Abstract

Abundant research exists examining what occurs in Hispanic homes regarding educational beliefs and literacy and language practices before and after children enter the school system. What is not known is whether or not teachers are aware of these practices and beliefs. The research questions of this study focus first on what perceptions K-12 teachers have about Hispanic educational beliefs and practices, and second, on determining if those perceptions correlate with teacher training in English as a second language (ESL). To answer these questions, a questionnaire was written based on an extensive review of literature regarding three aspects: Hispanic educational beliefs, literacy practices, and language practices. This questionnaire was then administered to 214 K-12 public school teachers from three school districts in Utah. The results were analyzed first using descriptive statistics to learn which perceptions teachers felt strongly about, and second, with a blocked analysis of variance to find correlation between perceptions and ESL training. The results suggest that teachers are uncertain about what is occurring in Hispanic homes. Of the 25 questions analyzed in the descriptive statistics, 68% had response means falling between 3.90 and 5.10 (a score of 4.0 indicating neither agreement nor disagreement). However, results showed that teachers had the strongest views regarding Hispanic literacy practices and the family focus on authority. The analysis of variance showed that ESL training does not correlate with teacher perception. Suggestions for further research and implications of the results of this study are discussed.

Degree

MA

College and Department

Humanities; Linguistics and English Language

Rights

http://lib.byu.edu/about/copyright/

Date Submitted

2010-12-16

Document Type

Thesis

Handle

http://hdl.lib.byu.edu/1877/etd4156

Keywords

teacher perceptions, Hispanic family, educational beliefs, literacy, language

Language

English

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