Oklahoma's universal pre-K program has shown dramatic benefits for Hispanic students who participate in high-quality preschool programs. These children, especially those from Spanish-speaking homes, improve their English and cognitive development skills and are more likely to be prepared for kindergarten than those not enrolled.
New research from the Urban Institute finds that limited English proficient (LEP) students are highly concentrated in a small share of America’s public schools. In fact, 70 percent of LEP students in kindergarten through fifth grade are enrolled in only 10 percent of the country’s public elementary schools. Among the findings: most LEP students were born in the U.S. And the share of students in kindergarten through 12th grade with a foreign-born parent tripled from 6 percent in 1970 to 19 percent in 2000.
New research from the Urban Institute finds that limited English proficient (LEP) students are highly concentrated in a small share of America’s public schools. In fact, 70 percent of LEP students in kindergarten through fifth grade are enrolled in only 10 percent of the country’s public elementary schools. Among the findings: most LEP students were born in the U.S. And the share of students in kindergarten through 12th grade with a foreign-born parent tripled from 6 percent in 1970 to 19 percent in 2000.
Researcher Michael Fix has called NCLB “one of the most important pieces of immigrant integration legislation in the past decade” because it forces schools to pay attention to LEP students by requiring schools to report these students’ test scores and holds schools accountable for the results.
CFK reports from:
The Urban Institute Event: panel discussion on bilingual education Organized by: Urban Where/When: Washington, D.C., December 7, 2004
At this panel discussion, a group of researchers and policymakers discussed the implications for English Language Learners (ELLs) and the schools they attend under the rules of the 2002 No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act.
Over the next two years, a national task force will research strategies for improving educational outcomes for Hispanic children from birth through third grade, and develop recommendations for policymakers, teachers and parents.
The School of the 21st Century has developed a Web site devoted to resources for immigrant families with young children and the professionals serving them. Many communities throughout the nation are experiencing a large influx of immigrant populations.
How can you give illiterate or limited-English parents the information they need on children's health and development? Julieta Santana reports on how local radio fills a critical informational need in immigrant communities. This article originally appeared in the May-June 2004 issue of the Children's Advocate, published by Action Alliance for Children.
Our year-end round up of reader's comments covers
a lot of territory, from TV watching habits to bilingual
education. Find out which stories sparked a response
from our visitors. As always, we love to hear from
you!
California voters passed Proposition 227 in 1998,
requiring that students in the state's public
schools be taught "overwhelmingly" in
English, unless at least 20 parents in one grade request
bilingual education for their children. The measure
has dramatically reduced the number of children in
bilingual classrooms. This article, originally published
in the Children's Advocate, published by Action Alliance
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