Parents with Teachers Re-Authoring the Home-School Interface: A Critical Participatory Action Research Study

Abstract

Critical participatory action researchers (CPAR) (Kemmis et al., 2014; Ledwith & Springett, 2014) created conditions for 25 parents and teachers to join as co-researchers in this research study. Together, they co-created a hybrid discursive third space (Gee, 1996; Gutierrez, 2008) that invited alignment of their respective funds of knowledge (Gonzalez et al., 2005). Participants engaged in iterative processes of conscientization (Freire, 1976) through story, dialogue, and reflections that led to a convergence of teaching and parenting through relational connectivity and metaphoric bridges of togetherness and trust disrupting previously held institutionalized and unquestioned hegemonic borders, rules, and roles.