‘I am the boss of the team’: power dynamics and teacher perceptions of parental involvement in youeryuan of rural China

While parental involvement (PI) is widely recognized as critical to early childhood education and care (ECEC), most research reflects Western urban contexts, with limited attention to rural and non-Western settings. This study explores how ECEC teachers in rural China perceive PI, focusing on power asymmetries and sociocultural context in parent-teacher relationships. Six focus groups were conducted with 37 female teachers. The findings indicate that teachers framed PI as ‘educating parents’ to align home practices with institutional norms. Teachers tended to position themselves as decision-makers, and migration-driven grandparent caregiving and rural-urban disparities constrained PI. The findings of the study suggest that reciprocity is desired, yet unevenly practiced. The study reveals how rural Chinese teachers replicate Western urban hierarchies, exacerbating power imbalances. It challenges universal PI models and calls for dialogic and context-responsive teacher training reforms to foster equitable partnerships.