Latin American Mothers’ First-Hand Accounts of a Statewide Early Intervention Model: A Funds of Knowledge Approach

Abstract

Latin American families’ history and life experiences impact the priorities and values they have for their children with disabilities. It may be beneficial for EI providers to explore and integrate Latin American families’ backgrounds to improve EI services. We completed a qualitative interview study using a collective case study analysis to (a) learn about Latin American families’ parenting values and (b) explore families’ experiences with a statewide early intervention model. Three mothers with young children who had received EI services completed two interviews. We found that each family had unique histories, compositions, support networks, and priorities that impacted their experiences with a statewide coaching model. Families revealed how their funds of knowledge were, at times, integrated into the EI they received. Our study describes a valuable method of learning about Latin American families’ cultural backgrounds so that EI providers may sustain families’ cultures within the services they provide.

Social support among English learners with disabilities and other adolescents

“…One of the challenges associated with conducting secondary analyses of existing data is the reliance on measures used by the original designers. In the current study, items used to measure parental support focused on academic support rather than other dimensions of support that parents of ELs are known to provide, such as fostering functional bilingualism through oral language development (Abarca et al, 2023). Items used to measure teacher support asked for student perception of emotional support (e.g., concerns, praise, encouragement) from one teacher or adult at school rather than all teachers, and these items only measured positive experiences (e.g., praise and care).…”