Abstract:

A huge achievement gap exists in the current U.S. educational system, and children from refugee families often lag behind their peers academically (DeCapua & Marshall, 2015; Ladson-Billings, 2006). The U.S. system of education relies upon families partnership in ways that are culturally-determined, yet little is known about the nuances of the gap in family-professional partnership within the refugee population.

Family-professional partnerships occur when families and education professionals regard each other as reliable allies, and education professionals provide families with multiple opportunities for meaningful participation in their children’s education (Author, 2013). Ample research demonstrates that family-professional partnerships lead to positive outcomes for students, educators, families, and communities. Family-professional partnerships can result in increased student achievement, pro-academic behavior, and consistent attendance and in decreased achievement gaps between groups of students (Bryan & Henry, 2012; Ferguson, 2008; Giovacco-Johnson, 2009; Goddard, Tschannen-Moran, & Hoy, 2001; Lawson, 2003). These partnerships also improve educator skills and instruction, including increasing cultural responsiveness (Kalyanpur & Harry, 2012; Lawson, 2003). Families benefit from such partnerships through enhanced family satisfaction, understanding, social connections, and parenting skills (Blue-Banning, Summers, Frankland, Nelson, & Beegle, 2004, Henderson & Mapp, 2002; Hill & Taylor, 2004). A correlation also exists between family-professional partnerships and lower levels of stress among mothers who have children with disabilities (Burke & Hodapp, 2014).

Despite its importance, research suggests that the realities of partnership generally fall short (Author, 2015), and families of students from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds are at a heightened disadvantage in partnering with education professionals (Blue-Banning et al., 2004; Kalyanpur & Harry, 2012). Strong partnerships are especially important in refugee resettlement communities, where families are new to the U.S. school system and have usually experienced different expectations of involvement and relationships with teachers where they lived previously. These families also have much to learn about the American educational system, yet limited access to pertinent information (Perry, 2009). Very little research about family-professional partnership between refugee families and their children’s schools is currently available, however.

This study explored the nuances of family-professional partnership with refugee families and their children’s teachers. We holistically examined family-professional partnership practice within local school districts that serve refugee students as well as the perspectives about family-professional partnership of refugee families, their children, their children’s teachers, multilingual liaisons, and administrators. Adopting an ecological perspective (Bronfenbrenner, 1986), we examined:
(a) educational practice for partnering with refugee families;
(b) refugee families’ perceptions and practices for partnering with their children’s teachers; and
(c) educational professionals’ perceptions and practices for partnering with their students’ families.

Keywords:

Family-professional partnership, refugees, collaboration.