One of the most crucial topics in education is the involvement of parents in their child’s school as well as their education. For the past few decades research has been conducted about the involvement of parents in their community schools as well as the influence that is has. However, it has been noted that it is within minority communities and families where there is the least amount of involvement in their child’s school and education, more so in Latino communities. Although the amount of involvement does not necessarily reflect the parents concern of the child’s academic performance, educators have proclaimed that parental involvement does in fact help the student perform academically better: “Various studies indicate that parental involvement is salient in determining how well children do in school at both the elementary and secondary school levels” (Christian et. al., 1998). Yet, it has come to many educational leaders attention that there has been a steady decline in parental involvement across the country and Latino and other minority communities seem to have the lowest number of participation in their school.
Many researchers have investigated and still do to find the cause of why there is a lack of parents involved in school within these minority communities. “Parental involvement has become of the centerpieces of educational dialogue among educators, parents, and political leaders. The presence of more parents in the workforce, the fast pace of modern society as a while and the declining role of the family have all been reasons that some social-scientist have pointed to explain an apparent decline in parental involvement in education”(Coleman & Hoffer, 1987). This is one of the growing believed reasons in why there ...
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...viting parents no matter the gender, class, or race to become involved in their school. Martinez-Cosio’s case in her article is a perfect example of what occurs daily to parents whom try to get involved, more so Latinos. However, this is not always the case. Researchers are digging deeper into the more emotional aspect of why Latino parents tend to lack in parental involvement in the schools. “The women felt that the school was an extension of their home, and that the teachers served as surrogate mothers” (Ramirez, 2003). Latino women see school as another home for their child as well as see the teachers as another mother to their child; therefore, it is easy to conclude that mothers do not participate in their child’s school because they believe that the “surrogate mothers” take care of everything involved within the school while they take care of home issues.
In Subtractive Schooling: US-Mexican Youth and the Politics of Caring, Angela Valenzuela investigates immigrant and Mexican American experiences in education. Valenzuela mentions differences in high schools between U.S born youth and immigrants such as how immigrants she interviewed seemed to achieve in school as they feel privileged to achieve secondary education. However, she found that her study provided evidence of student failure due to schools subtracting resources from these youths. Both are plagued by stereotypes of lacking intellectual and linguistic traits along with the fear of losing their culture. As a Mexican American with many family members who immigrated to the U.S to pursue a higher education, I have experience with Valenzuela’s
In the article “The Latino Education Crisis” by Patricia Gandara who talked about how the rate of Latinos that are educated and graduates from school are so low and how they have low income because most of their parents are not educated and he also stated some solutions that can help like starting an early childhood education to help the student to have more educational interest and so many more. I agree with the author that Latino are facing allot of educational crisis because most of them are less educated, they have less income in their families because parents don’t have enough money to send their children to schools and because the parents lack education. I believe that there are solutions like focusing on early education
Parenting alone is not to blame for poor school performance of African American children. The size of a school affects their student’s dropout rate. When school size increases the quality of education decreases. As stated by Velma Zahirovic-Herbert and Geoffrey
The topic of Hispanic women experiencing inequality in education due to the social constructs of subordination and Hispanic culture is of interest to me because I am Hispanic and have fallen victim to the social constructs of subordination of women, within the Hispanic culture and educations system. Living in Chandler, Arizona during my adolescent years allowed me to experience two forms of education, public and private schooling. In Arizona, Charter schools are as common as public schools in California. Charter schools similar to Private...
As a traditional, collectivistic cultural group, the Latino population is believed to adhere deeply to the value of familismo. (Arditti, 2006; Calzada, 2014). Familism is an emphasis on the importance of the family unit over values of autonomy and individualism”. (Santistaben, 2012). Family is considered to be the top priority in the Latino culture. Comparatively, at times, this isn’t true of our busy, work devoted western culture. In western culture we think of our family in a nuclear sense made up of a: mom, dad, and siblings. Conversely, Hispanic culture focuses on the whole extended family including aunts, uncles, grandparent, and cousins. Their culture believes having close connections with the entire extended family benefits the development of their children. The entire family helps the child by giving them differing levels of social and emotional support. (American Home Resolutions,
In a 2004 journal by Susan Auerbach, the concept of parental influence and support for Latina/o students is addressed.... ... middle of paper ... ... Journal of Hispanic Higher Education, 7(2), 119-130. Oliva, M., & Nora, A. a.
The importance put on education often comes from parental involvement. Many Latinos come to this country in hopes of giving the opportunity to their children to have more open more doors to success while enjoying freedom. The freedom that some possibly do not have at home. “A number of factors contribute to the translation of a family’s social capital to schools capital, including parental income and educational attainment, English language proficiency (ELP), parental beliefs and educational aspirations for their children, and parental involvement in schools (Zambrana 62).” The need to aspire is an individual motivation, however the family structure has much to do with the ambitions. The Latino community according to the book Latinos in American Society written by Ruth Zambrana ran a study on the Average SAT Scores for Twelfth Grade Test-Taking Population, by Race and Latino Subgroup, 1996-2006. In this study, it was found that the second-generation students that are of college-educated Latino families contributed the most to the rise in the total Latino student
It is apparent to everyone living in the United States, that we are the most diverse country in the world. Everywhere we go we encounter people of different backgrounds. However, it is also apparent that one race in particular is seen more than others. One of the fastest growing races in the United States in today’s day and age is the Hispanic one. Research has shown that Hispanics are among the fastest growing cultures in our country. This is obvious to just about everyone in the United States. As a Hispanic woman living in the U.S., it has come to my attention that along with being the fastest growing culture, we are also the culture with some of the highest high school dropout rates. This has become a major problem in our country and more predominately in states such as: California, Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is crucial now more than ever that as the Hispanic population increases in the United States; we educate the children growing up in our country. However, as stated before, it is apparent that Hispanics have had the greatest numbers of high school dropouts. While not many people think of it to be so, the dropout rates among young Hispanic adults is one of the biggest problems our community faces. If there is nothing done about this problem, our entire country will suffer in many ways. Therefor, we must come up with some solutions to lower these dropout rates before it is too late. A few solutions that have surfaced are; programs in schools to prevent dropouts, educating parents about what an education will do for their children, and making a change in what is being taught in schools.
Valenzuela utilizes various compilations of research to construct her exceptional argument regarding the issue of subtractive schooling with regards to 2nd generational immigrant students. She thoroughly analyzes and assesses the multitude of differences between 1st generation and 2nd generation students and their affinity for education. She divides the topic into 3 categories and asserts how each one adds to the issue of inadequate education for Mexican/Mexican-American students in the US public school system. Her research is conducted at Seguin (pseudonym) High School in Houston, Texas. She examines the effects of substandard education in regards to the students and their academic performance. She uses quantitative and qualitative research
Hispanics will represent more than one-quarter of school-age children in the United States by 2025. These children are more likely than others to be educationally and economically disadvantaged. Presently, 36 percent of Hispanic students live in families whose income is below the poverty line. As a result, Hispanic students are concentrated in high-poverty, largely racially isolated schools, and they often have limited access to the resources needed for academic success, such as highly qualified teachers, small classes, 21st century technology, and modern school buildings.
Orozco, Graciela L. "Understanding the Culture of Low-Income Immigrant Latino Parents: Key to Involvement." The School Community Journal 1st ser. 18 (2008): 21-37. Web. .
Parent involvement affects all aspects of a child’s education. Parents must be involved as teachers, learners, supporters, and advocates of their child’s learning (Hopkings). Studies show that kids who know that their parents are involved and interested tend to take more responsibility for their own learning and behavior. Schoolwork and grades improve. Work habits improve. Less work is handed in late. Fewer referrals for behavior problems are made. Attendance increases, and fewer kids show up late for class (Hopkings). With all this information documented it shows the true importance of parent involvement in education. The more involved the parents are, the better off each child will be. So when you become a parent, get involved in your child’s education!
Parental involvement promotes the social growth of a child. Children whose parents are involved in their education have many advantages. They have better grades, test scores, long-term academic achievement, attitudes and behavior than those with disinterested mothers and fathers (Gestwicki, 2001). Parents becoming involved in their child's schooling creates extra sources of social constraint to influence the child's behavior (McNeal, 2001). For example, parents talking to their children and becoming involved in the school conveys a message to the child of education being important. Parents should be talking with your children's teacher and letting her know about your family. The more she knows about your child, the better she will be able to connect with your child.
To conclude, my research shows a clear link between parental involvement and children performing better in school. Children who's parents are involved in their education are showing better performance and are achieving higher grades. They also show better behaviour, more enthusiasm, ambition and higher levels of engagement. compared with children who's parent are not involved in their education. My research also shows that parental involvement has great benefits for both children and parents in many ways, so much so that the most effective schools are those who encouraged parents to be involved.
Parental involvement in a child’s life is crucial to their motivation, and eventual success or failure in school. According to the National Education Association (NEA), students who have parents involved in their education are more likely to earn higher grades, go to school regularly, have better social skills, have more positive behavior, and proceed to secondary