Uprooted to Grow
Uprooting to Grow
When one thinks about Hispanics, all too often the image of a field full of migrant workers picking fruit in the hot sun comes to mind. This has become the stereotypical picture of a people whose determination and character are strong enough to create a new beginning. For each immigrant family an education was the "ladder by which the children of immigrants climbed out of poverty into the mainstream." (Calderon & Slavin, 2001, p. iv) That idea has not changed, as the population of Hispanics in the United States reaches numbers that are finally drawing that attention of schools, state offices, the federal government, and the marketplace. As the new, largest minority, as well as the largest bilingual group, in the United States, Hispanics are finally being recognized as a group of people with the potential to greatly impact economic, social, and education reform. Children of immigrant families account for nearly one-in-four children in the U.S. making them the fastest growing population of children, and they are leading the nation’s racial and ethnic revolution. Through an understanding of the Hispanic culture and the motivation behind the Hispanic population, the American education system will be able to overcome the natural hindrances of a diverse society. Before examining the educational issues surrounding Hispanics, an understanding is essential of the population numbers that the United States and public school systems are seeing. According to Census 2000, the Hispanic population of the United States was slightly more than 35.3 million, or 12.5 percent of the total population. The number of Hispanics has quickly surpassed that of African-Americans as the new, largest minority in the United States. Of the statistics presented in Census 2000, the most significant to education are those of population age. Census 2000 found that 35 percent of Hispanics were less than the age of 18 with an average age of about 26. Only 25.7 percent of the
When one thinks about Hispanics, all too often the image of a field full of migrant workers picking fruit in the hot sun comes to mind. This has become the stereotypical picture of a people whose determination and character are strong enough to create a new beginning. For each immigrant family an education was the "ladder by which the children of immigrants climbed out of poverty into the mainstream." (Calderon & Slavin, 2001, p. iv) That idea has not changed, as the population of Hispanics in the United States reaches numbers that are finally drawing that attention of schools, state offices, the federal government, and the marketplace. As the new, largest minority, as well as the largest bilingual group, in the United States, Hispanics are finally being recognized as a group of people with the potential to greatly impact economic, social, and education reform. Children of immigrant families account for nearly one-in-four children in the U.S. making them the fastest growing population of children, and they are leading the nation’s racial and ethnic revolution. Through an understanding of the Hispanic culture and the motivation behind the Hispanic population, the American education system will be able to overcome the natural hindrances of a diverse society. Before examining the educational issues surrounding Hispanics, an understanding is essential of the population numbers that the United States and public school systems are seeing. According to Census 2000, the Hispanic population of the United States was slightly more than 35.3 million, or 12.5 percent of the total population. The number of Hispanics has quickly surpassed that of African-Americans as the new, largest minority in the United States. Of the statistics presented in Census 2000, the most significant to education are those of population age. Census 2000 found that 35 percent of Hispanics were less than the age of 18 with an average age of about 26. Only 25.7 percent of the