Changing Times – New Challenges AND Opportunities! Marjorie Hall Haley, PhD George Mason University

The Changing Landscape  The 2000 US Census recorded that out of million people, 31 million were foreign born including at least 276 ethnic groups.  According to Education Week, during , more than 4 million students or almost 10% of students enrolled in pre- kindergarten through 12 th grade were limited English proficient.

The Changing Landscape  The National Center for Education Statistics reported that 47 states reported how many enrolled students who were ELL students and were receiving English language services.  In , one-fourth of all students in California, or 1.5 million, were ELL students who received language services, while the number of students who received ELL services in Texas was more than half a million or one in seven students.  (nces.ed.gov/fastfacts, 2004).

The Changing Landscape Most ELL students are found in larger, urban schools, NCES (2004) also reported from its Students and Staffing Survey that of the schools with LEP students, one third provide either English as a Second Language or bilingual programs and 71% of students determined to be LEP attend those schools.

The changing Landscape Forty-two percent of all public school teachers had at least one LEP students; 30% of the teachers instructing LEP students had received training to teach ELL students while only 3% actually held a degree in ESL or bilingual teaching (NCES, 2004).

The Changing Landscape ELLs are projected to compose 40% of the school age population by the decade of 2030 (Collier & Thomas, 1999). All long term research studies of ELL students found that it takes a minimum of four years for these students to reach grade level performance in their second language (Thomas & Collier, 2002). 42% of all public schools have at least one ELL student, yet only 30% of the teachers instructing these students had any ELL training (NCES, 2004).

ELL/ LEP Students  4,416,580 students enrolled in public schools (PK -12) school year.  9.3% of total public student enrollment.  Some 400 different world languages.  76.6% are Spanish-speakers.  Some 40 percent never graduate from high school.

What Are the Most Common Language Groups for LEP Students? Anneka Kindler, NCBE  In , states reported over 400 languages spoken by ELL/ LEP students nationwide.400 languages spoken Spanish (76%); Vietnamese (2.3%); Hmong (2.2%); Haitian Creole (1.1%); Korean (1.1%); Cantonese (1.0%).  All other language groups represented less than 1% of the LEP student population. 

Black & Hispanic: Growth 

Language Literacy Content Academic Needs of L2/Bilingual Learners

U.S. Challenges in L2 Education  Teacher preparation & professional development  Program selection, design and implementation to fit local goals & needs  Second-language and academic content instruction based on high academic standards

Hispanic/Latino Population  Now number 37 million (2002) census  During the period, the percentage of residents aged is projected to increase by 222%

A word of caution  Latino/Hispanics are: An unusually diverse community; Share a common language; But there are many differences – Socioeconomic and academic Culture and ethnicity Nationality

Latino/Hispanic HS Completion Rate  In 2000, the HS completion rate was 64.1% [1972, was 56.2%]  Trend has been fairly similar over the past three decades

Changing Times – New Challenges  Empowering Parents: Expanding beyond traditional parental involvement  School Culture: Barrier for Change or Bridge for Improvement?  Broadening US schools’ community partnerships: Engaging people from all cultures and walks of life

Changing Times & New Challenges  The parents of ELLs often find it difficult to guide their children through the US educational process  Many parents do not understand the process  Communication problems with teachers and administrators are often due to linguistic barriers

Community-based Organization School Partnerships  Existing Hispanic/Latino CBOs can be invited into partnerships with local schools  When schools partner with these organizations, it can be a catalyst to developing parental involvement

CBOs and School Partnerships  Groups may already exist in your community:  A men’s soccer group, a quilting group, a group that teaches national dances…. These are real resources waiting to be utilized!

Examples of CBOs in the Metro Area  Mi Casa (Affordable housing)  Spanish Education Development  Latino Student Fund  Neighbor’ Consejo (Homeless)  Salomon Zelaya (Rehabilitation Center)

Expanding Beyond Traditional Parental Involvement Activities Schools must give all parents – including those from culturally and linguistically diverse groups – the power to become involved in the schools their children attend.

Building Bridges

Parental Involvement in Schools  Parents can participate in both formal and informal ways  Parents can serve as classroom aides or work on fund-raising projects  Parents can also be involved at home by providing a learning environment for their children

Exploring Cultural Experiences Diverse Schools and Classrooms  Educators should explore their own cultural experiences, values, and attitudes as they relate to child rearing practices in school  Educators should learn as much as possible from parents about their cultural experiences, values and attitudes (i.e., image of authority figures, views about school, etc.)

 Schools knowingly or unknowingly often assume that parents know how to interact with school personnel  However, because many Hispanic/Latino parents come from different educational traditions, many may feel powerless to participate in school

Is this a cultural issue?  Hispanic/Latino parents tend to separate the school system and home and treat them as different domains  The role of the school is to instill knowledge and teacher their children  The role of parents is to provide nurturance, and teach morals, respect and good behavior

Successful Parent/School Partnership Issues  School Environment: Creating a friendly, welcoming environment  School Culture: Valuing home and community culture  Teachers as Cultural-brokers: Overcoming misperceptions and stereotypes

Successful Parent/School Partnership Issues  Overcoming linguistic and cultural barriers: Disconnect between home, community and school  Parents: Educational level and previous experience

Best Practices  Establishing community networks and partnerships with other CBOs  Building trust and personal relationships  When publications are translated, making sure they are culturally acceptable. Attention to literacy is important.

Theme 1: Community Involvement  How can community leaders and faith-based organizations Inform and educate parents about the educational opportunities available for every child? Encourage their local officials to take advantage of all federal, state, and local educational opportunities?

Theme 2: Developing Partnerships Community  Where can schools look for CBSs and informal groups?  How can they engage them?  How what the CBO is already doing can be of benefit to the school and children?

Theme 3: Developing Policies  How can State Educational Agencies (SEAs) develop policies that encourage and enable their school districts and schools to promote successful school- community partnerships that are responsive to the diverse populations they serve?