Leaving Latinas Behind?
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Forward from WEEA Equity Resource Center
ARE AMERICA'S SCHOOLS LEAVING LATINAS BEHIND?
New AAUW Report Identifies Steps to Advance Educational Outcomes
Washington, DC: U.S. schools are not meeting the educational needs of
America's fastest-growing female minority population? Latinas? according to
a
new report released today by the American Association of University Women
(AAUW) Educational Foundation.
This comprehensive report, ¡Si, Se Puede! Yes, We Can: Latinas in School,
reviews the educational (K-12) status and progress of Latinas. It explores
the cultural interaction between America's Hispanic children and the
schools they attend. Authored by Angela B. Ginorio and Michelle Huston, the
report looks at Latinas and how their futures?or "possible selves"?are
influenced by their families, their culture, their peers, their teachers,
and the media.
According to the report, Latinas are lagging behind other racial and ethnic
groups of girls in several key measures of educational achievement and have
not benefited from gender equity to the extent that other groups of girls
have. Analyzing the differences in educational achievement between Latinas
and other groups of girls, the report finds that:
The high school graduation rate for Latinas is lower than for girls in
any other racial or ethnic group.
Latinas are less likely to take the SAT exam than their White or Asian
counterparts, and those who do score lower on average than those
groups of girls.
Compared with their female peers, Latinas are under-enrolled in Gifted
and Talented Education (GATE) courses and underrepresented in AP
courses.
Latinas are the least likely of any group of women to complete a
bachelor's degree.
Although Latinas fare worse than other racial and ethnic groups of girls on
most measures of educational performance, they perform better than their
male peers on many measures. In reviewing educational data comparing
Latinas to Latinos, the report finds that:
In the fourth grade, Latinas score higher than Latinos in reading and
history; by eighth grade, they score higher in mathematics and
reading; and by the 12(superscript: th) grade, they score higher in
science and reading.
Latinas outnumber Latinos in taking the SAT exam (58 percent to 42
percent in 1999), yet score lower than Latinos who do take the exam on
both the math and verbal section. The gender gap among Hispanics is
greater than among any other group.
Latinas take the same number of or more AP exams than Latinos, but
score lower in AP math and science exams.
Latinas are almost three times less likely to be suspended and less
likely to be referred for special education as Latinos.
The report provides clear and compelling evidence that both Latinas and
Latinos face stereotyping and other obstacles that discourage success in
school. Some obstacles are different for Latinas than for Latinos. Latinas
are three times as likely to fear for their personal safety in school as
other girls. And Latinos are often assumed to be gang members by teachers
and counselors simply because they speak Spanish
The report offers a number of strong recommendations and new approaches:
All adults need to encourage academic success. Latinas need to hear
from all the adults in their lives that college and professional
careers are rewarding options and ones that they can achieve. Advisors
must curtail tendencies to promote gender- and racially stereotyped
careers as well as ensure that Latinas are not under-represented in
college-preparatory classes.
Recruit and train teachers from the Hispanic community so that we can
have educators who can serve as role models and who can better connect
the educational goals of the school to the cultural background of its
students.
Involve the whole family in the process of college preparation.
College requirements need to be demystified and families need to
understand longer-term benefits of attending college even if it means
moving away from home.
Deal meaningfully with stereotypes and societal issues such as teen
pregnancy that impact school performance. This includes offering
childcare and alternative scheduling and therefore recognizing that
being a young mother and a student intent on completing her education
are not incompatible.
The entire report can be found at www.aauw.org, and then find "reports".
Joy Wallace
<joywallace@home.com>
The equity@nici-mc2.org listserv provides a forum for sharing
information about issues, strategies and resources regarding
educational equity. The Equity Forum is sponsored by the
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and is moderated by Joy Wallace (joy@col-ed.org).
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