This study sought to identify factors that contribute to the academic resilience and achievement among Mexican American high school students. High-and low-achieving students were selectedfrom a database that included 2,169 Mexican American students in three California high schools. Resilient students (N = 133) reported receiving mostly A grades in high school, whereas nonresilient students (N = 81) reported mostly grades of D or below. Variables were formedfrom items on a questionnaire that all students had previously completed. Items selectedfor analysis included role offamily, teachers, and peers toward school; the school environment and belonging; and the importance of culture andfamily. Regression analysis on student grade point average (GPA) revealed that a sense of belonging to school was the only significant predictor of academic resilience. An ANOVA revealed that teacherfeedback was greater among resilient males in comparison to nonresilient males.

This study examined generation differences in achievement among 2,167 high school students who identified themselves as Mexican or Mexican American, reported whether they were born in the U.S. or outside of the U.S., and reported being in the general or academic track. Based on student self-reported grade point average (GPA), immigrant students in general-track courses and college preparatory courses reported higher grades than third-generation students. However, regardless of place of birth, general-track and college-track students who received some schooling in Mexico reported higher grades than students with no schooling in Mexico. Finally, regardless of immigrant status, college-track students who received some ESL/bilingual education reported higher grades than students who had not received any second language instruction. These findings support the paradoxical findings on generation differences that show that immigrants perform better academically than U.S.-born Mexican heritage students. However, our findings demonstrate that immigrant status alone does not lead to higher grades; rather, prior school history in Mexico, academic track, and bilingual/ESL assistance are all important in understanding the generation difference effect.

No abstract

Identity development is a dynamic process which involves reconciling multiple messages. While ethnic minority adolescents' development is affected profoundly by discrimination, positive racial/ethnic encounters can also transform one's identity. Questionnaire data were gathered from 122 tenth-grade Mexican Americans in a low-performing school that had over 60% “Hispanic” students. Based on the data, 12 second-generation youth were selected for interviews based on their level of academic engagement and experiences with negative racial/ethnic encounters in school. Interviewees' descriptions of positive encounter experiences revealed ways in which schools can reinforce equal status and integrate Mexican American youth. Youth felt a renewed commitment to their ethnic selves when they participated in events that they perceived as dispelling stereotypes and when they had concrete experiences in which their bilingual competence was perceived as an asset. This qualitative study identifies avenues for future research on positive racial/ethnic encounters and academic engagement.

Little of the research that has been done with the Latino community has taken an asset-based approach and identified cultural based strengths rather than deficit views. This chapter builds upon the emerging research in positive psychology and highlights the innumerable cultural strengths of Latinos that have largely gone unrecognized or understudied. We emphasize ways in which the field of positive psychology can incorporate the experience of Latinos who face economic, educational, and linguistic challenges and who also display enormous resilience as they navigate American society. We identify affective, behavioral, and cognitive-based assessment methods and strategies that have high cultural and linguistic validity and that hold promise for future research with Latinos.We begin with a brief overview of relevant statistics and then provide a selective commentary on the importance of assessing positive strengths among Latinos. We refer to three critical dimensions of the Latino experience as it