Date of Award

2012

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelors

Department

Social Sciences

First Advisor

Graham, Steven

Keywords

Hispanics, Bilingual Education, Psychology, Spanish Perceptions, Symbolic Racism, Resistance to Change

Area of Concentration

Psychology

Abstract

The current study sought to examine the relationships between symbolic racism, resistance to change, and attitudes on bilingual education. A 45-item survey consisted of five sections: the Symbolic Racism scale, the Resistance to Change scale, the Attitudes on Bilingual Education scale, prior knowledge of bilingual education, and demographic questions. It was hypothesized that individuals scoring high on the Symbolic Racism scale would also demonstrate more negative attitudes on the Attitudes Toward Bilingual Education scale. It was also hypothesized that individuals scoring high on the Resistance to Change scale would also show more negative attitudes on the Attitudes on Bilingual Education scale. There was a significant correlation between higher symbolic racism and more opposition to bilingual education; however, there was no significant correlation between resistance to change and opposition to bilingual education. Instead of educating the public on what bilingual education is, researchers should focus on educating the public on how and why bilingual education works, why the programs are so important for the United States, and the effect bilingualism can have on the country and its constituents.

Rights

This bibliographic record is available under the Creative Commons CC0 public domain dedication. The New College of Florida, as creator of this bibliographic record, has waived all rights to it worldwide under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights, to the extent allowed by law.

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