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New Journalism on Latino Education

 

New Journalism on Latino Children (NJLC) offers fresh viewpoints and evidence on Latino children and their schools. The project is based at the Institute of Human Development at the University of California, Berkeley, and is operated in collaboration with the Chicago-based Latino Policy Forum and the Education Writers Association. The project is funded by the McCormick Foundation.

The newest briefs from NJLC are being released at the Nov. 16 conference, "Illinois as Trailblazer:Bilingual and Dual-Language Learning Media and Research Convening." The first brief looks at the research on dual-language programs compared to bilingual and transitional English ones. The second offers a case study for Illinois efforts in early childhood dual-language programs. The final brief examines Latino access to early childhood education in Illinois and finds that compared to other racial and ethnic groups, Latinos have far fewer options.

That brief generated interest from the press. Here are some stories:

  • Lack of Preschool Puts Latinos Behind -- Despite a growing Latino population in Illinois, just more than one-third of the state’s Latino children attend preschool, compared to more than half of their black peers and about two-thirds of white and Asian children, a new study reports. Stephanie Lulay, The Beacon-News, Jan. 3, 2011
  • Bilingual Mandate Challenges Chicago's Public Schools  -- Administrators in the Chicago public schools are seeking to strike the right balance between providing guidance and permitting flexibility as they put in place the nation’s first state mandate for providing bilingual education to preschoolers. Mary Ann Zehr, Education Week, Nov. 29, 2010
  • Scenes from a Dual-Language Classroom -- Gary Elementary School in West Chicago has offered a dual-language program for years. Maureen Kelleher, Education Week, Nov. 23, 2010
  • Latinos Wait in Line for Preschool Spots -- Only about 35 percent of Illinois’ Latino 4-year-olds attended some type of preschool, compared with 66 percent of white children, 63 percent of Asian and 54 percent of African-American children. The U.S. average is 48 percent. Esther Cepeda, Chicago Sun-Times, Nov. 22, 2010
  • Build Preschools Where Latinos Live -- Elena Flores was raring to go to preschool this fall. She wanted to be in school, just like her big brother. When he got a backpack, she had to have one, too. Elena didn’t get her wish. The preschool was full. Her name’s on a waiting list. Sue Ontiveros, Chicago Sun-Times, Nov. 20, 2010
  • Bilingual Preschool Has Growing Pains -- New state rules requiring school district-run Preschool for All programs to offer bilingual education to English-language learners debuted this fall, and CPS is requiring the same in the Head Start programs it runs. Rebecca Harris, Catalyst Chicago, Nov. 19, 2010
  • Fewer Latino Children Enrolled in Preschool, Study Finds -- In Illinois, Latino children were half as likely to enroll in preschool as white and African-American students, a disparity that threatens to widen the academic divide between them, according to a new report out Tuesday. Tara Malone, Chicago Tribune, Nov. 16, 2010
  • Preschool Attendance Lags Among Preschool Children -- Just over one in three Latino children attend pre-school in Illinois, compared to more than half of their African-American peers and about two-thirds of whites and Asians, a new study released today indicates. Rosalind Rossi, Chicago Sun-Times, Nov. 16, 2010
  • Latino Achievement Gap Starts Before School, Study Says -- In early childhood education Latino children in Illinois are far less likely to be read to everyday than children of other ethnicities and also far less likely to go to preschool, according to a study released today. Taryn Tawoda, Catalyst Chicago, Nov. 16, 2010
  • Illinois Latino Children Less Likely to Attend Preschool -- Latino children in Illinois are less likely to go to preschool than children from other backgrounds. That’s according to a new study out today. The report finds that only about 35 percent of Latino four-year-olds attend preschool. White students attend pre-school at about double that rate. Among African American children, the rate is 54 percent. Linda Lutton, WBEZ, Nov. 16, 2010

At the conference, panels included language-acquisition experts, teachers, parents, and veteran education reporters. The event is taking place for Tuesday, Nov. 16, from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at DePaul University in Chicago. Diane August, senior research scientist with the Center for Applied Linguistics, reviewed the research on dual-language preschool programs. Latino Policy Forum research associate Reyna Hernandez reviewed data about bilingual preschool in Illinois. A video documenting the work of Gianna Gatto, a dual-language kindergarten teacher, was shown.

Illinois recently became the first state in the nation to mandate bilingual education at the pre-K level. Bilingual programs are growing across the state not only in lower-income communities, but in diverse, middle-class suburbs, too, as parents discover their benefits. Illinois boasts the highest percentage of 3-year-olds served by state-funded preschool in the country. Yet despite the state's pioneering policies, Latino children have the lowest preschool enrollment rate in Illinois and exhibit wide learning gaps at school entry.

It’s a complex issue. What kind of training should teachers have? How difficult will it be to find enough qualified applicants to teach such classes? What if you have more than one second language among the children in the preschool program?

The NJLC project released three publications last year examining  trends in academics and culture, Getting Latino Youth Through High School, The Cultural Strengths of Latino Families and Giving Latino Children a Stronger Start.

Latinos fare poorly compared to other racial and ethnic groups in income earned and high teen birth rates. New studies led by the University of California, Berkeley, find that immigrant Latino mothers, who typically live in poor neighborhoods, give birth to healthy babies. But the toddlers lag behind middle-class white children in basic language and cognitive skills by 2 to 3 years of age.

The Latino population is expected to nearly triple from 47 million today to 133 million by 2050, when they will account for almost one in three U.S. residents, according to Census projections. Already, Latinos make up more than half of public school students in California and New Mexico. New studies suggest that Latino students and their families have high aspirations and understand the importance of completing school.

Check back with us for further links to research on these topics.

EWA sponsored a special session at its annual meeting in Washington, D.C. exploring why more Latino students fail to graduate from college. Sarita Brown of Excelencia in Education offers an overview of the Latino College Crisis and what can be done to get more students to enroll in college.  At EWA's 2008 annual meeting in Chicago, Richard Fry, senior scholar at the Pew Hispanic Center, discussed myths and realities about Hispanics and English language learners with reporters

EWA, the National Panel on Latino Children and Schooling, and the Pew Hispanic Center also collaborated on a day-long discussion on Latino youth and education on Oct. 6 at the Pew Hispanic Center in Washington, DC.

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The Pew Hispanic Center released two reports The Changing Pathways of Hispanic Youths Into Adulthood and Latinos and Education: Explaining the Attainment Gap using survey findings of Latino teens and young adults about their attitudes toward high school and whether they plan to go to college or to work. Another panel examined new federal policy toward Latino education, featuring Juan Sepulveda, executive director of the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans, as well as Veronica Garcia, New Mexico secretary of education.

Stories looking at issues of Latino schooling:

Reporters covered the Oct. 6 conference at the Pew Hispanic Center and also have tracked stories since. Here are some highlights: Image from Dallas Morning News

You can also see a video of Luis Duarte talking about his dreams and aspirations at the Dallas Morning News.

Here are sources and organizations: 

  • Diane August is a senior research scientist affiliated with the Center for Applied Linguistics in Washington, D.C. She is principal investigator for a federally funded study investigating the development of literacy among English-language learners. She is also co-principal investigator in another federally funded randomized study of English immersion and transitional bilingual programs. Contact her at daugust@msn.com
  • Bruce Fuller is a professor of education and public policy, director of the Policy Analysis for California Education (PACE), an independent policy research center based at UC Berkeley and Stanford University. His expertise is in tate and federal K-12 education policy, programs and legislation such as the No Child Left Behind Act, preschool and school readiness, charter schools, academic testing, child care and welfare reform. Contact him at (510) 643-5362; b_fuller@berkeley.edu.
  • Francisco L. Rivera-Batiz is a professor of economics and education at Teachers College at Columbia University. His scholarly interests are education, economic development, international and public affairs. In addition, race, ethnicity and gender in the labor market. Immigrants and education, and the Latino population of the United States.Contact him at Teachers College, Room 350 Macy Hall, 525 West 120th St., New York, NY 10027; (212)  678-3152;  flr9@columbia.edu
  • Sarita E. Brown is the founding president of Excelencia in Education, an organization that helps Latino students achieve in higher education. Contact her at Excelencia in Education, 1752 N St N.W., 6th Floor, Washington, DC 20036; (202)778-8323; sbrown@edexcelencia.org.
  • Richard Fry is a demographic economist who focuses on Latino educational, economic and social outcomes. He is one of the nation's prominent scholars on measuring Latino educational attainment and college participation. Contact him at the Pew Hispanic Center, 1615 L St. NW, Suite 700, Washington, D.C. 20036; (202) 419-3600; rfry@pewhispanic.org.
  • Patricia Gándara is professor of education in the Graduate School of Education at the University of California, Los Angeles. She serves as co-director of the Civil Rights Project/Proyecto Derechos Civiles at UCLA and associate director of the UC Linguistic Minority Research Institute. Gándara’s research focuses on educational equity and access for low income and ethnic minority students, language policy, and the education of Mexican origin youth. She's just released a book entitled The Latino Education Crisis. Contact her at UCLA, 3329 Moore Hall, Los Angeles, CA; (310) 267 4875; gandara@gseis.ucla.edu.
  • Reyna Hernandez is a research and policy associate at the Latino Policy Forum. She has many years of experience working on issues affecting the Latino community. She was a parent facilitator at the Waukegan Parent Information and Support Center and has been a member of various community boards and coalitions. Contact her at mailto:rhernandez@latinopolicyforum.org.
  • National Task Force on Early Childhood Education for Hispanics
  • Pedro Portes is the Goizueta Foundation Distinguished Chair of Latino Teacher Education at the University of Georgia. In his position, he leads Latino education and research efforts on the campus and across Georgia. Contact him at the Center for Latino Achievement and Success in Education, University of Georgia, 315 Aderhold Hall, Athens, GA30602; (706)583-5561; portes@uga.edu.
  • Russell W. Rumberger is a professor of education at the University of California, Santa Barbara. His expertise is in decreasing the high school dropout rate, education policy, economic analysis, higher education, research methods, student mobility and school effectiveness. Contact him at the University of California, Santa Barbara, (805) 893-3385; Russ@education@uscsb.edu.
  • Sonia Soltero is an associate professor at DePaul University and director of the Bilingual-Bicultural Education Program in the School of Education. Her doctorate is in bilingual education from the University of Arizona. She wrote Dual Language: Teaching and Learning in Two Languages. Reach her at mailto:ssoltero@depaul.edu.
  • Pilar Torres is the founder and executive director of Centro Familia, a 10-year-old community- based non-profit organization dedicated to improving the quality and availability of early care and education opportunities in low-income, immigrant neighborhoods. Contact her at Centro Familia, 10914 Georgia Ave., Wheaton, MD 20902; (301) 754-1801; ptorres@centro-familia.org.

The Pew Hispanic Center released two reports The Changing Pathways of Hispanic Youths Into Adulthood and Latinos and Education: Explaining the Attainment Gap using survey findings of Latino teens and young adults about their attitudes toward high school and whether they plan to go to college or to work. Another panel examined new federal policy toward Latino education, featuring Juan Sepulveda, executive director of the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans, as well as Veronica Garcia, New Mexico secretary of education.

Here are other published reports to help with your research:  

You can also listen to the experiences of undocumented students as reported by students enrolled in the Collaborative Journalism Project at UC Berkeley Law School's Chief Justice Earl Warren Institute on Race, Ethnicity and Diversity.