Parent-school Partnerships Research Articles

The Perceptions Parents of Dyslexic Children Have on Barriers to Meaningful Parent–School Partnerships in Australia

ABSTRACT The relationship between schools and parents has evolved over recent years and is now recognized as a valuable and bi-directional partnership in the educative process. This partnership is of particular significance for parents with a dyslexic child, playing a vital role in ensuring success within the school and beyond. Using a unique conceptual lens of parental allyship, this paper reports on an investigation that employed semi-structured interviews to investigate the experiences of ten Australian parents of dyslexic children and the actions they undertook to meet their child’s needs within the school. Using qualitative content analysis, we explored the nature and impact of these experiences on both the parents and the parent–school partnership. Findings indicate that parents develop a level of expertise in their allyship to their child and this expertise is not always welcomed by the school. In addition, parents perceived interpersonal and systemic barriers that hindered both the parent–school partnership and the support provided to their dyslexic child. The paper contributes unique insights into the perspectives of parents on how parent–school policy is enacted at a school level, and raises consideration for a greater focus on parent–school partnerships for the future educational success of dyslexic children.

Exploring Differences in Spanish- and English-Speaking Parents’ Experiences With Individualized Education Program Meetings

This study aimed to explore the experiences of parents ( N = 177; Spanish-speaking and English-speaking parents) of children with disabilities navigating the special education process. This descriptive study collected quantitative and qualitative data through an electronic survey. Results describe Spanish- and English-speaking parent’s experience during Individualized Education Program (IEP) meetings, challenges in attending IEP meetings, special education knowledge, participation during IEP meetings, feelings of discrimination, parental stress, and dissatisfaction with special education services. Spanish-speaking parents reported less special education rights knowledge and feeling more discrimination at IEP meetings in comparison to English speakers and reported language barriers and inadequate interpretation services as challenges to attending an IEP meeting. Findings highlight the need for equitable parent-school partnerships to support and empower all families. Awareness of the unique experiences of Spanish-speaking families may further equitable school efforts to serve this population and other linguistically diverse parents.

Parental Allyship for Children With Dyslexia: A Conceptual Lens on Disability Experience

Current understandings of disability experience are centered around individuals who hold the disability identity and membership in the marginalized group. This perspective does not include the experiences of disability allies, such as parents, who act alongside their children to support their access and engagement in the education setting. This partial perspective is of concern because it does not reflect the depth and complexity of disability experience for those in allyship roles. This paper builds on current understandings of disability experience by introducing an emerging conceptual lens that defines and describes the nature of disability experience for those acting in allyship roles. Attention is focused on children with dyslexia and their parents to illustrate this conceptual lens. Extending on ecological models of interactions and understandings of subjective experience, the authors highlight how the proximity of the parental experience to the child’s dyslexic identity shapes parental allyship and present a lens of disability experience that includes primary, vicarious, and primary adjacent experience. The proposed conceptual lens offers researchers and educators an opportunity to view disability experience and allyship from an alternative perspective, and in doing so, consider a broader understanding of disability experience and allyship that would potentially provide insights into parent–school partnerships.

Parent Involvement to Enhance Students’ Learning in Lingmethang Cluster Schools of Bhutan

Research has consistently demonstrated the influential role of parental involvement in the academic success and overall well-being of students at various grade levels. This paper synthesizes and analyzes findings from a multitude of studies that underscore the significance of parents' active participation in their children's education.
 Parental involvement and parent-school partnership strategies are critical factors to children’s academic success. In this qualitative case study, parents’, teachers’, and administrators’ perceptions of parental involvement and parent-school partnership strategies were examined in Lingmethang cluster schools under Mongar District, Bhutan. The study also focused on exploring the parents’ understanding of their involvement in schooling processes based on the six typologies of Epstein.
 This study adopted a qualitative case study employing interview, observation and document analysis tools. A purposeful sampling method was used in the study. Nine parents, nine teachers, and nine administrators participated in the study. Data was collected and analyzed. The findings revealed that most parents are more involved in non-academic activities than academic activities. Barriers that parents, teachers, and administrators encountered in relation to school involvement and support are also noted. It was perceived that parental, school, and community involvement were important for children’s academic success and that parent-school partnerships and support were critically necessary.
 By synthesizing and critically examining these findings, this paper contributes to a better understanding of the vital role parents play in shaping the educational journey of their children. It emphasizes the importance of fostering strong partnerships between schools and families to promote student success and holistic development. The implications of the research findings are also suggested for future research.

Parent Involvement with Their Children's Schools: Perceptions of Saudi Parents of Elementary School Students with Learning Disabilities

AbstractThis exploratory, qualitative study investigated the perceptions of Saudi Arabian parents of elementary school‐aged children with learning disabilities with regard to their involvement in their children's education. Guided by results of previous research conducted primarily with Western samples, and using a semistructured interview methodology followed by thematic phenomenological analyses, specific interview topics included parental perceptions of (a) the importance of parent–school partnerships, (b) the means of encouraging a parent–school relationship, and (c) how school practices may affect parental participation. The study involved 13 parents of children in elementary education (ages 7–12 years) diagnosed with learning disabilities. The results suggest several ways to overcome the involvement barriers reported by parents.

Inclusive Education of Students With Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities and PK-12 Leadership: Introduction to Special Issue

Increasing equity and access to inclusive environments requires a complex intersection of people, policies, practices, and procedures at the state, district, school, and education team level. At the macro level, equitable systems change requires systematic investigation of the structural barriers embedded and perpetuated within the very educational system purported to help close the achievement gap for those who have been marginalized in our PK-12 education systems (Ryndak et al., 2014). At the micro level, change requires an examination of how individuals navigate systemic barriers.Focusing on issues associated with PK-12 education leadership and students with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD) has the potential to address the deeply rooted critical inequities that students with disabilities face regarding access to quality education with same age-grade non-disabled peers occurring across the globe. The manuscripts in this special issue represent a multi-level system focus on inclusive practices and provide actionable recommendations for PK-12 leaders as they address issues of access and inclusion for students with IDD.Choiseul-Praslin et al. examine mothers' experiences in the IEP process. The findings indicate that PK-12 education leaders must make systemic efforts to empower mothers (and all parents and families) during the IEP process in order to improve parent-school partnerships. Similarly, three manuscripts in this issue highlight the need for PK-12 leaders to reconsider the content gaps for students with IDD and how access to school-wide structures is or is not provided to all students. Specifically, they highlight the need for instructional content and practices that provide opportunities to gain self-determination skills, access technology, and be a part of system-wide positive behavior supports.Fisher et al. present findings that demonstrate a concerning lack of digital access for students with IDD, which results in greater digital isolation and fewer opportunities for social interaction. Similarly, Zagona et al. address how students with IDD should and could be included in the school-wide positive intervention and behavior support (SWPBIS) systems. These articles include recommendations for how PK-12 educational leaders can support practitioners in providing fidelity in instruction, and access to content and structures that are lacking for students with IDD. They include policy, procedure, and practice recommendations that are particularly pertinent for PK-12 leaders as they focus on expectations for teacher training and school structures, and decision-making around investment approaches.Approaching sustainable change through a multilevel system-wide approach is also reflected in the policy implementation research of Cosier et al. included in this special issue. The authors found relationships between probability of placement and district socioeconomic status and size. These results present items for consideration for policy-makers and district leaders as they consider placement decisions for students with IDD as well as associated factors such as teacher and leader professional learning.Overall, the collection of articles in this special issue represent the multi-level system-wide approach to inclusive practices necessary for education leaders to consider as they move toward increasing equity and access for students with IDD. Considering this finding within the larger context of systemic and structural racism, classism, and ableism in our education systems (Annamma, 2018), it is vital that all components of the education system be scrutinized for structural policies, practices, and procedures that support an unbalanced power dynamic, especially one that continues to deny access to general education classes for students with IDD. This special issue presents approaches for consideration for PK-12 education leaders as they design and implement this important work.

Mothers' Perceptions of Satisfaction, Trust, and Power in the Individualized Education Program Process

Abstract Parent involvement in the development of an individualized education program (IEP) is a foundational tenet of the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Unfortunately, mothers, the parent most likely to attend the IEP meeting, often report negative perceptions and even feelings of disillusion with the IEP process. Including mothers as equal members of the IEP team is crucial to student success, especially for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). To determine the extent of mothers' satisfaction, trust, and perception of the power of the IEP process, we surveyed 929 mothers of students with disabilities. Survey results indicate mothers are neither overly satisfied nor dissatisfied with the process, but almost always perceive an imbalance of power between IEP team members. A high percentage of mothers reported experiences with bullying, coercion, and shame. The findings suggest that more efforts are needed to empower mothers during the IEP process and improve parent-school partnerships.

Parent involvement in education? A Foucauldian discourse analysis of school newsletters

The Ontario Ministry of Education ( 2010 ) puts forth parent involvement as a solution for underachievement and as a resource for building better schools. A Foucauldian discourse analysis of school newsletters reveals that efforts to engage parents also function as a neoliberal strategy designed to govern parents. Using Foucault’s theory of governmentality, I show how the newsletters compel parents to invest in their children’s schooling and judge their value as parents in relation to their ability to produce good neoliberal citizens. I discuss how the newsletters depict ‘good’ parents as those who: (1) do not offer input into schooling; (2) make education a parenting priority and (3) raise good neoliberal citizens. The newsletters represent a strategy for cultivating neoliberal parents who do not ask more from schools and instead demand more of themselves in terms of preparing their children for school and for life. Problems with this approach are that: it asks parents to take up their children’s schooling in ways that push out other family priorities and it shuts down potential collaborations between parents and schools that could challenge neoliberal subjecthood. I call for reformulating discourses of ‘good’ involvement in ways that allow for more equal parent–school partnerships.

What is Parent Engagement in Early Learning? Depends Who You Ask

ObjectivesParent engagement in early learning has historically been defined quite broadly and it is unclear whether those designing, implementing, evaluating, or participating in parent engagement initiatives conceptualize parent engagement in the same way. Lack of consensus could contribute to poor quality of parent-school partnerships and reliance on parent engagement measures and strategies that lack meaning and utility. We explored and compared definitions and characteristics of parent engagement in early learning across multiple stakeholders in one urban school district serving predominantly low-income, African American, and Latinx families.MethodsUsing a qualitative descriptive design, we individually interviewed 63 parents (n = 23), teachers (n = 8), early childhood staff (n = 8), district leaders (n = 7), and community leaders (n = 8) to understand how each defined parent engagement in early learning and the characteristics they believed were indicative of an engaged parent.ResultsNine different definitions were described; the majority centering on parents’ responsibilities for ensuring engagement. We found wide differences within and across stakeholder groups in how parent engagement is defined and operationalized.ConclusionsThere was little consensus in how parent engagement was conceptualized, suggesting there may be different working models for how stakeholders believe parent engagement supports early learning. Three potential parent engagement models are discussed in relation to the qualitative findings. This is the first study to directly compare different stakeholders’ perspectives about parent engagement in early learning in an urban school system serving a large number of low income families and families of color.

Reintegration to secondary education following school exclusion: An exploration of the relationship between home and school from the perspective of parents

Aim:This study aimed to investigate the factors in the parent—school1relationship that facilitate reintegration to secondary education after school exclusion, from the perspective of parents.Rationale:Against a background of increased school exclusions and renewed calls for parent—school partnerships, understanding the parental perspective is essential in promoting collaborative approaches to reintegration.Method:Semi-structured interviews were conducted with three parents whose children had undergone the process of exclusion and reintegration within the previous year. A qualitative design was adopted using interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) as the methodology.Findings:Parents in this study saw exclusion and reintegration as parts of one whole process. Three main themes describing their experience emerged: Parent-child relationship, parent-school relationship and the experience of time, the latter two of which are explored in this article. Within the parent-school relationship, Communication, Collaboration and a perception of the school’s Commitment to reintegration – the three ‘Cs ’ of reintegration – were seen as fundamental to successful reintegration. The parental experience of time in relation to their children’s past and future opportunities also featured prominently.Limitations:In keeping with IPA’s idiographic approach, this study focused on a small sample of participants and cannot claim generalisability. However, by providing an in-depth understanding of the participants’ accounts, the study aimed to capture something of the essence of the parental experience of home-school relationships during exclusion and reintegration.

The Fight Within: Parent-Educators Advocating for their Children with Autism Inside their Own School Districts

Parents have advocated for the educational rights of their children with disabilities for decades, and more so since the reauthorization of the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Advocating for one’s child while working as an employee in the same school district where your child receives special education services comes with unforeseen complexities. Using a heuristic case study approach, this inquiry intended to discern the experiences, barriers, and perceptions of job security of two parent-educators with children with autism. Findings suggest unanticipated experiences and challenges within their dual, parent-educator role as indicated by the theory of responsible advocacy. Perceived employment consequences related to advocating from within the school system are also discussed along with implications for such parent-educators and their role in improving parent–school partnerships in special education.

Specifying the contributions of parents as pedagogues: Insights for parent–school partnerships

Research strongly suggests that learning outcomes improve with increased parental involvement in school settings, and policy in Australia aligns by encouraging schools to work in ‘partnership’ with parents and communities. The Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership endorses the requirement of graduate teachers to ‘engage with the parents/carers’ and encourages parents in classrooms. However, a research gap exists regarding exactly what it is that parents might contribute to the classroom and how these contributions improve learning outcomes for all children. This case study reports on a parent-instigated program in one school, affording deeper insight into the potential of parent contributions to support learning outcomes for all students. An ecological stance on learning (applying theory from both ecological and environmental psychology) frames the research, and findings reveal some insights into the legitimacy of parent contributions that can support teachers to engage parents in pedagogical ways, enabling functional parent–school partnerships at the local community level.

Exploring Opportunities and Challenges in Parent–School Partnerships in Special Needs Schools in the Gauteng Province, South Africa

In this study, opportunities and challenges in parent–school partnerships in special needs schools were explored as the researchers’ noted that parents were usually reluctant to participate in curricular planning, learning support provisioning and the development of Individual Education Support Plans. Three focus group interviews were conducted with parents and data were analysed for recurrent themes within an interpretive framework. The challenges identified were related to family emotional stability, socio-economic constraints and the stigma of attending a special educational needs (SEN) school. Since parents’ experience trauma when placing their children in a SEN school, they turn towards the school for emotional support and guidance. However, parents felt disconnected from the school by inadequate teacher knowledge of family circumstances, insufficient opportunities for interaction amongst families and limited school communication to parents. These challenges led to misconceptions by parents and subsequent marginalizing of many families from the school, which further exacerbated their child’s learning problems. These challenges provided opportunities for SEN schools to develop guidelines for improving parent school partnerships.

Introduction to Special Series: Parent Voice in Educational Decision Making for Students With Learning Disabilities

In this introduction to the special issue, we provide a brief discussion of (a) challenges gleaned from the literature on school–parent collaboration and (b) our rationale for including and highlighting research that centralizes parents and that varies in researcher positionalities and methods. The studies in this special issue illuminate the complexities of parent–school partnerships and provide practical recommendations to facilitate stronger school–family relationships to support students with learning disabilities.

Parent Perspectives of Applying Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Strategies to Special Education.

Parents of children with (versus without) intellectual and developmental disabilities report greater stress; such stress may be exacerbated by dissatisfaction with school services, poor parent-school partnerships, and the need for parent advocacy. Increasingly, mindfulness interventions have been used to reduce parent stress. However, it is unclear whether parents apply mindfulness strategies during the special education process to reduce school-related stress. To investigate whether mindfulness may reduce school-related stress, interviews were conducted with 26 parents of children with intellectual and developmental disabilities who completed a mindfulness-based stress reduction intervention. Participants were asked about their stress during meetings with the school, use of mindfulness strategies in communicating with the school, and the impact of such strategies. The majority of parent participants reported: special education meetings were stressful; they used mindfulness strategies during IEP meetings; and such strategies affected parents' perceptions of improvements in personal well-being, advocacy, family-school relationships, and access to services for their children. Implications for future research, policy, and practice are discussed.

‘You Want to Get it Right’: A Regional Queensland School's Experience in Strengthening Parent–school Partnerships

THIS PAPER DISCUSSES THE key findings from a qualitative case study that was conducted in response to one regional Queensland state school's identified need for a customised approach to parent engagement in the early years. Data was collected via six semi-structured focus group interviews with parents ( n = 18) of children in the Preparatory year level at the school. A priori analysis of the data revealed three key barriers to parents' engagement with the school: communication, consistency and family commitments.The intention of this study was to capture parents' perspectives and experiences in order to customise and strengthen the school's approach to parent engagement. The key findings and implications presented herein contribute to the body of knowledge on parent engagement practices in early childhood education settings. Moreover, this article emphasises the importance of the development of an individualised approach to parent engagement that is informed by parents.

Social Networks and Parent Motivational Beliefs

Background: Despite devotion of substantial resources and effort to increase parent/school partnerships, gaps remain between policy rhetoric and practice, especially in high-poverty communities. Current research focuses on parent involvement or effects of parent motivational beliefs on parent choice for behavior; however, it does not address the formation of beliefs or social factors that influence parent motivation to become involved. To gain a better understanding of factors that influence parent motivational beliefs, we examined the effects of parent social network, school outreach, and neighborhood health on parent role construction and parent efficacy in an urban school district. Method/Analysis: Survey data were collected from a random sample of 30 fifth-grade parents from 56 elementary schools in a large urban district in the Midwest. Using a partially latent structural regression model, we tested the relationships between school outreach, neighborhood health, parent social network, and parent motivational beliefs. Findings: The theoretical specification of the hypothesized model was observed in the pattern of the relationships among school outreach, neighborhood health, parent network, and parent motivational beliefs. Results: The results of the structural model confirm the association between parent social network and parent motivational beliefs. Combined parent social network and school outreach accounted for 10% of the variance in parent motivational beliefs. Implications for Research and Practice: Results from this study provide a different lens through which to view parent–school partnerships. Understanding parents as social actors whose perceptions are influenced through connections with other parents can help schools facilitate motivational beliefs that lead to effective partnerships.

Influence of parent-school partnership and community-school partnership on lower primary schools pupils academic performance in southwestern nigeria

The study examined the influence of parent-school partnership on pupils’ academic performance of lower primary school in Southwestern Nigeria. It also investigated the influence of community-school partnership on pupils’ academic performance in lower primary schools in the region and finally investigated the joint influence of parent-school and school-community partnership on their academic performance. These were with a view to provide information on the roles of parent-school and community-school performances in enhancing performance of lower primary school pupils in Southwestern Nigeria. The study employed survey research design. The population for the study comprised lower primary school class III pupils, their parents, teachers and head teachers in Southwestern Nigeria. The sample which comprised 1,980 participants (900 primary III pupils, 90 primary III teachers, 90 head teachers and 900 parents of the pupils) was selected using multi-stage sampling technique. Three research instruments were used for data collection, namely: Test of Numeracy and Verbal Reasoning (TNVR), Parents-School Partnership Questionnaire (PSPQ), and Community-School Partnership Practices Questionnaire (CSPPQ). The data collected were analyzed using, chi-square statistics and multiple regression analyses. The results indicated that parent-school partnerships significantly influenced primary school pupils’ academic performance (I‡ 2 = 13.977, p 0.05) of the pupils. Finally, the results showed that there was joint influence of both on their academic performance (F = 1.329, p > 0.05). The study concluded that parent-school and community-school partnerships had significant roles to play in enhancing performance of lower primary school pupils in Southwestern Nigeria.

Dezavantajlı Çocukların Velilerine Uygun Olarak Hazırlanan Aile Katılım Etkinliklerinin (AKE) Değerlendirilmesi: Nallıhan Örneği/The Evaluation of Parental Involvement Activities for Disadvantaged Children’ Parents: Nallıhan Sample

Ozet Bu arastirmanin amaci dezavantajli cocuklarin velilerine yonelik gelistirilen aile katilim etkinliklerinin (AKE) etkililigini, velilerin ve ogrencilerin farkindaliklarini tespit etmektir. Arastirmada “karma yontem”; “ontest-sontest kontrol grupsuz model” kullanilmistir. Arastirma, 2013-2014 ogretim yilinda Ankara’nin Nallihan Ilcesi’nde alt sosyo-ekonomik duzeyde ve dezavantajli ogrencilerin yogun olarak bulundugu bir ilkokulunun ikinci sinifinda 17 cocuk ve 24 veli katilimi ile gerceklesmistir. Calisma grubundaki cocuklara ve velilere egitim yili icerisinde belirlenen 30 hafta suresince toplam 36 aktiviteden olusan AKE uygulanmistir. Arastirmada “Ilkogretimde Okul ve Aile Katilimi” veli alt olcegi nicel olcme boyutunu; AKE veli degerlendirme formu, ogrencilerin goruslerini almak icin hazirlanmis yari yapilandirilmis gorusme formu, arastirmacinin (uygulama ogretmeninin) ve okul yoneticisinin de gunlugu de nitel olcme boyutunu olusturmustur. Programa katilan ailelerin “Ilkogretimde Okul ve Aile Katilimi” veli alt olceginden aldiklari on test-son test puanlarin, olcegin butun alt boyutlarinda calisma grubunun lehine anlamli bir farklilik bulunmustur. Arastirmaya katilan velilerin, AKE uygulanmasi oncesi ve sonrasinda elde ettikleri bilgilere, tutuma iliskin puanlari, ailelerinin yasa, gelir durumuna, cocuk sayisina ve egitim duzeyine gore farklilik gostermezken, cinsiyete gore anlamli farklilik bulunmustur. Bununla beraber, AKE’nin velilerin farkindalik duzeyi uzerindeki etki buyuklugunun ortaya konulmasi amaciyla Cohen d etki buyuklugu hesaplanmis ve degeri .80 bulunmustur. Nitel verilerden ise; ogrencilerin ve velilerinin aile katilim etkinliklerine iliskin olumlu goruslere sahip olduklari; ancak sosyal ve ekonomik olanaklarin yetersizliklerin katilimi olumsuz etkiledigini belirtilmistir. Anahtar Kelimeler: Aile katilimi, Aile katilim etkinlikleri, Dezavantajli cocuklar, Veli ve ogrenci farkindaligi Extended Abstract Problem and Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of parental involvement activities designed for disadvantaged children’s parents and to determine awareness of disadvantaged parents and disadvantaged children. Method: “Mixed methods” and a non-control group pre-test – post-test model, which is one of the semi-experimental designs, was used in the context of this study. Adding that, the study was conducted in 2013-2014 academic year in a 2nd grade, public school which is located in a low socio-economic level district in Nallihan, Ankara. 17 children and 24 parents’ ideas were considered in this study. Adding that, sub-scale for parents used in the context of “The Scale for School and Family Involvement in Elementary Schools” developed by Sheldon & Epstein (2007). The Scale Form was translated into Turkish by Oguz (2012) in 6 dimensions, liker-type scale. Moreover, “Parental Involvement Evaluation Form for Parents”, “Diaries” which were kept by researcher and school manager were used. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with six students. “Parental Involvement Evaluation Form for Parents” and Diaries interviews were kept during and after the implementation of activities in the process. In conformity with pre-test – post-test model without control group, “Parents of the Scale for school and Family Involvement in Elementary Schools” was applied first to parents and their children. Then, 36 activities were conducted within the context of “Parental Involvement Activities” for 30 weeks with the active involvement of the researcher. At the end of the whole process, “The Scale for School and Family Involvement in Elementary Schools” was applied to subjects once again. Findings: Parents gained more positive value-related items in the post-test with all sub-dimensions. No significant difference was found between the scores related to the socio-economic characteristics (e.g. income statute, educational statue, age) of pre-test – post-test whereas, significant differences were found in terms of gender of pre- test – post-test. In order to determine Cohen d effect, size was calculated and the value of .80 was found regarding awareness of parents. Students and their parents expressed that they had favorable opinions and they were satisfied with the process about parental involvement activities in general. Certain facts were also found from researcher’s and school manager’s diaries such as sustainability for activities, attitudes of teachers, lack of family-school association, social and economic factors effected parental involvement in the implementation process. Conclusion: In conclusion, parental involvement activities have increased positive attitudes of parents and students. That is why, planning and implement parental involvement activities are important. Productive parental involvement for disadvantaged groups construct active parental roles and parent-school partnerships, promise increasingly effective interventions in order to enhance productive family-school relationships and improved learning outcomes for students. Keywords: Parent Involvement, Parent Involvement Activities, Disadvantaged Children, Awareness of Parents and Children

Engaging parents in schools and building parent-school partnerships: The role of school and parent organisation leadership

A growing body of research suggests that a positive school climate and Principal leadership are pivotal to building parent-school partnerships and supporting parent engagement in child learning more generally. To begin investigating these factors, surveys were distributed to Principals and Presidents of parent organisations in 1233 Queensland State (i.e. government or public) Schools. Results indicated that although overall Principals have very positive attitudes towards parent engagement, they differ somewhat in whether or not they expect parent engagement in areas such as school governance and mandatory requirements. The most commonly perceived barriers and effective engagement strategies were identified, and differed significantly across schools according to the school’s location and level of disadvantage. The implications for future research and interventions are discussed.