Participation of Culturally, Linguistically and Economically Diverse Parents in the Special Education Planning Process

ABSTRACT Although federal law governing the education of students with disabilities recognizes the important role parents play in the special education planning process, there is considerable evidence that culturally, linguistically and economically diverse parents are not as fully or meaningfully involved in the process as provided for by law. The qualitative method of naturalistic inquiry was used to study the experiences of 14 families (22 parents) and eight parent advocates with the special education planning process in three urban school districts. Results indicated that the nature and outcomes of parent participation in the special education planning process, including that of culturally, linguistically and economically diverse parents, depended on how parents were treated in the process by school professionals, which in turn was shaped by the interaction of institutional and demographic factors. Institutionally, principals' attitude and behavior toward special education and students with disabilities shaped the professional culture of the school and thus the attitudes and behavior of its professionals toward special education and the students it serves and their parents. Demographically, professionals' actual treatment of parents was based on their reaction to three interrelated sets of parental demographic attributes: race, ethnicity and language; education, occupation and income; and the presence and nature of a parental disability. Among demographic factors, social class, as reflected in income and especially education and professional status, outweighed race, ethnicity and language, and the presence of a parental disability outweighed race and ethnicity and social class