“We Came Here for You”: Parental Involvement and Notions of Success for First-Generation and Second-Generation Students and Parents in a Canadian Ethnoburb.

This dissertation explores notions of success among racialized first- and second-generation high school seniors and their parents in the ethnoburb (Li, 2009) of Brampton, Ontario. Employing qualitative methods, the study analyzes data from four focus groups, twenty-two student essays, and fifteen students’ interviews with their parents – along with project memos and research notes. It investigates the ways in which these families discuss success, the influence of parental engagement, and childrens’ and parents’ alignment or resistance to the prevalent social discourses of meritocracy and neoliberal success. Critical discourse analysis is the primary methodological approach, and analytical frameworks include critical race theory, sociology of education, and Yosso's concept of community cultural wealth (2005).

Findings reveal varied understandings of success, often centred on a university education and professional careers, and narrated as an intergenerational endeavor that will ensure financial stability, community well-being, and personal fulfillment. Motivated by their parents' sacrifices and efforts, the students reported a strong sense of responsibility to their families, perceiving their educational and career accomplishments as part of a collective and intergenerational effort. The ‘sacrifice narrative’ emerges as a significant motivator for students, and education was often cited as a key reason for family migration to Canada. The research indicates that while parents primarily support their children's education at home and focus on their academic performance, school administrators sought parental engagement through school-based volunteering. Findings suggest that expanded notions of the definitions and expectations of parental involvement are needed, with attention paid to the socioeconomic barriers these parents face.

The study also discusses the varied perceptions of community among parents and youths, with some noting feelings of belonging, while others, particularly racialized males, reporting experiences of social conflict and/or feeling unsafe in some contexts. The school environment emerges as a central site of the youths' community experiences, differing from their parents' focus on suburban life. Additionally, narratives of parental and student experiences in the community reveal some tensions and highlight the need for future research into social relations in this ethnoburb (Li, 2009) community. The study contributes to strengths-based understandings of success among first- and second-generation Canadian students and families, through Yosso’s concepts of communal cultural wealth (2005) and critical race theory.