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African American Parental Engagement In A Public Middle School: Contributing Factors, Laura J. Mcgowan-Robinson

LMU/LLS Theses and Dissertations

Parental engagement with schools is often considered one of the major contributing factors to a child’s success in school. There is not, however, a definition of parental engagement that takes into account the social, historical, and cultural factors that shape a parent’s view of their own engagement. This qualitative case study examines how African American parents in a high poverty, urban, charter middle school, come to understand practices and beliefs at their child’s school, while building relationships with other parents and school staff. Through the lenses of critical race theory and cultural-historical activity theory, the researcher analyzes how the convergence …