ABSTRACT
Chapters 5 and 6 recount the inception of the study and analyze the schooling experience of two Latino adolescents: Manny and Carla. The research described hereinafter was conducted by the senior author of this book, Mariella Espinoza-Herold, while she taught at a large urban school district in southern Arizona in the late 1990s. In consequence, the narration is written in the singular person as a way to convey the closeness of the researcher to the subjects of the study. While reviewing the text for its second edition, we deem it central to maintain the original narrative in order to provide the readers with a genuine context of the study. On the other hand, we believe that little has changed with respect to the social and educational environment Latino students face in Arizona (and other southwestern states), since this book was first published in 2003. We appreciate the reviewers of this new edition as well as the many pre-service, in-service educators and college students who have also encouraged us to publish this new edition.
