| Percy Abram
Stanford University
Does language matter?: The effects of language on the development of social capital among Latino students
FINAL REPORT:
Since the passage of the Immigration Act of 1965, which lifted many of the legal restrictions to entrance into the U.S., the percentage of non-native U.S. residents has increased sharply (Portes & Rumbaut, 1990). Such changes have had an impact on the way educational institutions regard issues like access to curriculum, equity, and achievement. Traditionally, researchers studying the education of immigrants and language minority students have focused on three areas: the classroom, cognition, and culture. These studies concentrate on classroom pedagogical strategies, cultural aspects of immigrant families, and individual psychological characteristics of language minority students but omit some of the social processes that either promote or retrict interactions among students and important adult agents. Such interactions often provide information and social support to students that can positively affect their educational mobility.
In this study I examine the ways in which Latino students' use of and proficiency in Spanish affects their educational achievement and expectations. I draw upon social capital theory and acculturation models to examine the relationship among native language use, parent-child interactions, and educational mobility. I define social capital as an individual's access to potential information networks through which he or she is able to derive various types of institutional resources and support. I operationalize social capital as the interactions between Latino students and their parents about school-related issues. The maintenance of Spanish is an indicator of a slow process of acculturation and the preservation of a close connection between child and parent (Portes & Rumbaut, 2002). These two premises guide the theoretical framework of the study. I apply them in this study to determine how Spanish language use and proficiency among Latino students affect their ability to develop and maintain relationships with adults and how these relationships affect their educational expectations and achievement.
This study uses data from the NELS:88, 1st Follow-up 1990 and 2nd Follow-up 1992. NELS is a two-stage stratified probability sample of approximately 25,000 8th grade students who were followed and surveyed at two-year intervals between 1988 and 1994. I analyze data for students who completed surveys and questionnaires for the base year through 2nd Follow-up and whose parents self identify as Hispanic (N=979). In order to identify the effects of language use and proficiency on educational expectations and achievement, I used ordinary least squares analyses to create a path model that regresses achievement and expectations on social capital, and social capital on Spanish language use and proficiency.
The results of my study indicate that 8th grade Latino students' use of and proficiency in Spanish positively affects the frequency of conversations with parents about school. In turn, these conversations have a positive effect on students' 12th grade achievement, as measured by their preparations for post-secondary education, and their expectations. The results in this study also indicated that students' street orientation negatively affected their academic achievement. Students' street orientation is a measure of their propensity to embrace street culture and adopt an anti-school attitude.
It is imperative that educators continue to focus their attention on the education outcomes of immigrant students. Within many urban districts in this country immigrant children are summarily being left behind. The failure of some of these children can be attributed in large part to poorly financed schools and districts. However, in some areas where resources are being made available, there is a lack of understanding of the types of programs, beyond bilingual education, that might benefit students. It is my hope that this study sheds light on the types of relationships that foster student success among immigrant children, and that districts are able to design particular programs that are appropriate for them.
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