Where do I start?

Where do I start?

In the past five weeks I’ve compiled a lot of information on how to connect with Mexican/Hispanic parents and their community. My question originally was based around better communication, but as my research has shown the complexity of the issue has many different components.

Today’s blog entry examines what I feel and the evidence points to, is taking the first step. This blog was inspired by Connie Milliken and her talk on home visits. Having had some previous experience with home visits I thought it would be a good starting place and sought out scholarly sources. Using Georgia Pappas’s Forging Home-School Partnerships with Latino Families, that appeared in L.A.R.A.S.A. (Latin American Research and Service Agency/Report) March, 1997 I see that “The most effective strategies were personal Home visits, grape vines , gatherings at the gate” (p. 3). Pappas believes as I do, the key is face to face communication with parents in their homes or a neutral setting, in their language. Having one of these experiences at Lake Hills Elementary I saw first hand how 20 minutes over a cup of coffee bonded my master teacher to a family for a year. Their (family/teacher) goals were the same, but the differences seemed overwhelming. Knowing now the results of the relationship, I am happy to endorse this type of interaction. The time and commitment on the teacher’s was well as the parents are great, but the results are student success.

Pappas (1997) says “Teachers who have developed successful relationships with Latino parents share the following characteristics”

Teachers developed a long-range systematic plan to increase Latino parental participation.
Teachers took the attitude that all parents are expected to participate, and if they don’t it is the teachers’ responsibility to make it happen.
Teachers did not use parents’ ethnicity, income, education, or martial status as excuses for lack of involvement. (p. 3)

There must be a commitment to leadership by the teacher, school, and principal. Once the Latino community sees this commitment, it inspires involvement or commitment on their part. I feel the best way to look at these relationships is “Enjoy this opportunity to get to know your student and their families. It will set the tone for your whole year” (Connie Milliken).

Historically schools have used one-way communication, but as I have shown two-way communication is crucial in breaking cultural barriers. Sometimes teachers overlook what Latino families have to offer their classrooms, and teachers need to remember that families already know their children’s learning styles, strengths and weakness. Forging partnerships between different cultures and schools in the United States is causing a major shift for schools. It’s all about “who” is taking the responsibility for educational outcomes, and the changing face now sees communities, families and schools in partnership. (Nancy Chavkin and Dora Lara, Forging Partnerships between Mexican American Parents and the Schools. ERIC Digests, ED388489)


Perceptions and Attitudes of Teachers and Latino Parents (from LARASA Report)

Some Teachers Perceptions:
…I send home notes and I call and still I can’t get them to a meeting. I think that a lot of them just don’t care

…Where have they been all their lives? The children don’t know anything. They come into kindergarten with out knowing colors or numbers. They can’t hold a pencil.

Some Latino Perceptions about Schools:
…I am called by the school when there is a problem with my son, then the teachers make me feel embarrassed and hurt about his behavior. I feel I don’t belong in the school.

…The teachers are professional people. They know what is best for children. I went to the third grade; how can I question my son’s teacher? She knows what is best for him.
(p. 3)

Finally I think it is important to address the attitudes of teachers. Negative or condescending attitudes focused toward at risk kids. Many of these kids are Latino. Using judgmental written communication to Latino parents is a great example of negative attitudes. Another example would be communication that is filled with educational jargon, and as teachers, half of us don’t understand the lingo. Can you image how Latino parents feel?

Closing this post I would like to leave you with a thought: “Overcoming the cultural and social conditioning of low-income Hispanic parents does not require the expenditure of large sums of money. It does, however, require time and energy, patience and persistence. It also requires flexibility. (Hispanic Policy Development Project)

Good example of Home visits resource:
Prestame una Comadre (Springfield, Illinois) means “loan me a godmother” in Spanish and works with migrant Head Start families. Social workers conduct home visits as often as three times weekly and hold small group meetings. Families work on increasing self-reliance, learning about child development and education, and improving family functioning.

Online source: http://www.yic.gov/partners/overview.htmlcurrent .gov site links to many curent new articles on this topic