Cause or Effect? A Longitudinal Study of Immigrant Latino Parents' Aspirations and Expectations, and Their Children's School Performance

Abstract

How much formal schooling for their children do immigrant Latino parents aspire to and expect? Do parents' aspirations or expectations influence children's school achievement? Do aspirations or expectations diminish the longer parents are in the U.S. or if they experience discrimination? Using quantitative and qualitative methods, we address these questions in a longitudinal study (kindergarten to sixth grade) of 81 Latino children and their immigrant parents. We find that (a) parents' educational aspirations are high and invariant throughout the elementary years; however, expectations fluctuate; (b) children's school performance influences parents' expectations, but expectations do not influence performance; and (c) immigrant Latino parents attribute high instrumental value to formal schooling, and neither time spent in the U.S. nor perceived discrimination diminishes this belief.

Parental Expectations and Children's Academic Performance in Sociocultural Context

“…Although the term "parental expectations" has been defined in various ways in the literature, most researchers characterize parental expectations as realistic beliefs or judgments that parents have about their children's future achievement as reflected in course grades, highest level of schooling attained, or college attendance (e.g., Alexander et al 1994;Glick and White 2004;Goldenberg et al 2001). Parental expectations are based on an assessment of the child's academic capabilities as well as the available resources for supporting a given level of achievement.…”

“…To the extent that parental aspirations reflect the value parents place on education, they are based on parents' personal goals as well as community norms about schooling and its role in promoting professional and personal success (Astone and McLanahan 1991;Carpenter 2008). Researchers tend to measure parental aspirations by asking the year of schooling parents "want" or "hope" their children to achieve (Aldous 2006;Goldenberg et al 2001).…”

“…For example, to fill the gap in our knowledge about Latino families and schooling in the United States, it would be interesting to build from the pioneering work of Goldenberg et al to explore the varied ways in which subgroups of Latino parents conceptualize their role and that of the teacher, and to learn how these culturally based perceptions play into their expectations about what their children can and will achieve in school (e.g., Goldenberg and Gallimore 1995;Goldenberg et al 2001;Reese and Gallimore 2000). Additional qualitative work is needed to learn more about the ways Latino parents judge their ability to assist their children attain academic outcomes commensurate with their potential.…”

“…In order for students' past performance to figure into parental expectations about the future, parents must rely on feedback from the school in the form of grades, test results, and teachers' assessments (Goldenberg et al 2001;Seginer 1983). However, parents' assessment of children's performance differs depending on the sociocultural group to which the parents belong.…”

Mapping the Social World of Classrooms: A Multi‐Level, Multi‐Reporter Approach to Social Processes and Behavioral Engagement

“…Latinos are the largest racial minority group in the United States today, with over 20% of school children from Latino families (Taylor, Kochhar, Livingston, Lopez & Morin, 2009). Despite high levels of academic motivation and a positive view of schooling (Goldenberg, Gallimore, Reese & Garnier, 2001;Reese, Balzano, Gallimore & Goldenberg, 1995), many Latino students experience challenges that interfere with school success. For example, Latino students, compared to their white counterparts, are more likely to live in low-income neighborhoods with low social capital, including limited access to adults who fluently speak English, are college-educated, and have professional or managerial occupations (Alba et al, 2009).…”