Reconfiguring Latine/x Sibling Relations across Elementary Bilingual Program Spaces

• In Event: Critical Geographies of Belonging: Justice in Bilingual Education

Abstract

This paper describes how Latine/x siblings care and support one another within an elementary bilingual program, and how they negotiate dominant forms of family-school relations that permeate their schooling experiences. Along with racialized labels and perspectives, racially minoritized children are rarely positioned as key leaders and decision-makers in instructional and school-wide programming. Still, this study demonstrates that Latine/x children were attuned to how intersecting vectors of oppression influenced their identities, languaging, and learning expectations. Additionally, they recommended activities and communicative approaches to enhance parental feedback and roles in student learning. Further, the sibling children leveraged multiple school spaces, outside of classrooms, to review disciplinary-related concepts and support their physical and socioemotional wellness. Overall, the sibling participants demonstrate how they consistently present alternative forms of caring, relating, and connection in schools, and the importance of adult educational leaders actively positioning children as critical catalysts for transformative learning and family engagement initiatives.

Author

• Jasmine Alvarado, Brandeis University