ABSTRACT

Associations between home learning opportunities, parental growth mindset (the belief that intelligence is malleable), and children’s academic skills have been documented primarily in European descent communities. Less is known about other communities. This study examined associations among home learning opportunities, parental mindsets, and child academic skills in a sample of 107 Latino parents and their kindergartners (M age = 67 months; 51% girls). Home learning opportunities were measured via a survey that included conventional learning practices (e.g. book sharing) and food practices (e.g. mealtime conversations). Parental mindsets were assessed through a widely used mindset scale. Child academic skills were assessed using standardized and non-standardized tests. Research Findings: Parental growth mindsets positively related to food practices (β = 0.29) and there was suggestive evidence that food practices positively related to child expressive vocabulary (β = 0.35). Conventional learning practices and parental growth mindset did not relate to child outcomes. Practice or Policy: If replicated in larger samples, findings suggest that Latino parents might view food practices as prime learning opportunities for their children. In addition, results suggest that food practices might foster Latino children’s academic skills. Findings have the potential to inform family interventions targeting Latino families.

摘要

家庭学习机会、父母成长心态（相信智力是可塑的）和孩子的学术技能之间的关联主要在欧洲血统社区中得到记录。对其他社区知之甚少。这项研究调查了 107 名拉丁裔父母及其幼儿园儿童（ M年龄 = 67 个月；51% 是女孩）样本中家庭学习机会、父母心态和儿童学业技能之间的关联。家庭学习机会是通过一项调查来衡量的，调查包括传统的学习实践（例如书籍分享）和饮食实践（例如进餐时的谈话）。通过广泛使用的心态量表评估父母的心态。使用标准化和非标准化测试评估儿童学习技能。研究成果：父母的成长心态与饮食习惯正相关 ( β  = 0.29)，并且有暗示性证据表明饮食习惯与儿童表达词汇量正相关 ( β  = 0.35)。传统的学习实践和父母的成长心态与孩子的成绩无关。实践或政策：如果在更大的样本中进行复制，研究结果表明拉丁裔父母可能会将饮食实践视为孩子的主要学习机会。此外，结果表明饮食习惯可能会培养拉丁裔儿童的学习技能。调查结果有可能为针对拉丁裔家庭的家庭干预提供信息。