Conference

The Education of Latinos in Iowa: An Information Gap, Not a Value Gap

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Abstract

This presentation will review the current state of Latino high school education in the United States and more specifically in the state of Iowa. Results from a recent case study on Iowa Latino and nonHispanic White student placement in the three different high school science tracks will be presented as an example of current informal education policies and segregation within Iowa schools. The purpose of the study was to discover whether students were tracked appropriately based on their academic performance and which science track led to student success in science. The study's findings were also put into context with the parental involvement and expectations using data from in-depth Latino student interviews. Implications of tracking and institutional racism are discussed and recommendations for high school science programs and Latino education are presented.