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Impact of Illegals on Schools

How are students from illegal populations affecting our public schools?

Feb 6, 2007

More illegal students enter our schools each year. What effect is this having on our nation's schools? What about schools and No Child Left Behind?

The Border

Recent news has been focusing on the insecure border between the U.S. and Mexico. How is this situation affecting schools in border states and in illegal immigrant pockets in the U.S.?

Immigrants Are Not New

We have always been a nation of immigrants. I, myself, am the first-born American in our family. Education was very important to my family. Knowing no English when I entered kindergarten, I learned quickly by observing and listening. By the end of kindergarten, I was on equal footing with peers. This was without special tutoring or an ESL program. I brought English into the home. So, when my younger sister went to school, she did not have the same disadvantage. My cousins were similarly successful in school.

Today

In many schools today, the numbers are overwhelming with students who do not speak the language or are several years behind peers. Almost half of the nation's children under the age of five are now minorities and the numbers are growing because minorities are having more children than the average American. These minority students will soon be entering our public schools.

Hispanics are responsible for the largest growth in population in schools. The Midwest is still predominantly white, but California, Texas and Florida have large concentrations of minorities. Some Midwestern states have pockets of highly concentrated Hispanics with whites becoming the "minority."

Minority Differences

We must distinguish between the minority students that are established American citizens, those that have recently arrived legally and those that are illegal. Minority students that are aware of our culture and learn the language are not the main focus of the concern. The students that enter illegally, move frequently and are not motivated to learn the language are of great concern.

Impact on No Child Left Behind

Schools are mandated to have all public school students proficient in reading and math by 2014. Does that include all minority students? Yes. Does it include all illegals? Yes. Does it include those that began school in the U.S. at the age of 12? Yes. There are grave penalties for schools that do not meet educational standards. But, is it fair to punish schools for what could be a "legal" problem?

Many concerns about students in the country illegally are

false identification
arriving long after the school year begins
long vacations
moving frequently
literacy problems (students and parents)
crime
poverty

All of these issues cause stress to young children trying to learn. No Child Left Behind is very unreasonable to expect these students to be proficient. The border issue needs to be resolved.

Read previous articles on Educational Issues.

The copyright of the article Impact of Illegals on Schools in Educational Issues is owned by Barbara Pytel. Permission to republish Impact of Illegals on Schools in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

Comments

Feb 10, 2007 10:00 AM

Barbara Doyen :

Hi, Barb!

This was a fine article and I look forward to hearing more from you about immigrant children in our schools. Unfortunately, this becomes an emotionally-charged issues, instead of a reasoned one, and I look forward to your ideas, particularly since you experienced this yourself and can present a fair and balanced viewpoint.

Dec 19, 2007 9:24 AM

Barbara Pytel :

Living in Iowa, the recent political debates have dealt with immigration with strong words on securing the border to the south. Some states are moving toward not issuing birth certificates unless documentation can be shown that parents are in the country legally. Many of the suggested actions will have a great impact on the town where I live.

Dec 21, 2007 6:47 PM

redback :

It's an interesting discussion and this outsider ponders what is the actual program focus here. The first thoughts to cross my mind is who bears the cost of the education? If what you call "illegals" pay taxes, they are in the same position as the "legals" who are as mobile...the students who underperform for all reasons.

<i>"...Some states are moving toward not issuing birth certificates unless documentation can be shown that parents are in the country legally...."</i>

Where I live...Australia...no State can issue a birth certificate UNLESS the person was born in that State. Proof of age comes from all the other documents eg passport or birth certificate issued by the country of birth. Similarly, proof of citizenship or permanent residency documents are needed as tourists etc can't enrol in public schools.

If an "illegal" adult criminal is intended to have less rights than a "legal" adult criminal, exactly how is that intended to impact on children.

Sometimes a boss spends a lot of money training up an employee only for those skills to be used elsewhere by another company or country. Who needs to benefit from the education these "illegal" kids need to be getting from some education system?

Dec 27, 2007 6:37 AM

Barbara Pytel :

You bring up some good points. The Heritage Foundation has done a study on the economic impact of illegals. It has determined that large pockets of illegals have a negative impact on the community. Iowa is covered with political candidates over the past few months and it is no surprise that illegal immigration is one of the main topics.

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