Developing a Framework for High Achievement of Latino Second-Generation Students at Elite Colleges

• In Event: Factors of Achievement for Latinx Students: Navigating Successful Pathways at Selective Colleges and Universities

Abstract

While research on the Latino population has historically focused on the underperformance of this ethnic group (Torres et al., 2019), scholars have begun to turn their attention to Latino students who are high-achievers (e.g., Duncheon & Reyes, 2019; Gándara, 2012; Huerta, 2015; Vega, 2016). However, more research is needed to understand the factors that promote positive achievement motivation and a passion to persist in schools (Torres et al., 2019).

This study considered the stories of 42 second-generation Latino students in elite colleges and universities across the US. The sample consisted of 20 male and 22 female students matriculated as juniors and seniors at institutions with almost equal representation across Western, Midwestern, Southern, and Eastern regions. Their families hailed from many nations throughout Mexico, Central, and South America, and included one student whose parents had moved from Puerto Rico as well. All participants engaged in in-depth interviews about their life experiences that they attributed to their academic success. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using a constant comparative approach.

Duckworth’s (2007) Grit framework served as a point of inspiration for this study, though a grounded theory approach was utilized in exploring the development of students’ passion and persistence in schools, to create an alternative theory that emerged from their voices and stories.
Findings indicated that all students declared their primary source of motivation to be rooted in their families, communities, and culture. Specifically, students indicated that rather than pursuing a college degree for the title, they did so in order to secure jobs that would allow them to care for their parents as they aged. This was a universally held value for the participants; they expressed a desire to show their gratitude for their parents’ sacrifices in this tangible way, and felt that this commitment was rooted deeply in the familismo inherent to their Latino culture. Additionally, participants indicated a desire to model academic achievement for others in their communities, and often engaged in outreach in their local neighborhoods and/or high schools to talk to youth and inspire them to go to college as well. Finally, these students felt that their achievement was a means to debunk negative stereotypes held by society and overcome barriers of discrimination.

Taken together, the findings suggest that culturally-rooted grit (CRG) plays a role in the Latino second-generation achievement, in which high levels of connection to family, community, and culture fuel a motivation to continue in school, not for a goal of title, but for a goal to elevate the lives of those they care most about. This new theory, grounded in the stories of this diverse group of Latino high-achievers, has significant implications for both research and practice. Scholars can potentially use CRG to develop a new line of research into Latino achievement, and practitioners who understand the principles of CRG can potentially inculcate and support high levels of connection between what happens at school and in the homes and communities of their Latino students.

Author

• Stacy Kula, Azusa Pacific University
  Presenting Author