Based on a three-year research study, this book presents a rich and immersive ethnographic exploration of the experiences of Chicana/o–Latina/o students and the Chicana/o–Latina/o scholastic youth culture in American middle schools.

The author provides insights into the diverse heritage of contemporary American school life, exploring the politics of social identity categories, and taking a new look at how the youth community practice an adult organized world. Employing an intra-ethnic differentiation theoretical framework, it seeks to understand how students create and negotiate a variety of racial, class, ethnic, academic, and “social clique” identities in order to navigate both official and hidden curriculum demands of school. As such, it studies the ways in which Chicano/Latino students learn to divide and compare themselves in systems of rank, fit in with the different sub-groups at the school, and how this impacts their academic performance and sense of belonging.

It will appeal to researchers and scholars with interests in multicultural education, ethnography, anthropology, school culture, the sociology of education, identity studies, and diversity and inclusion in education.