The family is viewed as the lynchpin of society, and its structure is fiercely guarded by its members. Education is one of the significant elements that bring about changes to future generations in a family. Research in Britain over the last two decades (Mirza, 1992; Tomlinson, 1993; Basit, 1997; Bhatti, 1999; Crozier, 2000; McNamara et al., 2000; Abbas, 2004; Pring et al., 2009) has examined parental involvement and support regarding the education of the next generation amongst families from a range of social backgrounds and ethnic origins. Bourdieu (1999) points to the importance of social, cultural, linguistic and symbolic capital – the attributes that make a person’s place of birth and place of residence so important. These attributes have particular relevance in case of young people living in a country other than that of their family’s country of origin. Coleman (1994) considers social capital mainly as a way of understanding the relationship between social inequality and educational achievement. Putnam (2000) too, links social capital with positive outcomes in education. While there are certain differences in the theses of these theorists, social and cultural capitals, as discussed by them, though not overtly evident, are inherent in the structure of many ethnic minority families in the developed world.

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