Navigating Two Worlds

Research studies indicate that Hispanic learners who are most successful have learned to navigate well in the dominant culture without sacrificing their heritage culture. This can be especially significant for our lower income Hispanic learners.
There are some things we plan to do at Esperanza Elementary to specifically address this:

• Teach all students to be literate in English and Spanish so they write and speak in both languages at a high level.


• Expose all students to what well educated people in the dominant culture know as well as acknowledging the contributions of their heritage culture. The intention is to widen their horizons.


• Expose students to the lifestyle of higher income people. For instance, taking them to cultural events (plays, operas, ballets, symphonies, etc.) and to nice restaurants. This is something Salome El-Thomas did with his chess winning students.


• Expose students--and their families-- to higher education institutions. Dr. Josie Tinajero developed an excellent Hispanic Mother/Daughter Program for 6th grade girls with this being the goal. We plan to implement this program at Esperanza as well as the Hispanic Father/Son Program Dr. Tinajero later developed. There is also a program called Adelante developed by some University of Utah professors we might want to emulate.


• Find mentors for students.


• Involve students in tutoring and mentoring younger students.


• Teach them financial skills. Many of them(and/or their parents) already have an entrepreneurial mindset that can be tapped into.

Students who can navigate two worlds will be richer--personally as well as probably financially. Thus, students such as these will also enrich our community and nation.