success outcomes. This study underscores the importance of culturally sensitive approaches in parental involvement strategies, ultimately aiming to improve educational outcomes for Hispanic students.

Name thesis:degree_name

Ed.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Doctoral

Grantor

Baylor University.

Year dc:date.issued

2024

Author dc:creator

• Rubalcaba, Krystal Zamora, 1995-

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Pratt, Sarah Smitherman.

• Hispanic students.
• Hispanic parental involvement.
• Title I schools.
• Rural school districts.
• Racially minoritized students.
• Educational equity.

Statement dc:rights

• Baylor University works are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. Contact libraryquestions@baylor.edu for inquiries about permission.

Language dc:language.iso

en

Handle dc:identifier.uri

https://hdl.handle.net/2104/13077

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:baylor-ir.tdl.org:2104/13077