Engaging low-income families in education research: examining the challenges in Beijing and London

Hoskins, Kate; Wainwright, Emma; Arabaci, Refika; Zhai, Junqing; Gao, Jie; Xu, Yuwei

Abstract

This comparative paper considers the similar challenges encountered in Beijing (China) and Greater London (England) when engaging low-income families in education research. Through semi-structured interviews with 10 parents/caregivers in Beijing and 13 parents in Greater London, we explored perceptions of the barriers to participation, the influence of identity on involvement, and ways to better enable their contribution to education research. We found that key barriers to research participation across both cohorts centred on practical issues of a lack of time and childcare support and a sense of the pointlessness of research. Despite these commonalities, subtle differences emerged in how these barriers were experienced in each context, influenced by local socio-cultural factors. We conclude by reflecting on the forms of support that would encourage and enable socio-economically disadvantaged parents/caregivers in different country contexts to take part in education research. Our findings contribute new, comparative knowledge to best practice approaches, highlighting specific policy interventions that could improve the diversity of research participation.

Citation

Hoskins, K., Wainwright, E., Arabaci, R., Zhai, J., Gao, J., & Xu, Y. (2024). Engaging low-income families in education research: examining the challenges in Beijing and London. Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education, https://doi.org/10.1080/03057925.2024.2429825

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Sep 7, 2024
• Online Publication Date: Nov 19, 2024
• Publication Date: Nov 19, 2024
• Deposit Date: Sep 14, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: May 20, 2026
• Journal: Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education
• Print ISSN: 0305-7925
• Electronic ISSN: 1469-3623
• Publisher: Routledge
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/03057925.2024.2429825
• Keywords: low-income families; parental engagement in education; cross-cultural research; educational inequality; social capital
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/39544210
• Additional Information: Peer Review Statement: The publishing and review policy for this title is described in its Aims & Scope.; Aim & Scope: http://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?show=aimsScope&journalCode=ccom20; Received: 2024-01-08; Accepted: 2024-09-30; Published: 2024-11-19