Parental Involvement in a STEM Middle School

Science, engineering, technology, and mathematics (STEM) classes are required for families in the United States. Due to this requirement, there have been more STEM focused schools present in the educational landscape. Traditionally a high school offering, middle schools are now developing more focused STEM curricula, opening STEM campuses, and creating opportunities for students to expand their STEM knowledge. Parental involvement at the middle school level can be lacking, which is also observed in STEM specific campuses. This action research study examines communication and connection with parents on a STEM middle school campus. The purpose of this study was to create a program where parents can meet once a month with each other and staff on campus to start building a thriving partnership. Ten parent participants were chosen to take part in this three-month study. Each month, participants would meet for an hour to discuss agenda items created by participants at previous meetings. The researcher employed a mixed methods design to understand connection and communication with parents on a STEM middle school campus. To analyze data, descriptive statistics were used for quantitative data, and themes were developed via grounded theory for qualitative data. Results determined that participants' views rose overall from pre to post-innovation in communication and connection. In addition to the gains seen quantitatively and qualitative data, the researcher developed three themes: connection, communication, and parent voice. Overall, the monthly parent meetings were a success overall and enhanced communication and connectivity in the STEM magnet campus. Several limitations, including a lack of diversity in the study population and researcher error, hindered this study. Suggestions for future research include replicating the study while removing the limitations seen in this study and conducting subsequent cycles of AR. Finally, suggestions for future practice indicate the vital need to involve parents in attending programs and in the design, delivery, and application of programs.