Spanish-speaking Parents' Beliefs about Their Young Children's Learning and Language Development

Abstract

In recognition of the increasing cultural, linguistic, and economic diversity among the early childhood population, knowledge about parents’ beliefs concerning the way in which children learn has the potential to directly inform early childhood programs charged with the task of developing young children’s language.  This study investigates Latino, Spanish-speaking parents’ (n = 200) beliefs about their 24- to 48-month-old children’s learning and (dual) language development; all children attended Early Head Start/Head Start.  Given that patterns of Spanish language use can vary along a continuum of mostly Spanish to mostly English, we also examine potential differences in beliefs by patterns of reported home language use.  Results of this study, using Principal Components Analysis, reveal that Spanish-speaking parents’ beliefs about the way in which young children learn and develop language vary widely.  We discuss ways in which early childhood programs can build on parents’ existing knowledge base to maximize students’ learning opportunities.