Engages the complexities of teaching Latino/a students at Hispanic-Serving Institutions.

Engages the complexities of teaching Latino/a students at Hispanic-Serving Institutions.

Explores the contradictions between what is expected of teachers and the education and support they have received, and provides teachers with advice on how to teach writing and generate their students' interest in writing.

In the past ten years, literature by U.S. Latinos has gained an extraordinary public currency and has engendered a great deal of interest among educators. Because of the increase in numbers of Latinos in their classrooms, teachers have recognized the benefits of including works by such important writers as Sandra Cisneros, Julia Alvarez, and Rudolfo Anaya in the curriculum. Without a guide, introducing courses on U.S. Latino literature or integrating individual works into the general courses on American Literature can be difficult for the uninitiated. While some critical sources for students and teachers are available, none are dedicated exclusively to this important body of writing. To fill the gap, the editors of this volume commissioned prominent scholars in the field to write 18 essays that focus on using U.S. Latino literature in the classroom. The selection of the subject texts was developed in conjunction with secondary school teachers who took part in the editors' course. This resultant volume focuses on major works that are appropriate for high school and undergraduate study including Judith Ortiz Cofer's The Latin Deli, Piri Thomas' Down These Mean Streets, and Cisneros' The House on Mango Street. Each chapter in this Critical Guide provides pertinent biographical background on the author as well as contextual information that aids in understanding the literary and cultural significance of the work. The most valuable component of the critical essays, the Analysis of Themes and Forms, helps the reader understand the thematic concerns raised by the work, particularly the recurring issues of language expression and cultural identity, assimilation, and intergenerational conflicts. Each essay is followed by specific suggestions for teaching the work with topics for classroom discussion. Further enhancing the value of this work as a teaching tool are the selected bibliographies of criticism, further reading, and other related sources that complete each chapter. Teachers will also find a Sample Course Outline of U.S. Latino Literature which serves as guide for developing a course on this important subject.

Hispanic and Latino students now represent the largest ethnic group educated in the United States public school system. That means the ability to successfully educate Hispanic and Latino students, from pre-kindergarten to graduate school, is now of primary importance to the future of the United States. Under this critical context, Jaime Castellano's Educating Hispanic/Latino Students: Opening Doors to Hope, Promise, and Possibility arrives at the perfect moment to help educators better understand the Hispanic and Latino student demographic, and more importantly, uncover the strategies and implementation practices to better educate this burgeoning population. Topics covered include: The influence of poverty on the education of Hispanic/Latino students The challenge of identity when educating Hispanic/Latino students Educating the "whole child" and what this means for Hispanic/Latino students Engaging America's Hispanic/Latino parents and families Supporting Hispanic/Latino students through curriculum, instruction, and assessment By recognizing that Hispanic and Latino students are vital linguistic, economic, and social resources to our society, Castellano's Hispanic/Latino Students: Opening Doors to Hope, Promise, and Possibility is rooted in the firm belief that educational equity, access, and higher expectations should be the driving force to provide Hispanic and Latino students a quality education that prepares them for a successful and meaningful future.

In a departure from traditional paradigms, in this work Latinos examine their own experiences in US schools and offer theories born from positions of expertise and first-hand knowledge as researchers and educators.

There is power that resides in outstanding culturally diverse literature'sa power that has the potential to engage students in reading and teach them about the art and craft of writing. In Dream Wakers: Mentor Texts That Celebrate Latino Culture, Ruth Culham focuses her love of children's literature'sand her decades of work developing the traits of writing'son books that celebrate Latino life and culture. She provides a wide variety of ideas to teach writing using some of the richest and most beautiful children's books available. Dream Wakers gives you: An annotated list of more than 120 books with do-it-today lesson ideas for teaching the traits of writing'sIdeas, Organization, Voice, Word Choice, Sentence Fluency, and Conventions. More than half of the books listed are bilingual or offer English and/or Spanish editions. Eleven original, insightful essays by renowned children's authors of some of the featured books A handy reference chart that helps teachers locate books quickly by trait, genre, language, and author/publisher information. Ruth encourages all of us to make sure students of all backgrounds have access to high-quality, culturally diverse texts and recognize the difference those texts will make in their reading lives, as well as in their perception of themselves as a thinkers, learners, and citizens.

Despite their numbers, Latinos continue to lack full and equal participation in all facets of American life, including education. This book provides a critical discussion of the role that select K–12 educational policies have and continue to play in failing Latino students. The author draws upon institutional, national, and statewide data sets, as well as interviews among students, teachers, and college administrators, to explore the role that public policies play in educating Latino students. The book concludes with specific recommendations that aim to raise achievement, college transition rates, and success among Latino students across the preschool through college continuum. Chapters cover high dropout rates, access to college-preparation resources, testing and accountability, financial aid, the Dream Act, and affirmative action.

"This book is a godsend a moving portrait for anyone wanting to go beyond the simplified labels and metrics and really understand an urban high school, and its highly individual, resilient, eager and brilliant students and educators." -- Dave Eggers, co-founder, 826 National and ScholarMatch Darrell is a reflective, brilliant young man, who never thought of himself as a good student. He always struggled with his reading and writing skills. Darrell's father, a single parent, couldn't afford private tutors. By the end of middle school, Darrell's grades and his confidence were at an all time low. Then everything changed. When education journalist Kristina Rizga first met Darrell at Mission High School, he was taking AP calculus class, writing a ten-page research paper, and had received several college acceptance letters. And Darrell was not an exception. More than 80 percent of Mission High seniors go to college every year, even though the school teaches large numbers of English learners and students from poor families. So, why has the federal government been threatening to close Mission High -- and schools like it across the country? The United States has been on a century long road toward increased standardization in our public schools, which resulted in a system that reduces the quality of education to primarily one metric: standardized test scores. According to this number, Mission High is a "low-performing" school even though its college enrollment, graduation, attendance rates and student surveys are some of the best in the country. The qualities that matter the most in learning -- skills like critical thinking, intellectual engagement, resilience, empathy, self-management, and cultural flexibility -- can't be measured by multiple-choice questions designed by distant testing companies, Rizga argues, but they can be detected by skilled teachers in effective, personalized and humane classrooms that work for all students, not just the most motivated ones. Based on four years of reporting with unprecedented access, the unforgettable, intimate stories in these pages throw open the doors to America's most talked about -- and arguably least understood -- public school classrooms where the largely invisible voices of our smart, resilient students and their committed educators can offer a clear and hopeful blueprint for what it takes to help all students succeed.