Immigrant Latinos' Cultural Model of Literacy Development: An Evolving Perspective on Home-School Discontinuities

Abstract

Parents' views of what literacy is and how it develops affect their structuring of everyday activities for children. This article presents case study data on Mexican and Central American immigrant families residing in the greater Los Angeles area, focusing on parents' cultural models and practices of early literacy development of children. The study has two general aims: (1) to describe immigrant Latinos' cultural model of literacy, its origin, and changes in this model associated with immigration and experiences with U. S. schools; and (2) to present a more nuanced perspective on home-school discontinuities that allows for within-group variation and dynamic change across time. Findings indicate that changes in home literacy practices, such as reading aloud to children in the preschool years, carried out in response to school expectations, were associated with parents' own schooling and literacy experiences in their countries of origin.