ABSTRACT
School failure among Chicanos is not a new situation. On the contrary, it is an old and stubborn condition. It refuses to relent. It continues even in the face of opposition. Imagine having a body riddled with a throbbing pain, one that never goes away, and you can get a sense of the persistent nature of the poor academic performance of a substantial portion of the Chicano school-age population. In short, Chicano school failure is deeply rooted in history.1 The historical rooting of Chicano school failure has been clearly documented (e.g., Donato, 1997, 2007; González, 1990; Moreno, 1999; San Miguel, Jr., 2003; San Miguel, Jr., & Valencia, 1998; Valencia, 2002a; Valencia, 2008). In addition to historical expressions, it also manifests in various ways in the contemporary period. In my view, such school failure has largely been shaped by educational inequality, a form of oppression. Chesler (1976), in an essay on theories of racism-which, I assert, can be generalized to the study of other forms of oppression-comments that there are three forms of evidence from which theorists can draw to identify the existence of oppression. These evidential bases-as noted in Figure 1.1-are: (a) personal attitudes or cultural values-as seen in symbol systems and ideology; (b) institutional processes-as seen in mechanisms that lead to differential advantages and privileges; (c) effects or outcomes-as seen in unequal attainments among groups. Within this framework, Chicano students-the target group of this book-are prime examples of pupils affected by the pernicious ideologies, institutional practices, and outcomes of educational inequality.
