The Value of Hard Work: Lessons on Parent Involvement from an (Im)migrant Household

In this article, Gerardo López expands the concept of "parent involvement" by illustrating ways that parents are involved in their children's educational development that lie outside of traditional school-related models. Rather than viewing involvement as the enactment of specific scripted school activities, López describes how the Padillas, an (im)migrant family, understood involvement as a means of instilling in their children the value of education through the medium of hard work, and viewed taking their children to work as a form of involvement. López argues that, while exposing their children to their hard work in the fields, the Padilla parents were simultaneously teaching them three important, "real-life" lessons: 1) to become acquainted with the type of work they do; 2) to recognize that this work is difficult, strenuous, and without adequate compensation; and 3) to realize that without an education they may end up working in a similar type of job. These findings not only challenge discursive/hegemonic understandings of parent involvement, but also open up new avenues for research and practice. (pp. 416–437)