Report: Federal law could force schools to change language programs

[Harold F. Schiffman]

>>From the San Jose Mercury News,  Posted on Sat, Oct. 01, 2005

Report: Federal law could force schools to change language programs

JULIET WILLIAMS
Associated Press

SACRAMENTO - The No Child Left Behind Act offers new opportunities for
immigrant children and those whose first language is not English to learn
the language more quickly, but it poses extra challenges for school
districts trying to keep up, according to a new national study. Nearly
half of California's public school students are children of immigrants -
by far the highest percentage of any state, the Washington, D.C.-based
Urban Institute reported in its study "The New Demography of America's
Schools: Immigration and the No Child Left Behind Act."

That law holds schools accountable for student performance, including
English proficiency. It also requires districts to separately report test
scores for minority students, poor children and those with limited
English. The report, which used data from the 2000 U.S. Census Bureau to
track the number of children who are immigrants or children of immigrants,
said those reporting requirements may force schools to alter their
language programs to focus more on rapid English acquisition, meaning more
English-only programs. Since limited English proficiency students will be
required to learn the same material and pass the same tests as other
students, the law could better integrate their learning with that of other
children, the study's authors wrote in the report released Friday.

The Urban Institute is a nonprofit economic and social policy research
group. A companion study noted that nearly 70 percent of the country's
students with limited English are enrolled in just 10 percent of public
schools, usually in poorer, urban areas. "Children of immigrants often
fall into several of NCLB's protected groups of students. As a result,
schools enrolling large numbers of these children are disproportionately
missing the law's performance targets,"  said the report.

In California, schools can apply to the state Department of Education for
special grants to help educate immigrant students. In 2004-05, the
department gave out more than $18 million in such grants to local
educational agencies, according to its Web site. The Urban Institute
report cautioned that the standardized tests the NCLB law relies on could
also fail to provide individualized attention to children who need it
most. "Its emphasis on testing may narrow the focus to subjects covered by
the standardized tests, especially in schools that have difficulty meeting
their performance targets," the report said.

Schools that fail to make annual progress on improving test scores face
increasing levels of sanctions under the federal law, including being
forced to offer transfers or tutors. In California, schools are required
to give parents even more detailed school-level information. A law signed
this week by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger adds a requirement that schools
provide information about the average teacher's salary and training, which
he said Saturday is another opportunity for parents and taxpayers to see
how schools are spending tax money. "That will train the money manager at
your child's school how to ensure that every dollar is spent responsibly,"
he said in his weekly radio address.

He also touted bills he signed this week that will free up more funding
for charter schools and will improve technical education.


Urban Institute: http://www.urban.org
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/breaking_news/12794214.htm