Team profile by Laura Andrade, Stephanie Contreras, Riley Selig-Addiss and Silvia Serrano

Spanish heritage language learners are usually viewed from a deficit perspective, either lacking in English, Spanish, or both. Under this perspective, heritage language skills are seen as a burden as opposed to a strength. To change the way in which heritage language learners are understood, experts have called for the creation of education systems where linguistic diversity is encouraged. Indeed, many studies have shown the advantages of multilingualism as well as the advantages of incorporating knowledge from culturally diverse families. These outcomes improve future job opportunities and, more importantly, offer deeper connections with family members and their heritage. 

¡Celebra Latinx! is a Spanish reading program that connects Latinx families with Duke students as peer tutors and provides the opportunity for them to support each other in their development as multilingual speakers. After implementing the program, the project team analyzed preliminary results regarding the impact of the program on children’s reading motivation and the development of literacy. Results suggest that participation in the program increases children’s confidence and motivation to read in Spanish and increases children’s understanding, background and affect toward their cultural identities.

¡Celebra Latinx! is a collaborative effort between faculty, undergraduate students, graduate students and Durham community members to celebrate Latinx culture. Our team’s goal for the past two years has been to develop and implement semester-long reading programs for Latinx children in the Durham area. Our research uses survey data to measure the effect that our program had on a variety of aspects including the children’s cultural identity, reading habits and motivation to read aloud in Spanish.

The program connects Latinx families from the Durham area with Duke undergraduate students who serve as their peer tutor through a series of online reading sessions. The sessions are meant to expose children and their families to Latinx authors, stories and traditions through reading a variety of Spanish picture books and through follow-up activities that encourage reading, writing and communicating in Spanish.

When I was younger, I used to love reading in my free time. But as I got older, it used to feel more like a chore. Being a part of ¡Celebra Latinx! has awoken my love for reading again and allowed me to share my story and love for reading with others! –Mia Murphy, Undergraduate Team Member

¡Celebra Latinx! utilizes a participatory action research framework and seeks to evaluate participant progress and improve the program by conducting continuous evaluations with program participants. After each reading session, children and their parents are asked to detail what they did and did not like about the session, how they felt about their reading level and how interested they were in their reading materials that day.

Results from the first two-years of the project find that 100% of parents and 84% of children would recommend the ¡Celebra Latinx! program to their friends. Additionally, results suggest that participation in the program increases children’s motivation in reading in Spanish, particularly children's value of literature.

Though the program seeks to promote bilingualism and Latinx pride, it is also designed to be a transformative, hands-on learning experience for Duke students. After the first two years of the program, 95 percent of participating Duke students reported having an experience in the program that changed their values, beliefs or expectations.

[Preparing our poster] for the Bass Connections Showcase was a very impactful part of the overall program because it allowed me to see how the attitudes of children towards reading and their performance changed. The post-surveys also added to this impact by allowing me to directly see how much more confident these children felt reading and sharing their ideas out loud. To see the children become more comfortable in their Spanish-speaking abilities was truly memorable! –Aisha Ovando Fernández, Undergraduate Team Member

While most students participating in ¡Celebra Latinx! had past experience working with children, many faced new challenges during the project, as working collaboratively with children and their parents at the same time and finding new ways to navigate individual parent-child dynamics proved to be challenging. However, our group meetings included time to discuss multilingualism, lesson planning and specific challenges as they occurred, which helped foster a classroom in which every person contributed as a student and expert. 

Although the direct experience that students get from working with families is the focal point of the project, students have also benefited from the opportunity to lead data sessions, facilitate trainings for Duke students involved in similar projects and participate in community outreach events. 
Another major success of the program has been the environment of collaboration and idea sharing within our weekly meetings. Each year, our team members have developed into a supportive group of students and faculty that are able to learn from each other throughout the process.

Celebra Latinx was my most impactful campus involvement. Practicing my Spanish in a real-world setting while connecting with families in the local community was so fulfilling. –Bella Echols ’25

Impact of a Reading Program on Latinx Children's Motivation to Read in Spanish and Cultural Identity Formation

Poster by Laura Andrade, Joan Clifford, Stephanie Contreras, Phoebe Ducote, Bella Echols, Abigail Eun, Melody Gao, Mauricio Hernandez, Mia Murphy, Aisha Ovando Fernandez, Calista Ringas, Riley Selig-Addiss, Silvia Serrano