High School Teachers' Experiences with Latino parents

This dissertation study relies on teachers' voices to examine their experiences with and perceptions of Latino parent participation. Fourteen English teachers participated in an interview about their experiences with Latino parents. Present research has shown that parental involvement has a large effect on student achievement. These interviews were analyzed to determine the attitudes and beliefs educators hold about Latino parents. Results were found for the following emerging themes: Negative Stereotypes, Assimilation, and Lack of Cultural Competence. Negative Stereotype was found to have the greatest impact on teachers' perceptions of Latino parent participation, Assimilation was second, and Lack of Cultural Competence was the third important factor influencing teachers' attitudes toward Latino parental participation. Suggestions for educators to become more culturally aware include the following research questions: 1. What do teachers think about Latino parents' involvement in high school? 2. How do Latino parents' cultural backgrounds affect teachers' perceptions about them?