Home Language Use and Hispanic Academic Achievement: Evidence from Texas High Schools
نویسندگان
چکیده
Hispanics, the nation’s largest ethnic minority, are largely characterized by their low levels of education and Spanish-speaking backgrounds. In 1989, 96% of Hispanic school-aged children lived in homes where Spanish is spoken at home. Because many Hispanics speak Spanish at home, this study seeks to explore the association between foreign language use at home and academic achievement. Using data from the Texas Higher Education Opportunity Project, preliminary cross-tabulations find that home language use does not sufficiently explain academic achievement patterns across race/ethnic groups. However, a strong correlation is shown between parental academic background and academic success. Bivariate analyses find that Hispanics who have at least one parent with a college education will perform significantly better and narrow achievement gaps between Hispanics and Whites and Asians. Cover Page Footnote Faculty Advisor: Professor Marta Tienda, Princeton University McNair Faculty Advisor: Professor Janice F. Madden, University of Pennsylvania This journal article is available in Penn McNair Research Journal: http://repository.upenn.edu/mcnair_scholars/vol1/iss1/4 Home Language Use and Hispanic Academic Achievement: Evidence from Texas High Schools Carlos Hernandez and Marta Tienda McNair Scholar Mentor: Professor Janice F. Madden 1 1 Hernandez: Home Language Use and Hispanic Academic Achievement: Evidence fro Published by ScholarlyCommons, 2007 2 Home Language Use and Hispanic Academic Achievement: Evidence from Texas High Schools Carlos Hernandez, University of Pennsylvania Faculty Advisor: Professor Marta Tienda, Princeton University McNair Faculty Advisor: Professor Janice F. Madden, University of Pennsylvania Abstract Hispanics, the nation’s largest ethnic minority, are largely characterized by their low levels of education and Spanish-speaking backgrounds. In 1989, 96% of Hispanic school-aged children lived in homes where Spanish is spoken at home. Because many Hispanics speak Spanish at home, this study seeks to explore the association between foreign language use at home and academic achievement. Using data from the Texas Higher Education Opportunity Project, preliminary cross-tabulations find that home language use does not sufficiently explain academic achievement patterns across race/ethnic groups. However, a strong correlation is shown between parental academic background and academic success. Bivariate analyses find that Hispanics who have at least one parent with a college education will perform significantly better and narrow achievement gaps between Hispanics and Whites and Asians.Hispanics, the nation’s largest ethnic minority, are largely characterized by their low levels of education and Spanish-speaking backgrounds. In 1989, 96% of Hispanic school-aged children lived in homes where Spanish is spoken at home. Because many Hispanics speak Spanish at home, this study seeks to explore the association between foreign language use at home and academic achievement. Using data from the Texas Higher Education Opportunity Project, preliminary cross-tabulations find that home language use does not sufficiently explain academic achievement patterns across race/ethnic groups. However, a strong correlation is shown between parental academic background and academic success. Bivariate analyses find that Hispanics who have at least one parent with a college education will perform significantly better and narrow achievement gaps between Hispanics and Whites and Asians. 2 Penn McNair Research Journal, Vol. 1 [2007], Iss. 1, Art. 4 http://repository.upenn.edu/mcnair_scholars/vol1/iss1/4
منابع مشابه
High school peer networks and college success: Lessons from Texas
This paper uses administrative data from the University of Texas-Austin to examine whether high school peer networks at college entry influence college achievement, measured by grade point average (GPA) and persistence. For each freshman cohort from 1993 through 2003 we calculate the number and ethnic makeup of college freshmen from each Texas high school, which we use as a proxy for freshmen “...
متن کاملSchool Segregation and Racial Academic Achievement Gaps
Although it is clear that racial segregation is linked to academic achievement gaps, the mechanisms underlying this link have been debated since Coleman published his eponymous 1966 report. In this paper, I examine sixteen distinct measures of segregation to determine which is most strongly associated with academic achievement gaps. I find very clear evidence that one aspect of segregation in p...
متن کاملAcademic resilience in education: the role of achievement goal orientations
Introduction: In the past 2 decades, research findings established achievementgoal theory as a powerful framework for conceptualizing difference in thequality of student’s engagement, persistence on task, and academic resilience.So the present study examined the relationship between achievement goalorientations and academic resilience.Method: Participants were 606 students (307 girls and 297 bo...
متن کاملThe remote, the mouse, and the no. 2 pencil: the household media environment and academic achievement among third grade students.
BACKGROUND Media can influence aspects of a child's physical, social, and cognitive development; however, the associations between a child's household media environment, media use, and academic achievement have yet to be determined. OBJECTIVE To examine relationships among a child's household media environment, media use, and academic achievement. METHODS During a single academic year, data...
متن کاملComparative study of academic vitality, academic achievement and test anxiety of high school students in Khodabandeh high schools
Introduction: Academic life is one of the components of psychological well-being in many research systems. This study compares academic vitality, academic achievement, and test anxiety in gifted and normal first-grade students in Khodabandeh. Method: In order to carry out the present research, the required coordination was made with the Khodabandeh Education Department and at the appropriate ti...
متن کاملذخیره در منابع من
با ذخیره ی این منبع در منابع من، دسترسی به آن را برای استفاده های بعدی آسان تر کنید
عنوان ژورنال:
دوره شماره
صفحات -
تاریخ انتشار 2014