The nature of interactions between Chinese immigrant families and preschool staff: How culture,class,and methodology matter

Abstract

While the parental involvement field has progressed from asking what the impact of parental involvement is to how we can better involve parents, research has lagged in finding out how sociocultural and class differentials between homes and schools affect immigrant families’ interactions with schools. This case study uses ethnographic tools to examine the nature of interactions between 11 Chinese immigrant families and staff at a low-income preschool. Interview, participant observation, and textual data revealed that the nature in which staff interacted with parents was didactic and one-directional and depended upon parents’ economic–cultural–linguistic capital. Sociocultural differences between staff and parents complicated the interaction, and parental resistance was often misinterpreted. These findings are discussed in light of methodological issues in research as well as how to avoid letting stereotypes, and sociocultural and class differences, hamper the establishment of successful partnerships between schools and immigrant families.