Variables Which Tend to Affect (Impede or Retard) Learning of the Mexican American Student in American Education. A Position Paper.

An interdisciplinary research study is suggested following a review of the more significant studies that have been attempted to explain the degree of educational retardation of the Mexican American as related to such factors as life stresses (e.g., economic deprivation) and learning styles. This study would be a combination of survey research (testing scores, percentages, etc. of students at given grades) and research for hypothesis testing wherein a random sample of the total Mexican American population would be used. It is noted that such a study would provide large quantities of data on sociologic, family, education, cognitive, and personality functioning and would assess the co-variation and influence of each of these variables on each of the other variables. (NQ)