LATINO PARENT INVOLVEMENT OF ELEMENTARY ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNERS: A CASE STUDY EXPLORING BARRIERS AND COPING STRATEGIES DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

The purpose of this qualitative case study is to examine the involvement of Latino parents of elementary English language learner students with distance learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. This case study explored Latino parental involvement, in order to help further understand the inequities for Latinos with distance learning and examine how parents understand involvement in their children’s education. This qualitative case study utilized sixteen semi-structured parent interviews, two teacher focus groups with a total of eight teachers, and one administrator interview, in order to determine the emerging themes and patterns. Teacher participants in this study possessed between six and fourteen years of teaching experience and are currently teaching classes in 1st grade and 4th grade. The administrator participant possessed 27 years of experience in education. This study was conducted based on the Critical Race Theory (CRT) and Latino Critical Theory (LatCrit) as conceptual frameworks that offer a way to analyze parental involvement and develop more culturally relevant practices using a social justice lens. Implications for social change include knowledge useful for administrators, teachers, parents, and other researchers who desire direction in improving Latino parental involvement and increasing student achievement