Cause or Effect? A Longitudinal Study of Immigrant Latino Parents' Aspirations and Expectations, and Their Children's School Performance

Abstract

How much formal schooling for their children do immigrant Latino parents aspire to and expect? Do parents' aspirations or expectations influence children's school achievement? Do aspirations or expectations diminish the longer parents are in the U.S. or if they experience discrimination? Using quantitative and qualitative methods, we address these questions in a longitudinal study (kindergarten to sixth grade) of 81 Latino children and their immigrant parents. We find that (a) parents' educational aspirations are high and invariant throughout the elementary years; however, expectations fluctuate; (b) children's school performance influences parents' expectations, but expectations do not influence performance; and (c) immigrant Latino parents attribute high instrumental value to formal schooling, and neither time spent in the U.S. nor perceived discrimination diminishes this belief.