ERIC Number: EJ1062512
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2015-May
Pages: 35
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0195-6744
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Unaccompanied Minors: How Children of Latin American Immigrants Negotiate High School Choice
Sattin-Bajaj, Carolyn
American Journal of Education, v121 n3 p381-415 May 2015
The compatibility of school choice policies and educational equity goals is one of the most hotly debated issues in education today. Yet, despite the growing population of children of immigrants in US schools, limited research exists on the relationship between parental nativity and participation in school choice from an equity perspective. This article explores the tensions and alignment between school choice and equity through an examination of children of Latin American immigrants' search for and decisions about high schools in the context of a compulsory choice policy. Drawing on nearly 2 years of ethnographic data collected at one New York City public middle school and interviews with 26 first- and second-generation children of low-income immigrants from across Latin America and the Spanish-speaking Caribbean, I illuminate some of challenges that Latino immigrant-origin students faced in understanding how to select appropriate, quality high schools. Using these findings, I analyze the ways in which the design and implementation of New York City's mandatory high school choice policy hindered its equity potential and offer recommendations for its improvement.
Descriptors: School Choice, Immigrants, Children, Hispanic American Students, High School Students, Equal Education, Ethnography, Public Schools, Middle Schools, Low Income Groups, Case Studies, Participant Observation, High Schools, School Counselors, School Counseling, Access to Information, Barriers, Decision Making, School Guidance, Educational Opportunities, Information Dissemination, Semi Structured Interviews, Qualitative Research
University of Chicago Press. Journals Division, P.O. Box 37005, Chicago, IL 60637. Tel: 877-705-1878; Tel: 773-753-3347; Fax: 877-705-1879; Fax: 773-753-0811; e-mail: subscriptions@press.uchicago.edu; Web site: http://www.press.uchicago.edu/ucp/journals/journal/aje.html
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: High Schools; Secondary Education; Middle Schools; Junior High Schools
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: New York
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A

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