Some schools offer outdoor adventure education (OAE) residential programs as an option for their students. Parents often have to pay for their child's participation and are expected to provide the required clothing and equipment. These parameters can make participation in OAE programs difficult for some students. To date, there has been little research on ethnic minority parents' involvement in OAE visits organized by schools. This study addresses this gap in the literature.
Eight ethnic minority parents from lower-income backgrounds participated in this study. All of the parents identified themselves as being of Sierra Leonean national identity and had children attending a primary school in London. A few of the parents had moved to London while they were in school; others had moved to London from Sierra Leone within the last ten years. The parents were asked to support their child's participation in an OAE residential program organized by the school. Prior to the scheduled OAE visit, the parents were invited to share their perceptions and experiences relating to the request for parental support of the program. The parents' responses were analyzed in relation to the community cultural wealth (CCW) framework developed by Yosso. This framework represents “an array of knowledge, skills, and abilities possessed and utilized by Communities of Color to survive and resist macro and micro-forms of oppression.”
While the parents' experiences of organizing the residential visit were mixed and wide-ranging, their first-hand accounts indicate that they drew on different forms of capital to meet the expectations placed on them and to overcome challenges of facilitating the visit. Forms of capital in line with the CCW framework utilized by the parents include aspirational, familial, navigational, resistant, and social capital. Spiritual capital was also identified as an important resource supporting the parents' resilience. Spiritual capital helped the parents maintain hope and faith that the OAE experience would be good for their child. As discussed by the parents, the different forms of capital were interdependent and overlapping.
This research illustrates how the community cultural wealth framework can promote a deeper understanding of ethnic minority parents' perspectives and experiences relating to their children's participation in OAE programs. Unfortunately, parents are often viewed as being either supportive and invested in OAE experiences or as barriers, restricting access to OAE experiences. This either-or view tends to place ethnic minority parents in a marginalized position. This study highlights the importance of reframing OAE to be more understanding and appreciative of the socio-cultural contexts of students' family life.
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