UC San Diego

Parental engagement enhances academic outcomes. While numerous studies have examined the academic benefits of parental engagement among families of different sociocultural backgrounds, limited research has focused on Mexican-heritage families rearing autistic children. Mexican heritage (MH) families make up a growing number of students in K-12 and have increased in autism diagnoses. Utilizing Barton and colleagues' (2004) definition of parental engagement, this study explored parental engagement among Mexican heritage families rearing autistic children. Research questions examined (1) MH families' distribution of household and educational tasks, (2) MH families' perceptions of educational engagement, (3) MH parents' description of their educational engagement practices, and (4) MH household's enactment of educationally engaging practices in their daily lives. This dissertation study employed a convergent parallel design using a survey, focus groups interviews, individual interviews, and video recordings of parents engaging in educational activities with their children to investigate findings. Results from this study revealed that MH mothers are the main participants in caregiving (i.e. playing, feeding, bathing child) and educational (i.e. speaking to teachers, attending IEP meetings) activities. MH families described three distinct themes related to educational engagement, educational engagement tools, mother’s educational engagement traits, and an independent future. MH parents’ descriptions of practices included parent versus educator’s perceptions of educational engagement, childrearing practices, parent-educator partnerships, supportive environments, and the impacts of COVID-19 on child development. Lastly, enacted practices revealed key strategies such as mothers providing resources, attending to their child’s mood, and at-home support of educational concepts. Findings from this study may be used to modify parental engagement strategies of special education teachers in Mexican heritage communities, provide an understanding of academic engagement strategies in MH homes, and help adapt existing parent engagement practices to better fit those of the home environment.