Debbie Pushor PhD

Bill was a graduate student at St. Francis Xavier University in Nova Scotia with whom I worked from 2001 until I moved to the University of Saskatchewan in 2004. Bill and I found many common intersections in our work and our research about parents, and he taught me a great deal about the impact thoughtful home visits can have. Our shared writing and presentations focus on the marginalization of parents – particularly those who are non-white and non-middle class. Bill’s research pulls forward the stories of Mi’qmaq mothers and their experiences arising from their children’s schooling. Bill successfully defended his thesis in 2006, under the guidance of Dr. J. Tompkins at St. FX.

About Bill Murphy

Bill Murphy’s Abstract
In this thesis I have recorded the stories of lived experiences of three Mi’kmaw women who are parents of children I taught in a public elementary school. In our conversations, the three mothers speak of themselves as Aboriginal women, dealing with the school system their children attended. In these narratives I also share my stories of our working together in a successful partnership shaped around positive, inclusive, and respectful ways.

I begin the thesis with my personal introduction to parental inclusion in school as a new teacher in a small Northern Canadian Aboriginal community. My inquiry then opens up as I inquire into the positive and negative events in the lives of these three Mi’kmaw women as they story and inquire with me into their children’s interactions with schools.  The stories of these parents and of their encounters with schools are then laid alongside selected literature which stresses the importance of parental inclusion and participation in the school experiences of children.  It is also a literature set that informs readers about the extent of racism faced by Aboriginal parents as they struggle to defend their children against the bureaucratic focus on efficiency in most public schools. I conclude with a discussion of the possibilities for schools and for Mi’kmaw parents. These possibilities include working side by side, both on and off the landscape of school, toward the goals of providing positive learning experiences for Mi’kmaw youth and allowing parents to play an active participatory role.

Continue with Bill Murphy’s Full Thesis

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