The experiences of Australian dyslexic children and their parents: An exploration of allyship and parent-school partnerships

The experiences of Australian dyslexic children and their parents: An exploration of allyship and parent-school partnerships

In Australia, policy around parent-school partnerships underscores the importance of productive and effective collaboration between parents and schools. The quality of the relationship between parents and their child’s school can influence children’s academic outcomes, attendance, social and behavioural development, and the value the children attribute to their education. However, current literature exploring the experiences of dyslexic children and their families in Australia suggests that harmonious parent-school partnerships may not necessarily be the experience of parents of dyslexic children across Australian school contexts. Intending to gain a deeper understanding and appreciation of the allyship experiences of parents of primary-aged dyslexic children as they interact with educators in the primary school context in Australia, this study reports on the experiences of 10 Australian dyslexic children and their parents. Employing a unique and innovative conceptual lens positioning allyship as proximal to the child’s disability identity, qualitative content analysis identified key themes about the experiences of the participants, parental allyship, and parentschool partnerships. The findings of this study show that interpersonal and systemic barriers influence the experiences of dyslexic children and their parents in the school context. Findings also identified that parental allyship is a complex action and relationship that occurs in response to social group power dynamics. Finally, while the aspirations of parent-school partnership policy are admirable, they can be challenging to realise for parents of dyslexic children. The hope lies in the development of pre-service teachers and continuing professional development, as well as harnessing parental allyship within the school context, to support educators to understand the needs of dyslexic children and their parents.

File reproduced in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher/author/creator.