Social capital predictors of children's school status in Mexico

INTERNATIONAL

J O U R NA L O F

SOCIAL WELFARE

ISSN 1369-6866

copy 2006 The Author(s)Journal compilation copy 2006 Blackwell Publishing Ltd and the International Journal of Social WelfarePublished by Blackwell Publishing 9600 Garsington Road Oxford OX4 2DQ UK and 350 Main Street Malden MA 02148 USA

321

DOI 101111j1468-2397200600422x

Int J Soc Welfare 2006

15

321ndash331

Ferguson KM Social capital predictors of childrenrsquos schoolstatus in MexicoInt J Soc Welfare 2006 15 321ndash331 copy 2006 The Author(s)Journal compilation copy 2006 Blackwell Publishing Ltd and theInternational Journal of Social Welfare

This study explores whether family and community socialcapital variables influence childrenrsquos school status in MexicoAdditional predictors related to human and financial capitalwere included as control variables Two hundred and fourmothers were interviewed as part of a larger study on theimpact of social capital on childrenrsquos street work in MonterreyNuevo Leoacuten Mexico Logistic regression results suggest thatfamily and community protective factors associated withchildrenrsquos academic achievement include parental help withhomework mothersrsquo academic aspirations extended familysupport and mothersrsquo social support networks The authorreports on family- and community-based predictors ofchildrenrsquos school status and discusses the social workprofessionrsquos role in strengthening families and communities toenhance childrenrsquos academic achievement

Kristin M Ferguson

University of Southern California Los Angeles

Social capital predictors of childrenrsquos school status in Mexico

Key words academic achievement financial capital humancapital logistic regression social capital community social capital

Kristin M Ferguson University of Southern California School ofSocial Work 669 West 34th Street Los Angeles CA 90089-0411USAE-mail kmfergususcedu

Accepted for publication July 7 2005

Recognising interpersonal ties and relationships as asource of strength in families researchers across multipledisciplines have recently turned to exploring how a familyrsquosstock of social capital can serve as a protective factorfor childrenrsquos overall wellbeing and more specifically inthe area of academic success (Coleman amp Hoffer 1987Stanton-Salazar 2001 Teachman Paasch amp Carver1996 1997 Voydanoff amp Donnelly 1999) The extantsocial capital literature suggests the influence of variousfactors on childrenrsquos overall academic success humancapital financial capital family social capital and com-munity social capital Despite considerable empiricalevidence indicating that such stocks of human financialand social capital constitute protective factors forchildren no study has yet aggregated these predictorsand explored their influence on Mexican childrenrsquosoverall academic achievement

To understand more fully the influential role thatinterpersonal and community-level relationships can haveon individuals in terms of influencing their decisionsbehaviours and actions sociologists social workersanthropologists and psychologists alike have assumed akey role in conceptualising social capital Their definitionhas its origins in the theoretical and empirical works oftwo principal authors James Coleman (1988 1990) andRobert Putnam (1993 1995 2000) Although the conceptof social capital can have different meanings acrossdisciplines United States sociologist James Coleman is

best known within the social sciences as the researcherwho generated the first theoretical framework forthe notion of social capital as well as the one whosystematically related the concept to children and youthAccording to Coleman (1988) interior (ie family) socialcapital connotes the relationships between parentsand their children which encompass the time effortsresources and energy that parents invest in theirchildren In contrast exterior social capital ndash or communitysocial capital ndash represents the familyrsquos interactionsand relationships with the surrounding community bothwith residents and with local institutions of socialisationsuch as schools (Coleman 1988 Putnam 2000)Furthermore a familyrsquos stock of financial capital refersto the total amount of household income that the familyhas to invest in the wellbeing of its members whereashuman capital represents the intellectual abilities of theparents in a given household both of which influenceparentsrsquo child-rearing capacities (Coleman 1988)

Figure 1 below delineates findings from the literaturewhich indicate that social capital can facilitate positiveoutcomes related to childrenrsquos wellbeing includingreducing academic failure poverty delinquency andchild maltreatment (Putnam 2000)

Given that few empirical precedents have sought toidentify the effects of these social capital indicators onchildrenrsquos academic achievement (Teachman Paaschamp Carver 1996 1997) this study aims to explore the

Ferguson

copy 2006 The Author(s)

322

Journal compilation copy 2006 Blackwell Publishing Ltd and the International Journal of Social Welfare

relationship between family and community social capitaland childrenrsquos academic success in Mexico Often-citedpredictors of childrenrsquos academic achievement namelyhuman capital and financial capital are included in themodel as control variables Family and communitysocial capital variables from the existing literature aretested to determine whether families with children whowere in the correct academic grade for their chronologicalage differed in levels of social capital from familieswith children who were in the incorrect grade for theirage The outcome measure of childrenrsquos school statuswas chosen as a proxy measure for academic successgiven the association in the literature between academicfailure (ie repeating grades that contribute to childrenbeing in the incorrect grade for their chronological age)and school drop-out The following research questionsguided this study (1) Can childrenrsquos school status beaccurately predicted from knowledge of a familyrsquos

levels of human capital financial capital family socialcapital and community social capital (2) If so whatare the social capital variables that best predict thisstatus

The present study builds on the existing theoreticaland empirical precedents by testing the effects of fourdimensions of capital on childrenrsquos academic status inMexico This is likely to advance current knowledgeregarding the strength of the effects of individual familyand community predictive factors on childrenrsquos academicsuccess in comparison with other factors It will alsooffer information to social service providers and socialpolicy makers as to the most effective entry points formicro- and meso-level interventions that aim to strengthenfamilies and communities in order to enhance outcomesfor childrenrsquos overall school achievement

Empirical precedents of childrenrsquos academic success

A review of the social capital literature reveals four micro-and meso-level variables that can influence childrenrsquosacademic success human capital family financial capitalfamily social capital and community social capital(Coleman 1988 Putnam 2000 Runyan et al 1998Stevenson 1998 Teachman Paasch amp Carver 1996)Table 1 displays the conceptual and operational definitionsof each with the oft-cited variable(s) or scale(s) used tomeasure each concept

Human capital

According to Coleman (1990) human capital encompassesthe acquired knowledge intelligence common sensepersonal abilities and talents housed within a particularperson In research on childrenrsquos welfare and outcomeshuman capital is generally measured at the family levelcommonly referring to the parentsrsquo educational levelswhich can influence the type of cognitive environmentwithin a home The specific amount of support and aidthat children receive from their parents in the home

Figure 1 Hypothesised influence of social capital indicators onchildrenrsquos well-being

Table 1 Theoretical and empirical predictors of childrenrsquos academic achievement

Variable Conceptual definition Operational definition

Family human capital Intellectual abilities of the parents or primary caregivers in a given household (Coleman 1988)

Parental educational levels (Coleman 1988)

Family financial capital Total amount of household income that the family unit has to invest in wellbeing of its members (Coleman 1988)

Amount of family income (ie father mother other adults in household) (Coleman 1988)

Interior social capitalFamily social capital

Relationships and interactions between parents (and other household adults) and their children Family attitudes regarding areas such as desired educational attainment of children and childrenrsquos overall wellbeing (Coleman 1988)

Family structure quality of parentndashchild relationships adultrsquos interest in child parentsrsquo monitoring of childrsquos activities degree of extended family support (Coleman 1988 Coleman amp Hoffer 1987)

Exterior social capitalCommunity social capital

Social support networks collective norms towards the local institutions and social infrastructure and the civic participation present in a given community which together facilitate collective coordination and cooperation towards a mutual benefit (Putnam 1993 2000)

Neighbourhood connections civic participation trust and safety (Social Capital Index) (Onyx amp Bullen 2000) religiosity (Coleman 1988) neighbourhood quality (Earls 1997)

Social capital predictors of childrenrsquos school status

copy 2006 The Author(s)Journal compilation copy 2006 Blackwell Publishing Ltd and the International Journal of Social Welfare

323

environment can either enhance or hinder the childrenrsquosown learning processes (Coleman 1988)

Financial capital

The notion of financial capital also defined by Coleman(1988) refers to a familyrsquos physical and materialresources which depending on the specific amount caneither stimulate or thwart childrenrsquos achievement andfuture outcomes much like the effects of human capitalmentioned above In the literature on social capitaland childrenrsquos wellbeing financial capital is typicallymeasured as the familyrsquos total household income

Family social capital

Coleman (1988) defines family social capital as therelationships between parents and their children (as wellas between children and other family members whoreside in the house) which encompass the time effortsresources and energy that parents (and other adultmembers within the house) devote to their childrenAdopting Coleman and Hofferrsquos (1987)

High Schooland Beyond

study of 4000 randomly selected highschool students as an empirical precedent numeroussubsequent studies have followed the present authorsrsquoinitial operationalisation of family social capital into fivemain components family structure quality of parentndashchild relations adultrsquos interest in the child parentsrsquomonitoring of the childrsquos activities and extended familyexchange and support Findings across studies suggestthat families with high social capital are more likely toproduce children who fare positively in areas of generalwellbeing including mental and physical health educa-tional attainment and formal labour-market participation(Coleman 1988 Coleman amp Hoffer 1987 Furstenbergamp Hughes 1995 Johnson 1999 Putnam 2000 Runyanet al 1998 Stevenson 1998 Teachman Paasch amp Carver1996 1997) One explanation is that ongoing stocks ofparental human and financial capital are made availableto children through their family social capital

Community social capital

Following Coleman (1988) exterior social capital consistsof the quality structure and density of social relationshipsand interactions between and among parents andfamilies as well as the collective social relationshipsbetween parents and local community institutionsfor instance schools Multiple studies suggest that acommunityrsquos social institutions and infrastructure aswell as the social support provided to parents throughtheir participation in formal and informal socialnetworks are strongly associated with the healthydevelopment of children and their achievement ofpositive future outcomes such as in school (Coleman

amp Hoffer 1987 Furstenberg amp Hughes 1995 Johnson1999 Putnam 2000 Runyan et al 1998 Stevenson1998 Teachman Paasch amp Carver 1996 1997) Thispattern may be a result of the increased access to otherforms of capital and human and social resources forfamilies through their social relationships and interactionsthat transpire at the community level

Synthesising the findings across studies it is possibleto create a profile of families with high family andcommunity social capital Empirical precedents suggestthat families with high levels of family social capitalhave a two-parent family structure with the presence ofa paternal figure either biological or a stepfather Theyare typically families characterised by frequent parentndashchild interactions high parental interest in childrenrsquosdaily lives and high parental monitoring of childrenrsquosactivities The parents of families with high communitysocial capital are more likely to be embedded insurrounding social networks comprised of bothimmediate and extended family supports as well as toparticipate in local social institutions Levels of trustand safety are perceived to be higher among theseparents as well Lastly there is some evidence thatregular church attendance by families is also positivelycorrelated with high levels of community social capital

The present study seeks to explore the aforementioneddimensions of capital on childrenrsquos academic status withinfamilies residing in Monterrey Mexico By controllingfor the effects of parentsrsquo educational levels and incomeit is possible to separate out the true effects of family-and community-based variables on childrenrsquos schoolstatus from those effects which have merely beenconfounded by income and education variables

Method

Setting of the study

With a population of 1110997 residents MonterreyNuevo Leoacuten is considered to be the most importantindustrial commercial and cultural centre in the northernregion of Mexico The city of Monterrey is exclusivelyurban with 100 per cent of the population residing inlocalities of 2500 or more inhabitants Monterrey isalso characterised by high literacy rates Of the totalpopulation of adults 15 and older 968 per cent areliterate Regarding the demographic composition ofMonterrey 264 per cent of the occupants of the capitalcity are under 15 years of age while 666 per cent rangefrom 15 to 64 years of age (INEGI 2001)

Data

The data used in this analysis originate from a 2002study conducted in Monterrey Mexico that sought toexplore whether families with street-working children

Ferguson


324


and families with non-working children differed in levelsof family social capital and community social capitalTwo hundred and four families of both working andnon-working children who resided in the neighbourhoodof Genaro Vaacutezquez Monterrey participated in theoriginal study The principal eligibility criterion forinclusion was that the family had a son or daughterliving in the household who was between the ages of6 and 16 years

Measures

In the absence of an actual instrument that measuredthe effects of human financial and social capital onchildrenrsquos tendency to work in the streets existingscales and variables from other related instruments wereadapted for the original instrument Measures offinancial capital and family social capital were basedon the

Survey of Parents and Children 1990

(NationalCommission on Children 1990) while indicators ofcommunity social capital were drawn from the

SocialCapital Scale

(Onyx amp Bullen 2000) and the

Projecton Human Development in Chicago NeighborhoodsCommunity Survey 1994ndash1995

(Earls 1997) All originalscales were translated from English to Spanish andthe back-translation method (ie Spanish to English)was used to ensure the accuracy of translation betweenlanguages Several items were modified according tothe Mexican culture A pilot study was conducted in ageographically adjacent community with 20 familieswho shared many sociodemographic characteristics withthe families included in the original studyrsquos sample

Criterion variable

The criterion variable childrsquos schoolstatus was dichotomous in nature consisting of acategorical (dummy) variable that was calculated fromtwo variables childrsquos current grade and childrsquos age (asof the date of the interview) School status was codedas follows 0 (ie incorrect grade for age) = child isbehind in school for hisher age (plusmn 1 grade)

or

child isnot attending school and 1 (ie correct grade for age)= child is in the correct academic grade (plusmn 1 grade) forhisher chronological age In Mexico children enterkindergarten at the age of 6 Thus the lsquocorrectrsquo gradefor a 6-year-old child (plusmn 1 grade) is kindergarten or 1stgrade As such the correct grade for a 7-year-old child(plusmn 1 grade) is kindergarten 1st grade or 2nd grade andso forth By age 16 the correct grade for a youth (plusmn 1grade) would be 9th 10th or 11th grade

Predictor variables

Four dimensions of capital wereassessed as potential predictor variables that influencechildrenrsquos school status (1) family social capital (2)community social capital (3) human capital and (4)financial capital Family social capital was comprisedof five sub-factors (1) family structure (2) quality of

parentndashchild relationship (3) adultrsquos interest in child (4)parentsrsquo monitoring of childrsquos activities and (5) degreeof extended family exchange and support Communitysocial capital on the other hand consisted of thefollowing six sub-factors (1) quality of school (2)quality of neighbourhood (3) social support networks(4) civic engagement (5) trust and safety and (6) degreeof religiosity Additionally the significant correlatesrelated to human capital and financial capital wereincluded in the study as control variables given thatempirical precedents indicate that both the parentsrsquo andchildrsquos educational levels as well as family income areimportant predictors of childrenrsquos street work (DIF et al1997 Sandoval 1999 Wittig 1994) Human capitalreferred to both parentsrsquo human capital (ie motherrsquosand fatherrsquos highest educational level attained) andchildrsquos human capital (ie childrsquos current school statusand final grades from previous academic year) Financialcapital was comprised of the following six items (1)household income (2) public assistance (3) kin financialhelp (4) financial support networks (5) economichardship and (6) perceived financial need

Sampling procedure

The city of Monterrey was chosen as the geographiccontext for the original study given that over half ofthe total number of

expulsive zones

(ie marginalcommunities) within the greater metropolitan area ofMonterrey are located within the city of Monterrey Theneighbourhood of Genaro Vaacutezquez located in the cityrsquosnorthern strip was selected from an annual list ofexpulsive zones produced by the Mexican Institution forthe Integral Development of the Family (DIF) Duringthe year that the original study was performed GenaroVaacutezquez had the largest number of street-workingchildren of all neighbourhoods in Monterrey

Non-probability purposive sampling was utilised toselect cases for the study Five preliminary questionswere derived from UNICEFrsquos (1998) operational definitionof child labour to screen families for inclusion

1 In the past year has your child contributed money tothe household income from hisher work in the streets

2 Does your child usually accompany you (ie themother) to work in the streets to help

3 Does your child usually accompany your partner tohis work in the streets to help

4 Does your child currently work in the streets5 In the past year has your child engaged in paid or

unpaid work in the streets for someone who is not amember of the household

All screening questions were answered in a

yes

or

no

fashion If a motherfemale caregiver answered

yes

to

any one of

the questions the family was considered tobe a

family with street-working children

In contrast



325

if a motherfemale caregiver answered

no

to

all

of thequestions the family was classified as a

family withnon-working children

The starting point for locatingthe families with street-working children consisted ofconsultation of a list of all families in the communitywho were participating in the

Mejores Menores

(BetterChildren) programme for child street workers under theauspices of DIF in Monterrey Additional families ofboth working and non-working children were locatedvia the snowball sampling technique

Three research assistants were recruited from theSchool of Social Work at the Autonomous Universityof Nuevo Leoacuten and were hired and trained by theprincipal investigator Over the course of three monthsanonymous quantitative surveys were administered inthe neighbourhood of Genaro Vaacutezquez to 204 femaleheads-of-household via face-to-face interviews Allparticipants provided verbal consent prior to conductingthe interview and received a 50 peso (US$500) foodvoucher for use at their local supermarket The smallpayment to families served as a gesture of respect andgratitude for their time and participation

Results

Descriptive statistics of sample participants

For the purposes of the present study exploring the rela-tionship between social capital and childrenrsquos academic

achievement the total sample size was 201 of which142 cases were included in the analysis Fifty-nine caseswere excluded due to partial missing data Within thesample of families 71 per cent of the children were inthe correct grade for their chronological age (N = 143)while 29 per cent (N = 58) were in the incorrect grade fortheir age Table 2 displays selected individual parentand family characteristics by the childrenrsquos school status

Child characteristics

Children in the correct gradefor their age were on average three years younger thanthose in the incorrect grade (112 versus 141 years) Ofthe children in the correct grade only 39 per cent wereworking children while in the group of children whowere academically behind 79 per cent were workingOn average children in the correct grade scored almostone point higher than children in the incorrect gradeon their final grade-point averages (on a 10-point scale)(84 versus 76)

Parent characteristics

Mothers of children in thecorrect grade for their age were on average four yearsyounger than mothers of children in the incorrect gradeLikewise fathers of the former group were about threeyears younger than the fathers of children in the lattergroup Higher parent educational levels can also beobserved for parents of children in the correct gradeMothers of these children averaged 26 years moreof formal education than mothers of children who were

Table 2 Selected demographic characteristics for sample families

Notes a CG = Correct grade for age IG = Incorrect grade for ageb All amounts are in Mexican pesos (US$1 = $10 Mexican pesos in 2002) and rounded to nearest whole peso

Variable Range Mean N Per cent

CGa IG CG IG CG IG CG IG

Childrsquos age 6ndash16 8ndash16 112 141 143 58Gender

Male 98 44 685 759Female 45 14 315 241

Child work statusNot working 87 12 608 207Working 56 46 392 793

Grades (2001ndash2) 5ndash10 5ndash10 84 76 130 42Parentrsquos age

Mother 13ndash64 21ndash70 345 381 143 58Father 20ndash66 25ndash75 368 397 127 49

Parentsrsquo educationMother 0ndash14 0ndash9 56 30 143 58Father 0ndash15 0ndash9 62 38 126 48

Parent incomeb

Mother per month $200ndash5600 $240ndash3600 $1510 $1448Father per month $200ndash16000 $560ndash7200 $3337 $2627

Parenting statusSingle parent 16 9 80 45Dual parent 127 49 631 244

Family ethnicityNon-indigenous 123 36 612 179Indigenous 20 22 100 109

Ferguson


326


behind in school Similarly fathers of children in thecorrect grade had an average of 24 years more of formalschooling than fathers of children who were behindBoth mothers and fathers of children in the correct gradealso had higher earnings than the parents of childrenin the incorrect grade Lastly at the household level12 per cent of the families were headed by single parentsand 22 per cent were of indigenous origin comprisingthe Otomiacute Mixteco and Nahuatal indigenous groupsWithin these households one or both parents spoke anindigenous language or dialect other than Spanish asthe primary language in the household

Logistic regression findings

This study aimed to identify a combination of familyand community-related variables that most accuratelypredicts a familyrsquos membership in one of two groupsrelated to childrenrsquos school status Binary logisticregression using the Enter method facilitated thedetection of which of the selected correlates are mostimportant in the prediction of childrenrsquos academicstatus as well as how precise the proposed model is inclassifying families The logistic regression modelincluded a total of 17 predictors related to the fourdimensions of capital Regression results reveal that theoverall model was significant in differentiating familieswhose children were in the correct academic grade fortheir age from families whose children were in theincorrect grade for their age (ndash2 Log Likelihood = 8817Model Chi-Square = 3428 p lt 001) With knowledgeof the predictors included in the analysis the modelcorrectly classified 887 per cent of the cases Table 3

depicts the regression coefficients for the variablesincluded in the logistic model

The Wald statistics and accompanying significancelevels reveal that three variables were significantlyreliable in predicting childrenrsquos correct school status atthe p lt 005 level controlling for the influences of theother predictors in the model First

motherrsquos neighbour-hood connections

was a significant predictor of childrenrsquosschool status in the multivariate analysis (Wald = 4224p = 0040) The Exp(B) statistic or odds ratio reflectsthe increase (or decrease if the ratio is negative) in oddsof being classified in one outcome category when thepredictor variable increases by one unit (Tabachnick ampFidell 1996) In this case the odds ratio was 1273signifying that a one-unit increase in a motherrsquos scoreon the

neighbourhood connections

sub-scale multipliesthe odds of her child being in the correct academic gradefor hisher age by 127 or 27 per cent Results from

t

-tests indicate that on average children who were in thecorrect grade for their age had mothers who scored a575 (range = 0ndash15) on the Social Capital Scale for thefive questions pertaining to the factor

neighbourhoodconnections

(Onyx amp Bullen 2000) In contrast themothers of children who were not in the correct grade fortheir age scored a point lower with 484 The regressioncoefficient multiplied by the standard deviation of thecorresponding variable denotes that


was the strongest variable in theprediction of childrenrsquos school status

The variable

help with homework

(number of timesper week that the parent(s) help the child with homeworkor arrange for another adult to help) also significantlypredicted the academic status of children (Wald = 4200

Table 3 Regression coefficients

Note a In logistic regression regressors can be compared by multiplying each coefficient (B) by the standard deviation (SD) of the corresponding variable Their ranking reflects the relative importance of each variable controlling for the effects of other predictors in the model (Lea 1997) (Note Values computed for significant variables only)

Predictor B SE Wald df p Exp(B) B x SDa

Motherrsquos nghbrhd connections 0242 0118 4224 1 0040 1273 0811Help with homework 0304 0148 4200 1 0040 1356 0772Child visits extended family 0054 0026 4406 1 0036 1055 0703Motherrsquos educational level 0108 0107 1019 1 0313 1114Fatherrsquos educational level 0047 0095 0242 1 0622 1048Verbally encourage 0077 0467 0027 1 0870 1080Sharing activities minus0014 0013 1247 1 0264 0986School-related interactions 0003 0005 0369 1 0544 1003Motherrsquos academic aspirations 0581 0339 2935 1 0087 1788Parental empathy 0015 0138 0012 1 0912 1015Neighbourhood grade minus0035 0463 0006 1 0940 0966Safe places minus1176 0728 2608 1 0106 0308Motherrsquos social networks minus0038 0186 0042 1 0837 0962Motherrsquos civic engagement minus0334 0186 3224 1 0073 0716Trust and safety 0104 0113 0842 1 0359 1109Motherrsquos religious attendance 0122 0112 1182 1 0277 1130Total family income 0000 0000 0856 1 0355 1000Constant minus2401 2749 0762 1 0383 0091



327

p = 0040) As parents increased by one unit the numberof days per week that they helped their children withtheir homework (or arranged for another adult to do soif the parents were illiterate or spoke only an indigenouslanguage) a child was almost 36 per cent times morelikely to be in the correct academic grade for hisherage (Exp(B) = 1356)

T

-test results reveal that for childrenwho were in the correct grade for their age parentshelped them with their homework on average 3 timesper week while parents of children who were not in thecorrect grade for their age helped their children onaverage 2 times per week Of the three variables in themodel

help with homework

was the second strongestpredictor of childrenrsquos school status

The variable

child visits extended family

was thethird significant predictor of childrenrsquos school status inthe logistic regression analysis (Wald = 4406 p = 0036)As the number of days per month that children visitedtheir extended relatives increased by one children were6 per cent more likely to be in the correct academicgrade for their age (Exp(B) = 1055) Findings from

t-

testsindicate that children who were in the correct gradefor their age visited their extended relatives on average16 times per month while children who were not inthe correct grade for their age visited their relatives10 times per month

Child visits extended family

wasthe third strongest predictor of childrenrsquos school statusin the model

Wald statistics indicate that three variables signifi-cantly predicted childrenrsquos school status at the 005level Nonetheless several sources suggest that becausethe Wald statistic is generally conservative a more liberalsignificance level (eg p lt 010) should be adopted(Tabachnick amp Fidell 1996) When the commonlyaccepted criteria or statistical significance were relaxedto the 010 level two additional predictors of childrenrsquosschool status emerged First

motherrsquos academic aspirations

for her child was a significant predictor of childrenrsquosschool status at the 010 level (Wald = 2935 p = 0087)This composite-score variable was adapted from the


(National Com-mission on Children 1990) and measured how farmothers believed their children would go in formalschooling As the amount of formal education in yearswhich the mother desired for her child increasedchildren were 79 per cent more likely to be in thecorrect academic grade for their age (Exp(B) = 1788)

Second

civic engagement

(ie the extent to whichthe mother was involved in various types of communityprojects since she lived in the neighbourhood) alsosignificantly predicted childrenrsquos school status at the010 level (Wald = 3224 p = 0073) Civic engagementwas measured via a seven-item scale adapted fromEarlsrsquo (1997)

Project on Human Development in ChicagoNeighborhoods

These items assessed whether the motherhad spoken to or collaborated with other neighbours to

address different community problems In contrast tothe aforementioned predictors however civic engagementhad a negative impact on childrenrsquos school status Asthe number of instances in which mothers talked tolocal leaders andor collaborated with other residentsto address neighbourhood problems increased by onechildren were 14 times

less likely

to be in the correctacademic grade for their age (Exp(B) = 0716) (10716)(Mertler amp Vannatta 2002)

Discussion

The results suggest that several family and communitysocial capital variables do differ among families withchildren in the correct grade for their age and familieswith children who are not in the correct grade for theirage With knowledge of these variables the findings alsoreveal that correct school status can be more accuratelypredicted than incorrect status

Regarding the two significant family social capitalvariables

help with homework

and

childrsquos visits toextended family members

were predictors of childrenrsquosschool status in the multivariate model As parentsincreased the amount of time per week that they helpedtheir children with their homework children wereapproximately 36 per cent more likely to be in the correctacademic grade for their age Consistent with the existingsocial capital literature parentndashchild interactions andparental help with homework were positively related tochildrenrsquos academic success (Coleman amp Hoffer 1987McNeal 1999 Stanton-Salazar 2001 Teachman Paaschamp Carver 1996 1997) Nevertheless prior research onparental involvement in childrenrsquos academic achievementhas also uncovered inconsistent findings Several studiesreveal a negative relationship between parental helpwith homework and student achievement (see McNeal1999) In these studies findings reveal that the gainsfor children from parental help are evident only incertain academic outcomes (ie overall grades but notmath and reading test scores) and only for some races(ie for Blacks but not Whites) It is important to notehere however that because the English language was aconstant across these studies earlier researchers did notexplore the alternative ways in which monolingualparents help their bilingual children with homework orarrange for other adults to assist them and how thesestrategies can reflect a familyrsquos stock of interior (iefamily) social capital

In the context of the present study which wasconducted in Spanish and used interpreters for motherswho were monolingual in a local indigenous language22 per cent of the families spoke a language other thanSpanish as the primary language in the household Asa result of the indigenous mothersrsquo unfamiliarity withSpanish (ie the language used in Mexican schools) orinability to read altogether they frequently reported that

Ferguson


328


they were unable to help their children with theirhomework To compensate for their inability to directlyhelp their children these mothers often arranged forsome other adult family member to assist their childrenwith their homework One-third of the families(315 per cent) in the study had between four and nineadults living in the home which offers a rich pool ofadults in the household to support children with theirlearning outside of school As a result children inhomes in which the language from the majority culturewas not spoken were not consistently at a linguistic andor academic disadvantage Many monolingual (non-Spanish speaking) mothers employed their interior socialcapital by arranging for other family members to helptheir children with their homework Given the presenceof monolingual households with bilingual children in theUSA and other countries around the world as a resultof migration and immigration future studies in this areaare vital for understanding how children of monolingualparents can receive the academic support they need in thehome in order to succeed at school Also it is importantfor researchers to consider amplifying the definition offamily social capital variables such as parental helpwith homework to account for instances in whichdespite linguistic or literacy barriers parents undertakemeans to ensure that their children receive academicsupport in the home environment

Second as children increased the amount of time thatthey visited their extended relatives they were slightlymore likely (6 per cent) to be in the correct academicgrade for their age In the present study 97 per cent ofthe families reported having close relatives in thecommunity Mothers reported that their children visitedthese relatives an average of 14 times per month Severalstudies have explored the relationship between extendedfamily support and positive outcomes for children(Coleman amp Hoffer 1987 Furstenberg amp Hughes 1995Stevenson 1998) Findings suggest that social supportfrom extended family members reduces the likelihoodthat children will drop out of school or experiencemental-health problems These findings also supportempirical precedents indicating a positive relationshipbetween immigrant childrenrsquos academic success and theirconnection to extended family members (Zhou 1997)Given the consistency in findings of the benefits ofextended family support for both native and immigrantchildren future research can be helpful in determiningthe different ways in which kin living outside the homeoperate to enhance childrenrsquos academic achievementPrior quantitative studies have established a positiverelationship between kin support and childrenrsquos academicoutcomes However explanations of how and why suchsupport influences positive outcomes for children areless clear Future qualitative analysis will be useful forexploring the myriad roles of extended family membersin the lives of youth and how certain roles serve as

protective factors for children at risk of academic failureor dropout

Lastly even though the variable

motherrsquos academicaspirations

achieved significance at the 010 level onlyit suggests an avenue for future exploration that canprovide new insight into how parentsrsquo expectations fortheir childrenrsquos schooling may play a role in fomentingchildrenrsquos academic success Findings from the extantliterature reveal that mothersrsquo academic aspirations fortheir children positively predict youthsrsquo graduationfrom high school enrolment in college and attainmentof economic autonomy (Furstenberg amp Hughes 1995)A later study by Hao and Bonstead-Bruns (1998) thatincluded measures for both parents and children revealsthat higher shared expectations between parents andchildren enhance academic achievement while disparitybetween parentndashchild expectations suppresses achievementFuture studies that employ multiple units of observationin data collection will be helpful to elucidate how parentsand their children conceive academic expectationsand whether harmonious expectations are associatedwith higher academic achievement This is particularlyimportant for immigrant families in which monolingualparents who are raising bilingual children might not havehad the same academic opportunities and experiencesin their countries of origin as their children have todayStudies that demonstrate a positive relationship betweenhigh shared expectations and childrenrsquos academic successcan be valuable in designing parental interventions thatseek to educate immigrant parents about the benefits ofencouraging their children to pursue advanced formaleducation

With respect to the indicators of community socialcapital the variable

motherrsquos neighbourhood connections

was also a significant predictor of childrenrsquos schoolstatus Mothers whose children were in the correctacademic grade for their age had significantly moresocial support networks than mothers whose childrenwere in the incorrect grade for their age As mothersincreased by one unit the number of times they couldturn to friends and neighbours for assistance childrenwere 27 per cent more likely to be in the correctacademic grade for their age In the extant literatureon childrenrsquos academic achievement there has beenconsiderable focus on the parentsrsquo support networksand how such social relationships are an advantage tochildrenrsquos school achievement Empirical precedentssuggest that parentsrsquo increased relationships with otherparents and community members are associated with adecreased likelihood that their children will drop out ofschool (Furstenberg amp Hughes 1995 Pong 1997Teachman Paasch amp Carver 1996 1997) Nonethelessin prior studies that have divided samples by income (iehigh- and low-income families) significant benefits ofparental access to time and money help have been reapedby children from high-income families but not by those



329

in low-income families (Hofferth Boisjoly amp Duncan1998) In the present study the sample comprised low-income families exclusively who were earning less thantwice the daily minimum wage in 2002

1

The meanparental monthly income in the study was $3608 pesos(US$361) It is important to note here that despite thelow-income status of families in the study

mothersrsquoneighbourhood connections

was the strongest predictorof whether children were in the correct grade for theirage Additional research that examines the compositionand utilisation patterns of mothersrsquo neighbourhood con-nections within low-income families is needed giventhat considerable evidence indicates that children fromless economically advantaged families are more likelyto drop out of school than those from more advantagedfamilies (Haveman amp Wolfe 1994 Rumberger 1995)

The final community social capital variable

civicengagement

was slightly outside the accepted signific-ance level in this study (p = 0073) and in contrast to theaforementioned predictors was

negatively

associated withchildrenrsquos school status That is the more mothers wereinvolved in addressing local neighbourhood problemsthe less likely their children were to be in the correctgrade for their age This finding poses an intriguing setof questions Does a motherrsquos civic engagement diverttime from her children that she could otherwise dedicateto enhancing their academic success Do civicallyengaged mothers spend less time with their childrenWhat are the school outcomes of children of civicallyengaged mothers The negative relationship found here(albeit one that approaches statistical significance) raisesthe issue of whether parentsrsquo collective efficacy candetract from their childrenrsquos academic achievement Thenotion of collective efficacy refers to the civic engagementactivities performed by community members in an effortto act together to generate solutions to local problems(Sampson 2001) Future studies that seek to answerthese and similar questions will help clarify whetherparental involvement in (non-school) community-basedefforts can be a risk or a protective factor for childrenin their academic achievement

Implications for social work practice and social welfare policy

Strengthening families and communities from withinthrough empowerment strategies in an effort to promoteacademic opportunities for children and youth is stronglytied to the value system espoused by the social workprofession Data from the present study indicate thatwith knowledge of specific family and communitysocial capital indicators one can accurately predictchildrenrsquos school status The positive impact of both

family and community social capital variables onchildrenrsquos academic status has direct implications forsocial work practice and social welfare policy

First

itis crucial for social workers to tailor their interventionsto the specific needs of both children and families Forinstance the older ages of children who are in theincorrect grade for their age may mean that they haveemotional physical and developmental needs distinctfrom their younger classmates Similarly lower gradesand substantially lower parental educational levels ofchildren in the incorrect academic grades may put themat a further disadvantage both within and outside theclassroom with respect to assignments Parental factorssuch as illiteracy work schedules and inability to speakthe language of the dominant culture can inhibit manyparents from helping their children with their homeworkoutside school

Given the social work professionrsquos holistic focus onthe family as a unit these data can be helpful in guidingthe design of interventions that address the specific needsof children and families Initiatives such as supportgroups for older children in the classroom individualisedmentoring and academic tutoring may be helpful measuresto reduce disadvantage in the classroom as well as tomeet the emotional and developmental needs of olderchildren in school settings Likewise efforts that aimto enhance parentsrsquo education levels and languageproficiency as well as to provide instruction on how tobetter help their children to achieve academic successare more comprehensive family-centred responses thanthose that focus primarily on the childrenrsquos needsEnlisting the support of extended family members inthe lives of the children to assist them in their academicprogress is one additional family-focused strategy

Second

in addition to the design of interventionstargeted at children who are already in the incorrect gradefor their age preventive efforts to promote childrenrsquosschool success can be directed at children in all schoolgrades Data from this and other studies indicate that amotherrsquos involvement in her childrenrsquos schooling as wellas her interconnectedness with community resourcesand support networks can be beneficial to her childrenrsquosschool success The positive influence of communitysocial capital on childrenrsquos academic achievement supportsthe presence of Parent-Teacher Associations (PTA)and other means of enhancing parental involvement inthe school (ie teaching assistants and playground andlunchtime aides) Likewise parental involvement incommunity-based efforts that establish new ndash andreinforce existing ndash formal and informal helpingsystems can assist parents in supporting their childrenrsquosacademic growth A likely byproduct of these schooland community groups is the strengthening of informalrelationships among parents and formal linkages withschool and community resources both rich sources ofcommunity social capital

1

The minimum daily wage in Nuevo Leoacuten in the year 2002was $4010 pesos (US$401) (CNSM 2002)

Ferguson


330


Lastly

with these data policy makers can also beinformed about the family and community protectivefactors associated with academic achievement inchildren parent-school involvement aspirations for theacademic progress of children extended family supportand mothersrsquo social support networks Currently inMexico annual educational indicators produced by theMexican Secretary of Education reveal a gradual declinein high-school enrolment rates since 1998 for youngpeople who have completed their secondary education(through ninth grade) For the school year 1998ndash1999718 per cent of junior-high graduates enrolled in highschool For the academic year 2001ndash2002 only 663 percent of junior-high graduates enrolled in high school(SEP 2001) Although compulsory education forchildren in Mexico terminates with the completion ofninth grade (ie junior high school) young peoplewho want to continue with high school education areoften deterred from entering due to factors such ascostly enrolment fees on-going school-related expensesstandardised admission exams and lack of proximity toarea high schools Many young people may also chooseto enter the workforce as an alternative to continuingwith high school education Creating ways for youngpeople to continue with ndash and excel in ndash secondary andhigher education will likely contribute to a more highlyeducated workforce which in turn has implications forthe social and economic development of both regionsand countries Social welfare and educational policiesshould seek to maximise the protective factors of families(ie parental involvement in schools and supportnetworks) that foment childrenrsquos school success whileminimising the risk factors (ie disengagement inchildrenrsquos education and social isolation) that can thwarttheir achievement

In conclusion the data from this study support thecontinued efforts to operationalise social capital into itsspecific measurable components and to examine howdifferent types of social capital are related to variousaspects of childrenrsquos academic success This is likely toadvance current knowledge regarding the effects ofindividual family and community predictive factors onchildrenrsquos academic achievement Findings from this andother related studies are useful to inform social policymakers and social service providers in the design of inter-ventions to strengthen families and communities in orderto enhance outcomes for childrenrsquos overall school success

Acknowledgements

The original data from which this analysis was performedwere collected in a study that was partly funded by agraduate research fellowship from the Organization ofAmerican States (Washington DC) and by the Inter-national Education Fee Scholarship from the InternationalOffice at the University of Texas at Arlington

References

Coleman J (1988) Social capital in the creation of humancapital In Dasgupta P Serageldin I eds

Social capital Amultifaceted perspective

Washington DC World BankColeman J (1990)

The foundations of social theory

CambridgeHarvard University Press

Coleman JS Hoffer TB (1987)

Public and private schools Theimpact of communities

New York Basic BooksComisioacuten Nacional de los Salarios Miacutenimos (CNSM) (2002)

Salario miacutenimo general promedio de los Estados UnidosMexicanos 1964ndash2002

[Average general minimum wageof the United Status of Mexico 1964ndash2002]

Retrieved on2 June 2002 from httpwwwcnsmgobmx

Desarrollo Integral de la Familia (DIF) Universidad Autoacutenomade Nuevo Leoacuten (UANL) UNICEF (1997)

El perfil del menortrabajador y su familia en el aacuterea metropolitana de Monterrey

[Profile of the child street worker and hisher family in the greatermetropolitan area of Monterrey] Nuevo Leoacuten Meacutexico DIF

Earls F (1997)

Project on Human Development in ChicagoNeighborhoods Community Survey 1994ndash1995

[Computerfile] ICPSR version Boston MA Harvard Medical School[producer] 1997 Ann Arbor MI Inter-University Consortiumfor Political and Social Research [distributor] 1999

Furstenberg FF Hughes ME (1995) Social capital and successfuldevelopment among at-risk youth

Journal of Marriage andthe Family

57 580ndash592Hao L Bonstead-Bruns M (1998) Parent-child differences in

educational expectations and the academic achievement ofimmigrant and native students

Sociology of Education

71175ndash198

Haveman R Wolfe B (1994)

Succeeding generations On theeffects of investments in children

New York Russell SageFoundation

Hofferth SL Boisjoly J Duncan GJ (1998) Parentsrsquo extrafamilialresources and childrenrsquos school attainment

Sociology ofEducation

71 246ndash268Instituto Nacional Estadiacutestica Geografiacutea e Informaacutetica (INEGI)

(2001)

Tabulados baacutesicos nacionales y por entidad federativa

[National basic tabulations by federal entity]

Base de Datosy Tabulados de la Muestra Censal XII Censo General dePoblacioacuten y Vivienda 2000 Meacutexico Retrieved on 26 May2002 from httpwwwinegigobmx

Johnson SD (1999) The social context of youth violence Astudy of African American youth

International Journal ofAdolescent Medicine and Health

11(3ndash4) 159ndash175Lea S (1997) Topic 4 Logistic regression and discriminant

analysis Retrieved on 25 February 2002 from httpwwwexacuk~SEGLeamultvar2disclogihtml Exeter UKUniversity of Exeter Department of Psychology

McNeal RB (1999) Parental involvement as social capitalDifferential effectiveness on science achievement truancyand dropping out Social Forces 78(1) 117ndash144

Mertler CA Vannatta RA (2002) Advanced and multivariatestatistical methods Practical application and interpretation(2nd edition) Los Angeles CA Pyrczak Publishing

National Commission on Children (1990) Survey of parents andchildren United States [Computer file] ICPSR versionWashington DC Child Trends IncPrinceton NJ PrincetonSurvey ResearchAnn Arbor MI DataStat [producers] 1990Ann Arbor MI Inter-University Consortium for Political andSocial Research [distributor] 1999

Onyx J Bullen P (2000) Measuring social capital in fivecommunities Journal of Applied Behavioral Science 36(1)23ndash42

Pong SL (1997) Family structure school context and eighth-grade math and reading achievement Journal of Marriageand the Family 59 734ndash746

Putnam RD (1993) The prosperous community Social capitaland public life The American Prospect Spring 35ndash42


copy 2006 The Author(s)Journal compilation copy 2006 Blackwell Publishing Ltd and the International Journal of Social Welfare 331

Putnam RD (1995) Tuning in tuning out The strangedisappearance of social capital in America The 1995 Ithielde Sola Pool Lecture Political Science and Politics Winter664ndash683

Putnam RD (2000) Bowling alone The collapse and revival ofAmerican community New York Simon amp Schuster

Rumberger RW (1995) Dropping out of middle school Amultilevel analysis of students and schools AmericanEducational Research Journal 32 583ndash625

Runyan DK Hunter WM Socolar RS Amaya-Jackson LEnglish D Landsverk J Dubowitz H Browne DHBangdiwala SI Mathew RM (1998) Children who prosperin unfavourable environments The relationship to socialcapital Pediatrics 101(1) 12ndash18

Sampson RJ (2001) Crime and public safety Insights fromcommunity-level perspectives on social capital In SaegertS Thompson JP Warren MR eds Social capital and poorcommunities New York Russell Sage Foundation

Sandoval Aacutevila A (1999) Pobreza y nintildeos de la calle [Povertyand street children] Guadalajara Meacutexico Universidad deGuadalajara Centro Universitario de Ciencias Sociales yHumanidades

Secretariacutea de Educacioacuten Puacuteblica (SEP) (2001) Indicadoreseducativos [Educational indicators] Nuevo Leoacuten MeacutexicoSecretariacutea de Educacioacuten Puacuteblica

Stanton-Salazar RD (2001) Manufacturing hope and despair

The school and kin support networks of US-Mexican youthNew York Teachers College Press

Stevenson HC (1998) Raising safe villages Cultural-ecologicalfactors that influence the emotional adjustment of adolescentsJournal of Black Psychology 24(1) 44ndash59

Tabachnick BG Fidell LS (1996) Using multivariate statistics(third edition) Northridge CA HarperCollins CollegePublishers

Teachman JD Paasch K Carver K (1996) Social capital anddropping out of school early Journal of Marriage and theFamily 58 773ndash783

Teachman JD Paasch K Carver K (1997) Social capital andthe generation of human capital Social Forces 75(4) 1343ndash1359

UNICEF (1998) UNICEF end decade databases ndash child workMultiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS) Retrieved on 27March 2002 from httpwwwchildinfoorg

Voydanoff P Donnelly BW (1999) Risk and protective factorsfor psychological adjustment and grades among adolescentsJournal of Family Issues 20(3) 328ndash349

Wittig MC (1994) Culture of poverty or ghetto underclassWomen and children on the streets of Honduras Unpublisheddoctoral dissertation Tulane University New Orleans LA

Zhou M (1997) Growing up American The challenge confrontingimmigrant children and children of immigrants AnnualReview of Sociology 23 63ndash95

Ferguson


322


relationship between family and community social capitaland childrenrsquos academic success in Mexico Often-citedpredictors of childrenrsquos academic achievement namelyhuman capital and financial capital are included in themodel as control variables Family and communitysocial capital variables from the existing literature aretested to determine whether families with children whowere in the correct academic grade for their chronologicalage differed in levels of social capital from familieswith children who were in the incorrect grade for theirage The outcome measure of childrenrsquos school statuswas chosen as a proxy measure for academic successgiven the association in the literature between academicfailure (ie repeating grades that contribute to childrenbeing in the incorrect grade for their chronological age)and school drop-out The following research questionsguided this study (1) Can childrenrsquos school status beaccurately predicted from knowledge of a familyrsquos

levels of human capital financial capital family socialcapital and community social capital (2) If so whatare the social capital variables that best predict thisstatus

The present study builds on the existing theoreticaland empirical precedents by testing the effects of fourdimensions of capital on childrenrsquos academic status inMexico This is likely to advance current knowledgeregarding the strength of the effects of individual familyand community predictive factors on childrenrsquos academicsuccess in comparison with other factors It will alsooffer information to social service providers and socialpolicy makers as to the most effective entry points formicro- and meso-level interventions that aim to strengthenfamilies and communities in order to enhance outcomesfor childrenrsquos overall school achievement

Empirical precedents of childrenrsquos academic success

A review of the social capital literature reveals four micro-and meso-level variables that can influence childrenrsquosacademic success human capital family financial capitalfamily social capital and community social capital(Coleman 1988 Putnam 2000 Runyan et al 1998Stevenson 1998 Teachman Paasch amp Carver 1996)Table 1 displays the conceptual and operational definitionsof each with the oft-cited variable(s) or scale(s) used tomeasure each concept

Human capital

According to Coleman (1990) human capital encompassesthe acquired knowledge intelligence common sensepersonal abilities and talents housed within a particularperson In research on childrenrsquos welfare and outcomeshuman capital is generally measured at the family levelcommonly referring to the parentsrsquo educational levelswhich can influence the type of cognitive environmentwithin a home The specific amount of support and aidthat children receive from their parents in the home

Figure 1 Hypothesised influence of social capital indicators onchildrenrsquos well-being

Table 1 Theoretical and empirical predictors of childrenrsquos academic achievement

Variable Conceptual definition Operational definition

Family human capital Intellectual abilities of the parents or primary caregivers in a given household (Coleman 1988)

Parental educational levels (Coleman 1988)

Family financial capital Total amount of household income that the family unit has to invest in wellbeing of its members (Coleman 1988)

Amount of family income (ie father mother other adults in household) (Coleman 1988)

Interior social capitalFamily social capital

Relationships and interactions between parents (and other household adults) and their children Family attitudes regarding areas such as desired educational attainment of children and childrenrsquos overall wellbeing (Coleman 1988)

Family structure quality of parentndashchild relationships adultrsquos interest in child parentsrsquo monitoring of childrsquos activities degree of extended family support (Coleman 1988 Coleman amp Hoffer 1987)

Exterior social capitalCommunity social capital

Social support networks collective norms towards the local institutions and social infrastructure and the civic participation present in a given community which together facilitate collective coordination and cooperation towards a mutual benefit (Putnam 1993 2000)

Neighbourhood connections civic participation trust and safety (Social Capital Index) (Onyx amp Bullen 2000) religiosity (Coleman 1988) neighbourhood quality (Earls 1997)



323


Financial capital











Method



Data


Ferguson


324



Measures




SocialCapital Scale




Criterion variable


or


Predictor variables



Sampling procedure


expulsive zones









yes

or

no


yes

to

any one of



In contrast



325


no

to

all




Mejores Menores



Results













Male 98 44 685 759Female 45 14 315 241





Parent incomeb




Ferguson


326











t






The variable

help with homework








327


T


help with homework


The variable



t-









Second

civic engagement





less likely


Discussion



help with homework

and




Ferguson


328













329


1





civicengagement


negatively





First



Second


1


Ferguson


330


Lastly



Acknowledgements


References















Earls F (1997)








71175ndash198







(2001)



































323


Financial capital











Method



Data


Ferguson


324



Measures




SocialCapital Scale




Criterion variable


or


Predictor variables



Sampling procedure


expulsive zones









yes

or

no


yes

to

any one of



In contrast



325


no

to

all




Mejores Menores



Results













Male 98 44 685 759Female 45 14 315 241





Parent incomeb




Ferguson


326











t






The variable

help with homework








327


T


help with homework


The variable



t-









Second

civic engagement





less likely


Discussion



help with homework

and




Ferguson


328













329


1





civicengagement


negatively





First



Second


1


Ferguson


330


Lastly



Acknowledgements


References















Earls F (1997)








71175ndash198







(2001)

































Ferguson


324



Measures




SocialCapital Scale




Criterion variable


or


Predictor variables



Sampling procedure


expulsive zones









yes

or

no


yes

to

any one of



In contrast



325


no

to

all




Mejores Menores



Results













Male 98 44 685 759Female 45 14 315 241





Parent incomeb




Ferguson


326











t






The variable

help with homework








327


T


help with homework


The variable



t-









Second

civic engagement





less likely


Discussion



help with homework

and




Ferguson


328













329


1





civicengagement


negatively





First



Second


1


Ferguson


330


Lastly



Acknowledgements


References















Earls F (1997)








71175ndash198







(2001)



































325


no

to

all




Mejores Menores



Results













Male 98 44 685 759Female 45 14 315 241





Parent incomeb




Ferguson


326











t






The variable

help with homework








327


T


help with homework


The variable



t-









Second

civic engagement





less likely


Discussion



help with homework

and




Ferguson


328













329


1





civicengagement


negatively





First



Second


1


Ferguson


330


Lastly



Acknowledgements


References















Earls F (1997)








71175ndash198







(2001)

































Ferguson


326











t






The variable

help with homework








327


T


help with homework


The variable



t-









Second

civic engagement





less likely


Discussion



help with homework

and




Ferguson


328













329


1





civicengagement


negatively





First



Second


1


Ferguson


330


Lastly



Acknowledgements


References















Earls F (1997)








71175ndash198







(2001)



































327


T


help with homework


The variable



t-









Second

civic engagement





less likely


Discussion



help with homework

and




Ferguson


328













329


1





civicengagement


negatively





First



Second


1


Ferguson


330


Lastly



Acknowledgements


References















Earls F (1997)








71175ndash198







(2001)

































Ferguson


328













329


1





civicengagement


negatively





First



Second


1


Ferguson


330


Lastly



Acknowledgements


References















Earls F (1997)








71175ndash198







(2001)



































329


1





civicengagement


negatively





First



Second


1


Ferguson


330


Lastly



Acknowledgements


References















Earls F (1997)








71175ndash198







(2001)

































Ferguson


330


Lastly



Acknowledgements


References















Earls F (1997)








71175ndash198







(2001)




















































Documents

Social capital predictors of children's school status in Mexico