G. TILLEY-LU BBS 289
In a service-learning experience, the needs of the community
shape the project (Anderson, 1999). As parents become stake-
holders and take ownership of the program, they join their chil-
dren in learning to “read the word” while “reading the world”
(Freire & Macedo, 1987). Through a family literacy program,
children and their parents learn how to learn; they learn how to
be successful students in a new world with a different perspec-
tive on literacy. By involving immigrant parents in the educa-
tion of their children, teachers are able to find community ad-
vocates for English language learning especially when the cul-
ture of the children differs significantly from that of the teacher
(Gadsden, 2004). Involving parents results in conviviencia, the
flowing moments of collective creation and solidarity, bonding
in a joint effort (Jasis & Ordoñez-Jasis, 2004). Social change
occurs through personal transformation of worldview (Heaney,
1996).
Research indicates that language-minority parents are willing
to help their children succeed academically, and that children
who receive help at home are more likely to develop literacy
(August & Shanahan, 2006). Family literacy programs create a
space for parents to negotiate a critical curriculum (Vasquez,
2001). Successful family literacy programs reflect input from
the parents and children (Gadsden, 2004). Using Latino litera-
ture written in Spanish provides opportunities for parents to
hone their means of making sense of the world through literacy;
shared situational autobiography in an FLP promotes adjust-
ment and the formation of a support system (Pierce & Brisk,
2002). Therefore literacy for English language learners should
be comprised of the valuing of their funds of knowledge and
the involvement of the caregivers in the home, goals framed by
family lit eracy programs.
Methods of Inquiry and Data Sources
The overarching objective of this study was to examine how
the families described their goals for themselves and their chil-
dren during a period of five semesters. I sought to investigate
their changes in attitude as the participated in the program. As
they stepped into leadership roles in the program, I examined
the differences in their attitudes toward their children and their
education. Finally, I wanted to investigate the implications for
family literacy programs situated in service-learning programs.
The nature of the research necessitated the use of qualitative
research methods in using ethnographic data collecting tech-
niques to examine how the Mexican and Honduran families
describe their goals and gains for themselves and their children
in the Family Literacy Program. The setting of the monthly
meeting presented the opportunity to observe the families as
they work together and with the students in the planned activi-
ties.
Crossing the Border through Service-Learning was an aca-
demic course that partnered students with Mexican and Hondu-
ran families in the community. The students met on campus
once a week to discuss academic readings. They spent 50 hours
per semeste r with their partner family , teaching the adults Eng-
lish, tutoring the children, providing cultural navigation, and
learning Spanish. Once a month they met with the families in
the Family Literacy Program, serving as aides for the volunteer
teachers who provided classes for the children. The program
was grant-funded, and the grant provided books for the children
and meals for the meetings.
The grant also funded Auralog, an online interactive lan-
guage learning program, for the women. They did the program
in English, and also in Spanish to strengthen their literacy skills
in their native language. The students provided assistance with
the technical aspects of Auralog. Only two of the 22 women
who initially participated in the Auralog workshops had ever
used a computer, so they relied on the students to answer ques-
tions as they emerged.
The adults were mostly women, partly because of the men’s
schedules, and partly because the men regarded it as a women’s
and children’s program. Their ages ranged from 23 - 45, and
their educational levels ranged from sixth grade through the
first year of university. They also represented rural and urban
backgrounds, both in Mexico and Honduras. The children
ranged from under one year through eighth grade.
The classes were comprise d of interactive bilingual bicultural
activities for the children, with written follow-up activities
provided for the parents. The parenting and support sessions for
the adults were provided by a volunteer Chilean psychologist.
The parents were also provided with age-appropriate follow-up
interactive activities to do with their childr en at home.
I collected data at the beginning of the five semesters, both
fall and spring, by having the women write why they stayed in
the program and what their goals were for the semester. At the
end of the semester they participated in a similar activity in
which they wrote about the goals they had reached and differ-
ences they had observed in their children’s attitudes toward or
performance in school.
The first year I collected data by having families fill out
baseline data sheets to collect information about literacy beliefs
and reasons for participating in the program. They were also
asked to fill out monthly evaluation sheets. Although the in-
formation requested was similar to what they provided in the
free write activity, the women were reluctant to fill them out,
saying they did not know what to write, in contrast to the free
writes which resulted in rich data in the mothers’ voices.
I also conducted formal interviews with the women regarding
their interactions with the Family Literacy Program. The inter-
views were transcribed. The women participated in reading
circles in which they relate assigned Latino literature to their
own lives, representing the ideas of the group on butcher block
paper which I collected as data. Lastly, at the end of the semes-
ter, the students and partner families produced PowerPoint
presentations about their literacy experiences, which they
shared with the group at the final FLP meeting; the Power-
Points also served as data.
I functioned as an observer, observer-participant, partici-
pant-observer, and participant, depending on the situation.
Much of the data was collected informally in conversations
with the participants in the program during the five semesters.
The interviews and meetings occurred on campus, in homes, in
the church where the large meetings took place, at restaurants,
and on the telephone. I kept field notes for all the meetings and
conversations. I sought patterns or significance through direct
interpretation of the data, constantly consolidating, reducing,
and interpreting them (Merriam, 1998). I present the findings in
terms of emergent themes and dissonances (Lawrence-Light-
foot & Davis, 1997).
