| Effective communication between schools and the parents of the students they serve is an important educational goal. Parent school relationships may be influenced by the closeness of the match between parental expectations and perceptions of their children's schools. However, little is known about the patterns of interaction when parents and school personnel do not share a common language. This study provides readers with a detailed profile of five Mexican mothers' views regarding the school their children attended. Learning about participants' prior experiences in Mexico provided a basis for understanding parental expectation and communication patterns with the school. The research questions that guided this study were: (1) How do Mexican mothers communicate with their children's school? and (2) What prior experiences in Mexico influence mothers' perceptions and expectations regarding their children's education?; Five Mexican mothers whose children attended an ethnically diverse elementary school were selected as key informants. The homes of these families in a metropolitan neighborhood were the primary sites for the study. Additional sites included the elementary school, social service offices, community festivals, places of business, and local restaurants. Data were collected for seven months through personal narratives, attendance at cultural events and meetings, interviews, observations, and examination of life histories. Data analysis involved coding, peer debriefing, collaborative data analysis, and comparative analysis through data displays.; English proficiency, literacy levels, Latino parent meetings, and the presence of the bilingual parent liaison influenced home-school communication patterns. Perceptions and expectations of the children's current school were related to comparisons with prior life experiences. Implications for practice include the importance of bilingual parent liaisons and a variety of strategies to foster communication. Further research is needed on the influences of immigration status and length of residence on parent-school relationships. |
