Understanding the Perceptions of School Engagement of Parents of Students With Autism.

This article focuses on understanding family–school engagement from the perspective of parents of children with autism. Through focus groups with 22 diverse parents of school-age children with autism, seven distinct types of engagement were identified: collaborative partnership, home–school communication, advocacy, school-based participation, home-based participation, service coordination, and classroom observation. Notably, service coordination and classroom observation emerged as novel types of engagement, highlighting parents’ roles in mediating communication between school and non-school service providers and their desire to observe their child’s school experience firsthand. The study underscores barriers parents face in achieving desired engagement and suggests implications for research and practice to better support diverse families of children with autism.