Marcela Sanchez’ latest column looks at the need to improve the educational status of Latino students who are learning English. She cites a pair of studies: one by the Urban Institute that found that “many children are not learning English even after seven or more years” in U.S. schools, and one that will be released by the Pew Hispanic Center showing that students learning English are “trailing way behind” other students. She notes that: “These latest findings will probably do little to change the minds of those looking for proof that No Child Left Behind is failing and needs reform, or for those supporters of English-only policies or opponents of immigration. They'll see what they want to in the numbers”.
Yet at the same time, Sanchez points out the need for Latino families and the Hispanic community to step up in order to ensure that Latino children do not end up at such an educational disadvantage. While she acknowledges the difficulties of immigrant families she also brings up how Asian children have had more educational success than Latino children. Sanchez concludes her column with this:
“We might learn something about community-based after-school programs in which even working class Asian immigrants enroll their children to improve academic performance. According to Min Zhou, professor of sociology and Asian-American studies at UCLA, it isn't ‘hard to teach a community to do more.’ After all, she added, ‘culture is made by people.’ In other words, cultural differences should not be allowed to become a justification for inaction.”
What do you think? Is Sanchez accurate in her assessment or has she placed blame where it doesn’t belong? Is she treading on thin ice by comparing cultures or is she right?
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