Barriers and opportunities to school-based parent involvement: Implications for adolescent violence prevention

Parents' involvement in their child's school has been associated with decreased interpersonal violence in schools. School-based parent involvement (SBPI), however, is low among parents with low socioeconomic status. Increased SBPI may help reduce school violence.

This research explored barriers and opportunities to SBPI among low-income urban parents. In-depth clinical interviews were conducted with 44 parents (63% mothers and 37% other relation) of adolescents attending high violence middle schools in Baltimore, MD. Two coders independently coded recurring themes in the interview transcripts.

Nearly all parents expressed concern about the high levels of violence at their child's school. Many parents reported SBPI that centered on managing their child's behavior, including unannounced visits to their child's classroom and meetings with teachers/administrators to resolve conflicts involving their child. Few parents indicated volunteering, or attending PTA and other school activities. Most parents reported negative interactions with school personnel, and perceived minimal efforts by schools to foster positive interactions. Although some parents were interested in more SBPI, other parents harbored strong mistrust of the school and expressed no desire to become involved. Schools and parents must overcome these and other barriers to increase SBPI, including parents' work schedules and the schools' miscommunication of SBPI opportunities. Parents' visits to the school may be missed opportunities for school staff to build positive, trusting relationships with parents and inform parents of SBPI activities. Albeit a major challenge, improving the experiences of parents in schools may help parents expand their SBPI and thereby, contribute to school violence prevention efforts.