Empowering Parents’ Choice of School for Their Children: A Phenenomological Study
Location
1052
Format Type
Event
Format Type
Paper
Start Date
January 2018
End Date
January 2018
Abstract
The school choice option of public schools have grown rapidly over the past several decades and school choice gives parents greater power over their children’s education. Parents’ views can shape their children’s perceptions about school, affect their levels of family-school engagement, and influence their residential and school enrollment decisions. The purpose of this study was to gather data from a public school parents that would contribute to the understanding of parental involvement with school choice for their children and of parental involvement with educational organizations. The authors used a qualitative phenomenological study methodology to explore 22 multi-racial parents perceptions’ about school of the climate and their child’s school choice. Our comprehensive in-depth semi-structured interviews, field notes, observations, and documents data collection process incorporated feedback from potential respondents from the outset of the design process to enhance data quality. Verbatim transcripts and documents were analyzed using a content and thematic analysis approach. Four over-arching themes were identified; (i) factors that parents value in schools, (ii) concerns about other school choices, (iii) the features and programs that appeal to parents, and (iv) parental perception of chosen school. The findings of this study revealed that parents’ choice school for their children was where better served, school’s programs and features offered appealed to most of participants’, strong academic program, school climate, and culture, and embraced diversity and multicultural atmospheres, safe and secure place that fostered focus on instruction in a small caring environment as well. The discussion and conclusion shared implications and avenues for further research.
Empowering Parents’ Choice of School for Their Children: A Phenenomological Study
1052
The school choice option of public schools have grown rapidly over the past several decades and school choice gives parents greater power over their children’s education. Parents’ views can shape their children’s perceptions about school, affect their levels of family-school engagement, and influence their residential and school enrollment decisions. The purpose of this study was to gather data from a public school parents that would contribute to the understanding of parental involvement with school choice for their children and of parental involvement with educational organizations. The authors used a qualitative phenomenological study methodology to explore 22 multi-racial parents perceptions’ about school of the climate and their child’s school choice. Our comprehensive in-depth semi-structured interviews, field notes, observations, and documents data collection process incorporated feedback from potential respondents from the outset of the design process to enhance data quality. Verbatim transcripts and documents were analyzed using a content and thematic analysis approach. Four over-arching themes were identified; (i) factors that parents value in schools, (ii) concerns about other school choices, (iii) the features and programs that appeal to parents, and (iv) parental perception of chosen school. The findings of this study revealed that parents’ choice school for their children was where better served, school’s programs and features offered appealed to most of participants’, strong academic program, school climate, and culture, and embraced diversity and multicultural atmospheres, safe and secure place that fostered focus on instruction in a small caring environment as well. The discussion and conclusion shared implications and avenues for further research.
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