Strong empirical evidence exists in general education that links parent involvement to student academic achievement, but such evidence is lacking in special education. Moreover, most prior research investigated parent involvement as a broadly defined term that included various types of parent engagements. As a result, it is difficult to estimate the effect of some specific parent engagements. Using data from the Special Education Elementary Longitudinal Study (SEELS), this study examined influences of race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status on basic-level parent engagements in school and home settings (i.e., participation in school activities, talking to their child about his/her experiences in school, and expectations for the child to graduate from high school) and the relationship of these engagements to student achievement. Engagement at home was found to have a positive impact on student achievement, but participation in school activities did not significantly affect student achievement. Discussion and implications of these findings, and recommendations for future research are provided.

Keywords: parent involvement, parent engagement, academic achievement, SEELS, special education, race/ethnicity, SES