About the Lab
The Diverse Families & School Readiness Lab (DFSRL) is dedicated to understanding how families from diverse cultural and low-income backgrounds support their preschoolers’ education. The DFSR-Lab privileges the life knowledge and stories of groups that are marginalized and challenges the deficit-based perspectives that too often mischaracterize diverse families.
Through rigorous qualitative inquiry and an emic (i.e., within-group) approach, Dr. Coba-Rodriguez’s research team is dedicated to highlighting the remarkable strengths, agency, resourcefulness, and problem-solving skills that families possess. Guided by a family resilience and interpretive framework, the DFSR-Lab does the following:
Expands knowledge about school readiness and parental involvement in populations that have been historically made vulnerable, challenging misconceptions about family beliefs and practices
Reveals families’ experiences as they navigate educational spaces and affirms the inclusion of family-focused perspectives when creating equitable, responsive, and culturally sustaining educational systems.
Funding
College of Education Dean’s Office Collaborative Community Grant (University of Illinois at Chicago)