nation's changing demographics have important implications for how we prepare young children to succeed. Currently, Latino children are among the fastest growing population of children in the U.S. A significant proportion of the rapidly increasing and diverse Latino population is exposed to conditions that pose risks to the overall development of Latino children. Latinos are disproportionately likely to be low- income. In 2002, for instance, 62% of Latino children lived in low-income families compared to 58% of Black and 25% of White children, nationally. Despite evidence indicating disproportionate risk for educational failure, there is heterogeneity in the educational outcomes of minority children who grow up in urban poverty. The search for protective factors, which might explain this within-group variability, has revealed family involvement as a potentially buffering factor. Ecocultural theory provides a guiding framework for the project. This theory emphasizes the central influence of the socio-cultural environment as experienced in everyday routines and activities on children's development. Thus, the primary aim of this pilot study is to investigate the specific and, perhaps, unique ways that Latino families support children's school readiness through their specific involvement behaviors. In addition to its unique focus on Latino children and families, the strength of this proposal is its integration of qualitative and quantitative research methods within an emic approach to social science research.
Specific aims i nclude: (a) gain an understanding of how family involvement during the preschool period is conceptualized by Latino parents by employing an emic approach to uncover culturally appropriate categories; (b) create a culturally relevant, multidimensional quantitative instrument with items that capture the specific behaviors Latino parents engage in to support their preschool children's early educational success; and (c) examine how Latino family involvement is associated with preschool children's school readiness outcomes in the areas of language and social-emotional development. The proposed study has clear relevance for public health; understanding the specific goals and behaviors of Latino families can offer schools an expanded and more inclusive definition of family involvement, as well as provide a framework for understanding cultural continuities and discontinuities across children's home and school contexts. Therefore, the knowledge gained from this study has the potential to inform the design of culturally responsive family involvement programs to enhance child development within the city's Child Care and Head Start systems. Further, we anticipate that any findings will have implications for early childhood programs serving Latino families and children across our nation. ? ? ?
| McWayne, Christine M; Melzi, Gigliana; Limlingan, Maria Cristina et al. (2016) Ecocultural patterns of family engagement among low-income Latino families of preschool children. Dev Psychol 52:1088-102 |
| McWayne, Christine M; Melzi, Gigliana (2014) Validation of a culture-contextualized measure of family engagement in the early learning of low-income Latino children. J Fam Psychol 28:260-6 |
