Leyendo juntos (Reading Together): New Directions for Latino Parents' Early Literacy Involvement

Abstract

Early reading experiences in the home prepare children for formal literacy instruction when they enter school. Most practitioners and researchers support the need for educational initiatives for increasing parents' involvement in early literacy. However, there is less of a consensus about how to develop family literacy models for Latino families. Existing literature suggests that deficit‐based theories have historically shaped many programs geared toward Latino families. As an alternative, the authors propose a sociocultural framework for family literacy programs. The model includes participants' cultural, linguistic, and social experiences, and respects family dynamics, ways of knowing, and perceptions of how literacy functions in life in real and meaningful ways. Recommendations are offered for developing programs to help parents and educators recognize and broaden the role of families in their children's learning and establish home‐school relationships based on mutual respect and trust.

A Phenomenological Investigation of the Academic Persistence of Undergraduate Hispanic Nontraditional Students at Hispanic Serving Institutions

“…These social systems are embedded in the lives of students through the diverse relationships in which they engage in an ongoing basis. In educational systems, the links and interactions that affect student success include the broader culture, teacher/educators, the institution itself, and the broader community (Ortiz & Ordonez-Jasis, 2005). Then too, the type of support that students receive on and off campus, such as advising, campus experiences, and student-faculty interactions, along with student employment obligations, family responsibilities, and the cultural norms in which they operate, individually and collectively, has the potential to affect academic persistence.…”

“…In education, this is demonstrated by links and interactions that include culture, teacher/educators, and community (Ortiz & Ordonez-Jasis, 2005). The specific type of support, advising, cultural norms, and on-campus experiences students have both affect and interconnect to affect academic achievement and persistence.…”

Fathers: the ‘invisible’ parents

“…They showed that the fathers' involvement with their children, work environment, and cultural surroundings (Taylor & Behnke, 2005) modified their social roles (e.g., being a father) and behaviors in an effort to meet societal standards (Stryker & Statham, 1985). Ortiz and his colleagues (e.g., Ortiz et al, 1999;Ortiz & Ordoñez-Jasis, 2005) recommended educational activities that would improve the quality of the father-child dyads. In a later study, Ortiz (2004) showed that the fathers' involvement affected their children's education; several themes emerged from their participation.…”

Enhancing Young Hispanic Dual Language Learners' Achievement: Exploring Strategies and Addressing Challenges

“…This may be due in part to a traditional cultural emphasis on oral storytelling (Langer de Ramírez, 1996;McDowell, Herrera-Sobek, & Cortina, 1993;Reese, 2012). Also contributing may be varying beliefs about the value of reading to children in their home language (L. M. López, 2005) as well as an at-home emphasis on other types of activities to help children develop their language and literacy skills (López-Velásquez, 2009;R. W. Ortiz & Ordoñez-Jasis, 2005;Reese & Gallimore, 2000).…”