Abstract
Families from culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) backgrounds often feel disrespected, unheard, misunderstood, and undervalued. Extant research demonstrates that CLD families have considerably lower levels of participation in their children's education. The incongruence between families and the educational system's cultural values and practices may result in barriers limiting families' agency in educational decision-making. Families from nondominant cultures may not ascribe to the practices that guide the special education system, which reflect the dominant culture (i.e., white and middle-class). For families to be active agents in their student's educational decision-making (including special education), the barriers created by the perceptions of power imbalances must be broken down, and the onus of this task falls on the shoulders of those employed by the public school system. Culturally responsive family engagement that incorporates cultural liaisons can empower CLD families to have agency in their child's educational plan.
TopBackground
The terms parent involvement and family engagement appear to be similar; however, researchers argue that the meanings in actuality are disparate from each other (Baker et al., 2016; Ferlazzo, 2011; Goodall & Montgomery, 2014; Ishimaru et al., 2016; Ishimaru, 2019). Involvement constitutes one-way communication, placing families on the receiving end of the special education process (Ferrara, 2011; Ferlazzo, 2011; Goodall & Montgomery, 2014; Ishimaru, 2019). The limiting view of parent involvement perpetuates the power differential that often occurs in special education, especially for families from CLD backgrounds (Buren et al., 2020; Rossetti et al., 2020). Involvement constitutes participation in school-based activities, such as being present during activities sanctioned by the school (Baker et al., 2016; Christenson & Sheridan, 2001; Ferrara, 2011; Huscroft-D'Angelo et al., 2022; Love et al., 2021). Ferlazzo (2011) indicated that parent involvement results in schools dictating what parents should do to be involved. Parental involvement is a deficit approach that assumes parents must be fixed (Ishimaru et al., 2016). Love and colleagues (2021) argue that parent involvement as it is conceived perpetuates a power differential between the family and school. Research highlights that the special education process, especially for CLD families, continues to limit the ability for families to become engaged (Rossetti et al., 2020). Likewise, legislation such as the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA-2004), as well as previous versions of the law, reinforces the concept of parental involvement to the detriment of families from CLD backgrounds by mandating how families should engage in the special education process, further buttressing a power differential between the school and family, especially for families from the nondominant culture (Love et al., 2021).
Key Terms in this Chapter
Funds of Knowledge: The “essential cultural practices and bodies of knowledge that are embedded in the daily practices and routines of families” ( Moll et al., 1992 AU77: The citation "Moll et al., 1992" matches multiple references. Please add letters (e.g. "Smith 2000a"), or additional authors to the citation, to uniquely match references and citations. ).
Culturally Responsive Practice: Embracing culture, language, and personal experiences as beneficial assets in connecting the home and community to classroom learning.
Family Engagement: Creating a strong family and school collaboration that values and uses bidirectional communication, ensuring that families are viewed as assets in student learning throughout life.
Cultural Liaison: An individual “designed to support families, students, and the school team by bridging linguistic and cultural gaps so that the school can be more culturally competent and families can better understand and relate to the school culture” (Gee & Zebehazy, 2020 p.250).
Cultural Broker: An advocate who engages purposefully to connect people of differing cultural backgrounds to improve collaboration (Rosetti et al., 2018 AU76: The in-text citation "Rosetti et al., 2018" is not in the reference list. Please correct the citation, add the reference to the list, or delete the citation. ).
Cultural Capital: Essential knowledge and skills individuals draw upon from their lived experiences and society.