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I found many factors that prevent parents from participating in school activities. I
thought the most common was when parents do not speak enough English and cannot
communicate with teachers and other school personnel (Ariza, 2002). This is completely
understandable. If a parent doesn’t know how to read English that well or speak it, they
will not be able to ask the teacher how their child is doing in school or what they can do
to help the child at home. This also brings up a barrier of helping their child at home
with their homework if the parent doesn’t know English. According to Ariza, “In the
American system, it is believed that parental involvement in the school system is the
salient factor affecting a child’s educational success (2000, p.37). Having programs for
parents’ to learn English would be beneficial for all schools to have. This would boost
their parent involvement and also teachers would be able to let parents know how their
child is doing, what can be done to better their child’s education, and services that the
school may offer to help their child out in areas that need attention.
Parents are expected to be involved in their child’s education, if not, the parent is
looked at as not caring. Assumptions arise about immigrant parents not being involved in
their child’s education. Most of the time it is because they are limited in English or in
their culture parents are not expected to communicate with the school unless there is a
problem (Ariza, 2000). Parental involvement can be interpreted is various ways
depending on the culture. They can include parental aspirations for their children’s
academic and vocational achievements, parents’ communications with their children’s
teachers, school-home relationships, and parents’ communication with their children
about school (Garcia Coll et al., 2002). It’s sad to think that we as teachers make these
judgments about our students’ families, when we really don’t know what is going on at
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home. We need to educate ourselves with different cultures, so we are knowledgeable of
the student’s culture when they come to class and we know what is the best way to reach
out to the parent. We want to make them feel welcomed and know that as a team we can
help their child excel. Whatever the view is on parent involvement, there are reasons
behind every cultures way of determining their involvement in their child’s education.
I’ve done research of the Philippine cultural and linguistic practices and have found an
appropriate situation to welcome their family to be involved in their child’s education.
Philippine families are very close with their extended family, such as uncles,
aunts, grandparents, and cousins. Their extended family might live in the same
household with the parents and child who is attending school. In the Philippines
education is compulsory and free between the ages of 7 and 12 (Asian). Most children
are enrolled in public schools and the main language of instruction is English (Asian).
Filipino and local dialects are sometimes used with the lower grades, but overall the
literacy rate of the adult population of the Philippines is about 94% (Asian). I thought
this was great to know, because after reading the assigned articles I now know that being
limited in English is a huge aspect why immigrant families are not involved in their
child’s education. Being that Philippine families are literate in English I feel that it
would be easier to get them involved in their child’s education if they didn’t know how
to. Philippine parents have strong feelings about their child’s education. They value
education and believe that it is the primary avenue for upward social and economic
mobility (Dolan, 1991). The parents and sometimes other family members pay to
put their child through higher education (Stanley). The Philippines adapted the
American idea of education, in which students get ahead through accomplishments
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of a good education (Dolan, 1991). Many Philippine parents make huge sacrifices in
order to provide secondary and higher education for their children (Dolan, 1991).
Sometimes the eldest child of the family also helps to put their siblings through
school (Stanley). The family works together to have each other educated. This
information is important to know. For example, if the Philippine child needs
services of some sort and the teacher speaks to the parents about having their child
tested, a decision might not be given right away. They might want to talk it over
with their extended family and come back with the decision they made together. I
find this similar to my own Hispanic culture because “family” is important to us and
we like to make a decision on what we all think is best for the “family.” The overall
attitudes of Filipinos are to be helpful to others when they are in need, close family
ties, and to live in harmony. They are a thoughtful culture that I believe will be easy
to get along with if their child was enrolled in my classroom. Philippines in America
have an easier transition than that of other cultures because their instruction is also
done in English in the Philippines. I thought this was such an advantage that the
Philippines have over other cultures because they know the grammar and are able
to pick up the content much faster because they understand the language and have
practiced it their school life. It would be harder for those children who come to the
United States at a young age and don’t know a word of English, but at least the
parents will be able to communicate with school personnel. Most Philippines are
most likely to use different dialects at home, but that doesn’t hold them back from
being involved in their child’s education or bringing up their concerns and questions
to the teacher (Stanley).
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After researching and talking to someone from the Philippines I found that
parent involvement is not so hard to accomplish with their culture. They value their
child’s education and want them to continue school and receive a higher education
as well. It is important to know where your students’ come from and what they
value because this gives me, as a teacher, the opportunity to reach out to their
parents. With parent involvement, the teacher and parent can decide on what is
best for the child and what they can do to have the child succeed in school. Since
Filipino families enjoy cooking and eating while conversing with others, I will invite
parents and their families to participate in a potluck in my classroom because this
will allow them to do what they love, while also finding out what their child is doing
in class, which will also bring up questions to the teacher (Stanley). I also think this
will allow the child to be proud of the work they have accomplished in class and
show their classmates a dish that their parents’ made. This will also open a door to
other questions regarding their culture, and this might lead to inviting the child’s
parents back to teach about their culture. Overall, this event could lead to so many
different activities to include the Philippine culture in.
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References
Ariza, E. N. (2000). Actions speak louder than words- or do they? Debunking the myth of
apathetic immigrant parents in education. Contemporary Education, 71, 36-38.
Ariza, E. N. (2002). Cultural considerations: Immigrant parent involvement. Kappa Delta
Pi Record, 38, 134-137.
Asian info. (2010). Retrieved from http://www.asianinfo.org/
Dolan, R. (1991). Philippines: A country study. Library of Congress. Retrieved from
http://countrystudies.us/philippines/
Garcia Coll, C., Akiba, D., Palacios, N., Baily, B., Silver, R., DiMartino, D., & Chin, C.
(2002). Parental involvement in children's education: Lessons from three
immigrant groups. Parenting, 2, 303-324.
Stanley, M. (2012, January 26). Interviewed by V. Stanley. St. Petersburg College,
Florida.
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Please Join
Us!!
Who: Parents, student, and
siblings.
What: We will have food, games,
and get a chance to see what
your child is working on in
class.
When: Come anytime between 5pm8pm
February 17th
Where: Apple Elementary School
7
Room 12
Why: We would like to get to
know our friends’ families while
showing all the hard work done
in class.
How: Please bring a dish that
you would like to share with our
class.