Mexican American Students and Classroom Interaction: An Overview and Critique

The failure of U. S. schools to successfully educate Mexican American students has been well documented. In this article, studies of Mexican American students and classroom interaction are reviewed and critiqued from a Vygotskian perspective. Four traditional approaches to the study of Mexican American classroom interaction were found. The research reviewed suggests that teachers can better ensure Mexican American student involvement in classroom interaction through collaborative learning techniques, acceptance and appreciation of student language use, and presentation of challenging material related to student interests. Researchers may expand our understanding of this topic through the descriptive study of Mexican American students in the mainstream, English-only secondary or college-level classroom. Topics in need of further research are identified.