Latinx students in the GTA and surroundings and High School disengagement

Abstract

My focus in this study is to explore the experiences of former Latinx/a/o high school students and their view on the factors that led them to either graduate or “dropout” of high school. I am also interested in better understanding their experiences with social workers in schools and how social workers can better support students. Using a narrative approach, I center the voices and experiences of my participants. I gathered these experiences in a focus group, and through thematic analysis I analyzed these findings in relation to the existing literature. With this study, I hope to contribute to the current academic literature on this subject, and would also like to extend the work that has been done in the community with the hopes of further analysis and response on the issue of “low academic achievement” of Latinx/a/o students