Background/Context: Transnational Mexican-origin youth comprise a large and increasing number of students in U.S. schools, yet their teachers have often misunderstood their backgrounds and the conditions related to their transnational movement over borders. With such a large number of immigrant/transnational youth in the U.S. of Mexican origin, it…

This article provides an overview of the public school system in Mexico from early childhood to high school, and compares it with the American education system. It also identifies educational terminology and concepts unique to the Mexican system that can become possible sources of conflict and confusion for American educators. (Contains 7…

Students at Tucson High School in Arizona, part of Tucson Unified School District's highly successful Mexican American Studies (MAS) K-12 program, the largest in the nation, are taught Indigenous concepts, including Panche Be (seek the root of the truth), and the Aztec and Maya calendars. The author speaks to the students about the relationship…

The purpose of this presentation is to identify the challenges faced by special educators throughout North America in meeting the needs of Mexican-American students. Recommendations will also be provided for collaborating with families from Mexico along the following dimensions: population and demographic factors, urbanization and the decline of…

As a student in the Chicana/o studies program at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP), Jesse S. Arrieta decided that her classroom instruction about the culture and history of people of Mexican origin wasn't enough. Arrieta, 27, who graduated from UTEP in 2002 before earning a master's in American history from the University of California,…

Written by a Los Angeles history teacher frustrated by the lack of culturally relevant materials, this book covers some of the most interesting events in the history of Mexico and the heritage of Mexican Americans. Chapters are: (1) Indian Mexico (Teotihuacan, the Maya, the Toltecs, and the Aztecs); (2) La Conquista (Cortes and Moctezuma, conquest…

This bibliography of 369 new titles in the Coleccion Tloque Nahuaque contains materials for and about Hispanic Americans, particularly Mexican Americans. The largest subject divisions are literature with 70 titles, history with 61, economics with 44, and education with 27. Other subject areas include animal husbandry, anthropology, art, arts and…

Careful reading of proverbs can aid an individual to develop self-awareness by providing insights into what one cultural group considers desirable human behavior. Respect for the elderly can be taught to the young through the study of proverbs. Through their proverbs, the Mexicans reveal their friendliness, love of animals, sense of humor, and…

This report describes economic, social, and political characteristics of the lower Rio Grande Valley with implications for the educational system, and presents preliminary findings on how south Texas schools are integrating new immigrant Mexican students. The lower Rio Grande Valley comprises four Texas counties and northern Tamaulipas, Mexico.…

This bibliography of 148 new titles in the Coleccion Tloque Nahuaque contains materials for and about Hispanic Americans, particularly Mexican Americans. The largest subject divisions are literature with 24 titles, bilingual education with 18, and history with 15. Other subject areas include agricultural labor, anthropology, art, bibliographies,…

With large-scale immigration in the last 20 years and a high birth rate, Chicanos now comprise the second-largest minority in the United States. This ethnohistorical account attempts to unravel the multiple heritages and influences shaping Chicanos from pre-Columbian Mexico to present-day United States. The book focuses on questions of land,…

In 1994, California voters approved Proposition 187, which prohibits provision of publicly funded education and social services to undocumented immigrants, and which requires public schools to verify the legal status of students and their parents. This paper examines socioeconomic and immigration trends leading to the emergence of Proposition 187,…

This document provides information about schools in Mexico and suggests ways that U.S. schools can use this information to improve education for Mexican and Mexican American students. Chapter 1 describes the Mexican educational system as a vantage point for understanding the expectations of Mexican parents in the United States. This chapter covers…

The curriculum presented here contains three units designed to help Mexican-American migrant students understand and value the richness of their culture, experiences, and family. Unit 1, "My Roots," examines the different components of a culture, and presents aspects of the Aztec civilization and culture. Activities include hearing a…

Developed originally for grades 7-12, the three bilingual Mexican American studies curriculum units on the pre-Hispanic cultures of the Olmecs, Mayas, and Aztecs present information for the teacher and for the student, a glossary, worksheets, an answer key, a test, and a bibliography in Spanish and English. The cross section of materials are…