Latino students in the US education system face obstacles.

In the US, the Latino population is expanding at the quickest rate. They have, however, received the least of a state’s quality education, according to historical records. Since educational success in the current generation is regarded as the primary determinant of children’s future careers and earning capacity, the situation has grown to be a national worry.

The goal of the study article is to identify and examine some of the factors, including language barriers, cultural differences, racial discrimination, and economic hardships, that have contributed to Latino students’ low performance in the US educational system. The paper then discusses possible solutions to these problems and how they can be integrated into the current education system.

Barriers Latino Students Face in the United States Education System

According to Wang (2017), access to high-quality education is essential for the United States to achieve the dream of having equal opportunities for all its citizens. However, it is sad to note that the nation is still far from realizing this ideal national goal because the educational opportunities are greatly influenced by race and ethnic background of the students (Espinoza & Gonzalez, 2017). Latino students studying in the U.S. have been the most disadvantaged group as they face numerous challenges in pursuit of knowledge. Some of the problems they face include language barrier, cultural difference, racial discrimination, and financial constraints as discussed below:

Language Barrier

Many Latinos find it difficult to be fully integrated into the educational systems due to the challenges in communication. According to a study conducted by Vega et al., (2015) these students with low language proficiency get very few opportunities for educational advancement beyond primary school. Consequently, most of the Latino students drop out at primary school and a few who are lucky may be able to reach junior high schools level. However, those who proceed to high school often perform dismally because of their poor mastery of language which translates to a lot of knowledge gaps.

Mehisto and Genesee (2015) argue that the rate at which an immigrant learns a language determines their academic success later in life. A good understanding of the proper use of language influences a student’s social skills and confidence level. These are the two primary factors that determine the rate at which an international student can fully adapt to a schooling system.

Non-English speaking immigrants require about three or five years to master communicating in English (Mehisto & Genesee, 2015). Depending on their environmental exposure and interactions some may need even more time. The pace at which these students become fluent in communication is longer due to their poor socioeconomic status, and limited exposure to an excellent academic environment. That means that some would require up to eight years catching up academically with native English speaking students (Vega et al., 2015). However, by the time this period elapses, there will be a lot of knowledge gaps and many concepts missed as they advance to higher grades. The result is that most of them end up dropping out at this level (high school).

Finally, there have been some cases reported by Mehisto and Genesee (2015) in the past where students with limited proficiency in English were transferred to special education schools, as the administration thought they had a language disorder. The tailored education system in these schools to meet needs of mentally challenged students did not give the average Latino children enough challenge to stimulate mental growth and development.

Cultural Change

Cultural change can either boost child’s academic potential or completely diminish it. Many Latino students have to go through a rigorous process of adopting the cultural practices of the United States since theirs are entirely different (Cholewa, Goodman, West-Olatunj, & Amatea, 2014). Assimilating into the new culture is one of the toughest phases that any students can go through because they have to adapt to the new studying environment. At the same time, they must learn how to conduct themselves as the other students do, communicate with others and their instructors and participate in extracurricular activities offered in these schools. Going through this process can be overwhelming to children and often become fatigued in the process.

Apart from learning the new routines and practices, the Latino students, especially those who were not born in the United States, find it hard due survive due to the difference in cultural traditions of the White Americans and the Latinos. A good example is their cultural practice that emphasizes family loyalty and closeness, also known as familism (Cholewa et al., 2014). Familism requires all the Latinos to make their family a priority even if it negatively affects their personal lives. Espinoza-Herold and Gonzalez-Carriedo (2017) argue that it becomes challenging for these students to concentrate on their academic work especially if they have other family obligations like taking care of their younger siblings which may be weighing them down.

Moreover, the Latino society still holds the gender roles in the society. According to them, ladies in their communities are raised primarily to be caregivers. Cholewa et al., (2014) concludes that traditions jeopardize the immigrant girls’ chances of pursuing education even in the United States. The pressure from their society to uphold such practices may cause most of the girls to spend their time in taking care of their families at the expense of going to school and doing assignments. Additionally, some traditional Latino parents are not aware of the benefits of education to the girl child may go the extent of even marrying them off before they complete high school (Espinoza & Gonzalez, 2017).

Low Parent Involvement in their Children’s Academic Affairs

Studies conducted by Ceballo, Maurizi, Suarez, and Aretakis (2014) points out that Latino parents are the least involved in the academic life of their children when compared to parents and guardians from other ethnicities and races. Another study argues that a possible reason for low participation is that most of the parents themselves did not attain academic success, while others did not go to school at all (Vega et al., 2015). Consequently, they do not value education as much as other learned parents do.

The survey as documented by Ceballo et al., (2014) showed that their indifference in attitude towards their children schoolwork could be attributed to the fact that very few parents agree that they can positively identify signs of learning progress in their children. In the study, less than 22% could name any specific milestone such as reading level or proficiency in arithmetic once they had completed an academic year. Some parents argued that leaving the children to manage academic life on their own was teaching them to be independent. It is disheartening that 31% of the Latina parents who took the survey believed that their involvement in students academic would not have any significance regarding academic performance.

Parental involvement in a student’s academic life is a significant determinant of his/her success. Many parents forget that students in elementary and lower primary level spend less than 15% of their time in school (Crosnoe, Ansari, Purtell, & Wu, 2016). That should be a clear indicator that foundation of the children’s academic success should be built-home. A study published at North Carolina State University ( as cited by Ceballo et al., 2014) found out that parents who undertook simple tasks such as ensuring their children completed homework and attending school meetings had a powerful impact on these children’s academic lives. Therefore the lack of involvement of the Latina parents on their children academic progress has also played a key role in undermining their academic success.

Discrimination at School

There are many cases which have been reported on discrimination against Latino immigrants living in the United States in the past (Wang, 2017). These discriminatory practices, characterized by unfair treatment from their teachers and non-teaching staff and their fellow students have a negative impact on the learning processes of these students. Gay (2013) argues that the most affected are the young children in lower academic level, whom when they are stigmatized can easily fall into depression and affect their mental health.

Discriminated students often develop a negative attitude towards school environment, and as a result, their classwork will suffer. By the time they grow older and mature to cope with the prejudice and discrimination in the society, much of their academic time and experiences will have been lost. Naturally, such students lag behind in higher grades since they missed most of the concepts in foundation levels.

Discrimination in school causes the Latino students to form groups of their own where they can feel secure (Cholewa et al., 2014). That is very dangerous especially in a learning institution where wholesome growth comes from interacting with people from different background and cultures. Apart from that, segregation by Native US students limits the rate at which the students can learn English, which is the primary language used in the educational institutions. Moreover, discrimination causes these students to feel disconnected from the school activities and their motivation to continue schooling will drop significantly.

Financial Constraints

According to 2010 national census conducted in the United States, more Latino children are living in poverty than any other ethnic group. From an analysis done by the US census bureau data of 2010, the following results were obtained: Blacks had the lowest percentage of children living in poverty (26.6%), followed by whites who have 30.5% children poverty. The Latina immigrants were leading in the number of needy children with 37.5% (“U.S. Poverty Statistics”, 2017).

The U.S Poverty Statistics (2017) documents that the degree of poverty varies from one Latino family to another, for example, kids who are raised by single parents have the highest probability of living in poverty. Statistics place the single women at 57% poverty rate, while the population of children whose parents were degree holders had a likelihood of only 9% that their low economic status will have an impact on their education. It is also worth noting that the Latino immigrants are poorer than the Latino families who were born in the United States. That is because there are many barriers that the immigrants face when they move to the US, from learning the new laws and policies, language barrier and many other factors.

The effect of poverty on the education of the Latino cannot be overlooked. Over 30% of children in the United States raised in poverty do not complete high school education (Crosnoe et al., 2016). In such families, education is not considered a priority since all the family members have to look for a source of income once they are of age. As a result, most of these children have to drop out of school to look for menial jobs.

Poverty prevents the Latino students from getting enrolled in good schools where special care and guidance can be given to them as they try to cope with communication challenges and navigating in their day to day lives in the United States (Vega et al., 2015). Most of them end up in public schools with inadequate facilities. As a result, they will have to put a lot of efforts in academics if they are to become competitive.

Poverty also affects the children psychologically. Children who come from families that cannot afford basic needs are often mentally disturbed (Gay, 2013; Wang, 2017). The condition makes most of them hopeless, and they cannot concentrate in their classwork. The result is that these students end up performing dismally in classwork, an issue which depresses them even more.

Recommendations

Creating Awareness to Latino Parents on the importance of Education

Schools should create community-based awareness programs to educate the Latino parents on the importance of enrolling their children in classes (Ceballo et al., 2014). That can be done by organizing educational workshops for parents and families. In these forums, the Latino community should be enlightened on the necessity of educating their children, especially in the current world.

Cronsoe et al. (2016) also advise on the use of information packets to address the issue of low enrollment of pre-school children. The preschool teachers and other educators should take advantage of opportunities such as scheduled immunization programs, pregnancy and even delivery to talk to these Latino parents. It is the best time since these parents can get ample time to reflect on the issue and make an informed decision by the time their children are of school-going age.

Reviewing the Curriculum

The government should initiate research aimed at modifying curriculum to make it inclusive and accommodative to non-native English speakers. Cholewa et al. (2014) strongly suggest that it is vital for the education stakeholders in the government to hire curriculum evaluators to review the education system especially for grades K-8 where knowledge gaps and student lagging has been prone. The curriculum review agency should then make recommendations on the best way to bridge the gap in this education level. Additionally, they should consider other important factors such as student-teacher interaction, with a focus on helping the Latino appreciate the learning environment (Gay, 2013).

Once the review is complete, they should write a report making recommendations for reforms in curriculum and instruction, school organizational structures, and the school rules and policies (Wang, 2017). The modifications in education systems which have been tailored specifically to accommodate the non-native speakers, especially the Latinos will help to bridge the educational gap, especially in elementary and primary school.

On the same note, Espinoza-Herold, & Gonzalez-Carriedo (2017) suggests that policies to ensure Latino students have a better representation in school talent programs should be adopted. Their research findings show that the Latinos represent only 4% of the total number of students in the gifted. Most of them are ignored as they are considered students with low ability and indisciplined (Gay, 2013). As a result, an assessment of these students may not give an accurate picture of the student’s skills, strengths, and weaknesses.

Adopt a Bilingual Education System

Mehisto and Genesee (2015) define bilingual learning the use of two languages as a medium of instruction in schools. The program is designed and tailored for children with limited English proficiency especially in elementary and junior high schools. By having such institutions in the United States, the cultural heritage of the Latino immigrants will be appreciated just like that of other children from the American society, according to the instruction of the program.

The bilingual model should be adopted in schools that have Latino students since there are studies that suggest that using the first language in literary development skills is essential for a proper academic foundation of children (Wang, 2017). Could forcing the Latino students to learn using English be the reason for their dismal performance in higher education? By allowing the Latino and other ESL (non-native English speakers) to be taught using their native language will go a long way in their quest for academic success.

Advising and Encouraging the Latino Students

The Latino students need sufficient academic guidance at all educational level; particularly those in high school. That is because, at this level, most of them are teenagers and are in their adolescent period. At this stage of life, they are prone to develop insecurities about various aspects of their daily lives such as race consciousness which may distract them form academics (Vega et al., 2015).

Gonzalez, Borders, Hines, Villalba and Henderson (2013) suggest that the student-to-counselor ratio should be increased in high schools to ensure that the students can easily open up in case they have any challenges at school. Moreover, these institutions should find mentors for the Latino students, preferably those of Latino descent who successfully graduated and were absorbed in the job market (Gonzalez et al., 2013). These mentors will encourage and give hope to the students. A major advantage of the mentorship program is that the Latino students get a chance to interact with one of their own, who can help them navigate through the challenges in their education level using the first-hand experience from learning in a similar environment.

Molding Culturally Competent Teachers

Both Cholewa et al. (2014) and Wang (2017) agree to the fact that training culturally conscious teachers can go a long way in improving the quality of education in schools. These teachers will make the students adapt to the new way of life in the United States without pressure. These teachers will play an essential role in helping the students to cope with culture shock especially in their first year of study for the immigrants by making them have a sense of belonging.

These teachers can also promote equitable allocation of school resources. Additionally, they will follow up with their parents and motivate them to take a more active role in the academic lives of their children (Cheballo et al., 2014). The benefit of parent engagement is that it will reduce student absenteeism, which will ensure that they do not miss any school activities.

Initiating Partnership Programs Between High Schools and Universities

A partnership program is a preparedness program that the Latino and other students can benefit in several ways. Wang (2017) argue that these collaborative programs guarantee more admission slots in the university for students who complete high schools. Once these Universities increase their intake from public school with Latino students, they significantly increase their probability of pursuing higher education.

In addition to that, collaborative partnerships create avenues for the Latino students to get early college exposure. The high school- university interaction can motivate the Latino students since back at home they have very few people to look up to regarding academic success (Vega et al., 2015). By giving the students to experience college life increases their drive to work harder because they will have a vision of one day to enrolling in these universities.

These programs provide an excellent opportunity for the high schools to share resources available at the university. Vega et al. (2015) observe that students post a significant improvement in math and science after two years of partnerships. The academic excellence in these science subjects can be attributed to the fact that the students will have access to better laboratory facilities and more experienced technicians. That will be a major boost to the overall performance of Latino students since they are average performers when it comes to science subjects (Cholewa et al., 2014)

Conclusion

It is evident that the Latino students experience several challenges in their pursuit of academic excellence in the United States. Some of the obstacles affecting them include language barrier, cultural differences, and the associated discrimination, low parent involvement in the students’ academic lives and financial constraints. Despite the fact that it is impossible for each student to be taught based on race or social status, schools that enroll Latino students can help the students achieve their goal by creating a conducive learning environment. Some possible solutions to barriers to education include adopting a bilingual teaching model, training all teachers to be culturally sensitive and initiating programs that ensure their parents are actively involved in their academics. These solutions will go a long way in helping the United States to achieve its educational goals.

References

Ceballo, R., Maurizi, L. K., Suarez, G. A., & Aretakis, M. T. (2014). Gift and sacrifice: Parental involvement in Latino adolescents’ education. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 20(1), 116.

Cholewa, B., Goodman, R. D., West-Olatunji, C., & Amatea, E. (2014). A qualitative examination of the impact of culturally responsive educational practices on the psychological well-being of students of color. The Urban Review, 46(4), 574-596.

Crosnoe, R., Ansari, A., Purtell, K. M., & Wu, N. (2016). Latin American Immigration, Maternal Education, and Approaches to Managing Children’s Schooling in the United States. Journal of Marriage and Family, 78(1), 60-74.

Espinoza-Herold, M., & Gonzalez-Carriedo, R. (2017). Issues in Latino education: Race, school culture, and the politics of academic success. Taylor & Francis.

Gonzalez, L., Borders, L. D., Hines, E., Villalba, J., & Henderson, A. (2013). Parental involvement in children’s education: Considerations for school counselors working with Latino immigrant families. Professional School Counseling, 16(3), 185-193.

Gay, G. (2013). Teaching to and through cultural diversity. Curriculum Inquiry, 43(1), 48-70.

Mehisto, P., & Genesee, F. (2015). Building Bilingual Education Systems. Cambridge University Press.

U.S. Poverty Statistics. (2017). Federal Safety Net. Retrieved 20 November 2017, from http://federalsafetynet.com/us-poverty-statistics.html

Vega, D., Moore III, J. L., & Miranda, A. H. (2015). In their own words: Perceived barriers to achievement by African American and Latino high school students. American Secondary Education, 43(3), 36

Wang, J. (2017). Is the US education system ready for CS for all?. Communications of the ACM, 60(8), 26-28.

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