Parent–Teacher–Student Discrepancies in Academic Ability Beliefs: Influences on Parent Involvement

Most studies examining influences on parent involvement focus on common demographic factors, such as social class or gender, and on elementary grades. In the present study, we investigated a more malleable influence, perceptions of ability, in the context of middle school. We examined how perceptions held by parents, teachers, and students concerning students’ academic abilities affected parents’ involvement and teachers’ facilitation of school programs for involvement. We considered differences between parents who spoke Spanish or English in our sample drawn from two low-income, urban middle schools with a large Latino population. We also examined how involvement and programs are related to discrepancies in perceptions of children’s academic abilities between parents, teachers, and students. In general, as discrepancies increased between parents and teachers or between parents and students, parents tended to be less involved and teachers tended to facilitate fewer programs for parent involvement. Furthermore, significant differences in involvement were found between Spanishand English-speaking parents related to parent–teacher discrepancies in perceptions of students’ general scholastic abilities and to parent–student discrepancies in students’ math abilities. This study indicates that perceptions of student ability held by teachers, parents, and students have an influence on parents’ and teachers’ actions regarding family and school partnerships. It also underscores the importance of clarifying how beliefs are indirectly communicated in order to improve our efforts to promote collaboration. THE SCHOOL COMMUNITY JOURNAL 116