Parents in poverty and science education reform: A relational systems approach

本研究的重点是在贫困的城市社区的家长和他们建立的关系，他们在小学，积极实施改革为基础的科学教育中发挥的作用。我们打算将研究围绕父母和科学教育，超越不发达的信念，父母的参与对学生有好处。 我们想知道，在城市贫困地区，参与学校科学改革工作的家长是如何与参与学校科学改革的其他人协商他们的行动和理解的，以及一个关系系统模型如何有助于对家长在城市贫困地区学校科学改革中扮演的角色提供新的见解。因为我们关注的是城市贫困的家长，因为我们打算了解家长参与学校科学改革的复杂性和深度，我们将共同努力，从社区、家庭无家可归者收容所吸引一半的家长参与者。考虑到20%的儿童在城市贫困地区上学，以及本研究所代表的城市为大量无家可归的家庭提供支持，这些问题意义重大。 具体来说，这REPP提案概述了一个研究计划，旨在分析性质，质量和父母的关系和互动的影响，在奥斯汀，德克萨斯州的贫困城市儿童服务的小学，正在努力提高科学教学的范围和精神，目前的科学教育改革举措。 人们普遍认为，在城市里，只要有好的学校，就能找到有爱心、有动力的父母，但很难在日常实践中构建一个关于父母互动的账户，这个账户超出了一个普遍的信念，即有爱心、有动力的父母在有效的学校改革中很重要，或者是“好父母”为孩子的教育所做的事情的清单。 使用质的研究方法，我们将研究以下问题：-信念和行动。 贫困城市环境中的家长如何看待发起科学教育改革的学校中科学教育的“最佳做法”，他们认为自己在帮助实施这一进程中的作用是什么？在科学教育改革过程中，父母的这种信念如何与其他人（儿童、教师、行政人员、社区领导人）对最佳做法和父母在这一过程中的作用的期望“相称”？ 父母在家里做什么来实现他们的信念？在社区？在学校？维持关系。贫困城市环境中的家长如何就信念和实践达成共识，并与学校内部的行为者（教师、管理人员及其子女）建立可持续的关系，以便根据当前的最佳实践理念重塑科学教育，特别是当他们的信念和实践与这些受众的期望不同时？ 这些关系的性质和品质是什么？什么样的支持结构（制度，物质，智力）维持这些互动和关系？科学教育改革。 记录和分析家长和学校内行为者之间维持关系的形成、性质和质量--以及这些关系所支持的信念和行动--以何种方式阐明了为贫困城市中心的儿童实施科学教育的学校改革的意义？ 我们如何在科学教育改革中发展、完善和实施这一模式？

The focus of this research is on parents in poor urban communities and the relationships they establish and the roles they play in elementary schools that are active in implementing reform-based science education. We intend to move the research around parents and science education beyond the underdeveloped belief that parent participation is good for students. We want to know what this participation looks like in centers of urban poverty involved in school science reform efforts, how parents negotiate their actions and understandings with others involved in school science reform, and how a relational systems model might help to shed new insights on the roles parents play in school science reform in poor urban areas. Because we are focusing on parents in urban poverty and because we intend to understand the complexity and depth of parent participation in school science reform, we will make a concerted effort to draw half of the parent participant pool from community, family homeless shelters. These questions are significant given that 20% of all children attend school in urban poverty, and the city represented in this study supports large numbers of homeless families. Specifically, this REPP proposal outlines a program of research designed to analyze the nature, qualities, and impact of parental relationships and interactions in elementary schools serving poor urban children in Austin, TX that are working to improve science instruction within the scope and spirit of current science education reform initiatives. While it is generally acknowledged that where you find good urban schools you will find caring and motivated parents, it has been difficult to construct an account of parental interaction, grounded in everyday practice, that goes beyond either a general belief that caring and motivated parents matter in effective school reform or a laundry list of things that "good parents" do for their children's education. Using qualitative research methodology, we will research the following questions:- BELIEFS AND ACTIONS. How do parents in poor urban settings perceive "best practice" in science education in schools initiating science education reform, and what do they see as their role in helping to enact such a process? How do such parental beliefs "measure up" against expectations held by others in the science education reform process (children, teachers, administrators, community leaders) about best practice and parents' roles in such a process? What do parents do to enact their beliefs: at home? in the community? at schools?- SUSTAINING RELATIONSHIPS. How do parents in poor urban settings negotiate common understandings about beliefs and practices and build sustaining relationships with each other and with actors within the school (teachers, administrators, and their children) in school districts acting to reshape science education in line with current ideas of best practice, especially if and when their beliefs and practices differ from expectations held by these audiences? What are the nature and qualities of these relationships? What kinds of support structures (institutional, material, intellectual) sustain these interactions and relationships?- SCIENCE EDUCATION REFORM. In what ways does documenting and analyzing the formation, nature, and qualities of sustaining relationships between parents and actors within schools- and the kinds of beliefs and actions those relationships support-shed light on what it means to enact school reform in science education for children in poor urban centers? How might we develop, refine, and implement this model in science education reform?