Exposing the realities of parent involvement among Chicano students

Includes bibliographical references (leaves 61-64)The primary goal of this study is to identify practices Latino parents implement to support their child's education. Highlighting the practices that Latino parents and families implement to promote the academic success of their children allows us to challenge traditional mainstream parent involvement paradigms that blame Latino parents for not valuing education. Six CSUN Chicano Masters Students were interviewed regarding the perceptions of their parents' involvement in their educational success. Students were asked to describe what parent involvement means to them and if their parents meet that definition or not. Themes that were examined included: 1) extent of support from school and community programs, 2) attending school functions, 3) assisting with homework, 4) contention with monetary risk factors, 5) emotional support and encouragement, and 6) indirect home~learning opportunities in Spanish. An interesting outcome of this project was students realizing how valuable their parents really were in their education. The project provided a place for students to reflect and recognize practices that their parents implemented on a daily basis to support their education; albeit in non~traditional ways that are not usually acknowledged by the school system. The results can inform school personnel and organizations that work with low income Latino families how to better serve the needs of this diverse population