Maximino Plata

Modeling Mexican Americans’ Educational Expectations: Longitudinal Effects of Variables Across Adolescence

Using a national sample of Mexican Americans, the authors developed structural equation models of the effects of four eighth-grade latent variables on educational expectations assessed 6 years later. Models for Mexican American women and men did not differ from one another. The latent variable, parents’ influences, had a strong positive effect on educational expectations at late adolescence. Parents’ influences dominated the effects of the other latent independent variables, socioeconomic status, eighth-grade achievement test scores, and self-perceptions. The four eighth-grade latent variables explained 41% of the variability in educational expectations at late adolescence. The findings reveal consistencies and inconsistencies with previous research findings and models.

Acculturation and teacher ratings of hispanic and Anglo‐American students∗

(2000). Acculturation and teacher ratings of hispanic and Anglo‐American students. Roeper Review: Vol. 23, No. 1, pp. 45-46.

Teacher ratings of Hispanic and Anglo students on a behavior rating scale

The study was conducted with 115 Hispanic (53 Males, 62 Females) and 119 Anglo (61 males, 58 females) fifth grade students and 12 teachers (11 females, 1 male) in a public school district in the Southwest. The study was designed to determine teachers’ nomination rates of Hispanic and Anglo students to gifted and talented programs and to establish if there were differences in teachers’ ratings on the SRBCSS across ethnicity and gender groups for nominated and not nominated students. Results indicated that ethnicity was a factor in teachers’ nomination rate and that these differences were more pronounced between Hispanic and Anglo females. Results also indicated that teachers’ ratings on the SRBCSS for nominated Hispanic and Anglo students were similar, but that ratings for non‐nominated students differed significantly by ethnic group.

Adolescents with Learning Disabilities: Are They Allowed to Participate in Activities?.

Fifty-one Anglo American (28 educationally successful, 23 educationally at risk) and 20 African American (10 educationally successful, 10 educationally at risk) high school boys participated in a study to determine their willingness to allow same-sex peers with learning disabilities (LD) participate in a variety of activities. Kruskal-Wallis One-way Analysis of Variance by Ranks (S. Siegel & N. J. Castellan, 1988) results indicated no significant differences among educationally successful groups, educationally at-risk groups, or ethnic groups regarding their willingness to allow peers with LD to participate in activities. However, there were significant differences in the degree to which peers with LD would be unconditionally or reluctantly allowed to participate or denied participation. Discussion addresses the importance of educating and training adolescents with and without LD to enhance interaction and improve relationships among students.

Teacher ratings of Hispanic, black, and Anglo students' classroom behavior

Teachers rated the behavior of Hispanic (N = 56), black (N = 56), and Anglo (N = 56) elementary students with the Teacher Checklist of School Behavior. The behavior of Hispanic students was rated less favorably than that of either of the other two groups. The Hispanic students were perceived to avoid peer and teacher interaction to a greater extent than Anglo and black students and to exhibit more physical reaction (absenteeism, physical complaints, clinic requests, etc.)