Classes Where "Kids Learn/Don't Learn a Lot": A Study of Mexican American Adolescents' Voices

• In Event: 52.028 - Race, Gender, and Ethnicity in Educational Contexts

Abstract

In this qualitative study of low income Mexican American adolescents, we examined the ways in which higher and lower achievers spoke about classes in which they perceived that students learned or did not learn a lot. We found that for these students, higher and lower achievers differed not only in how they spoke about their classroom experiences, but also in the classroom contexts they chose to describe. Findings are discussed in the context of eliminating barriers to opportunity, engagement, and success and helping to close the achievement gap.

Authors

• Janine Bempechat, Boston University

• Jin Li, Brown University

• Susan D. Holloway, University of California - Berkeley