Is Children's Education Related to Parental Involvement with School?

Today's guests, Drs. Angel Harris and Keith Robinson will discuss their book "The Broken Compass: Parental Involvement with Children's Education." Many of their research findings turn our traditional beliefs about a child's school achievement and its relationship to parental involvement with school on its head.

Angel Harris is a Professor of Sociology at Duke University. His research interests include social inequality, policy, and education. My work focuses on the social psychological determinants of the racial achievement gap. Specifically, I examine the factors that contribute to differences in academic investment among African Americans, Latino/as, Asian Americans, and Whites. I also study the impact that adolescents' perceptions of opportunities for upward socio-economic mobility have for their academic investment, and the long-term effects of youths' occupational aspirations both within the United States and Europe.

Keith Robinson is An Assistant Professor of Sociology at The University of Texas at Austin. His research focuses on the determinants and implications of test score (achievement) inequality in K-12 education.  Dr. Robinson's work highlights the extent to which family and school factors contribute to achievement inequality, and suggests ways to equalize these differences. Much can be learned by examining the various stages of K-12 education since the determinants of achievement disparities change as children progress through schooling.