Published time: August 12, 2014 00:43
This autumn, the majority of students in public schools across the United States will be non-white for the first time in American history.
The new data comes courtesy of the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), which estimates that 49.8 percent of all American students this coming school year will be non-Hispanic white students. At just under 50 percent, white students will still be the biggest racial group represented in US schools, but they will no longer make up the majority of all students in the country.
According to the Associated Press, the NCES projects that nearly 25 percent of minority students will be Hispanic, while 15 percent will be black and another five percent Asian. Biracial and Native American students will make up the rest of the minority stake in schools.
The news comes as the US population in general continues to undergo significant racial and ethnic changes. The US Census Bureau projects that minorities will make up a greater share of the US citizenry than whites by 2043, partially thanks to the fact that birth rates are going down or staying the same for whites – as well as for African Americans and Asians – while climbing higher for Hispanics.
[...]
More diverse schools will also highlight another problem in the US, since an earlier report found that segregated institutions are making something of a comeback. As RT reported back in May, only 23 percent of African American students attend schools that are majority white – the lowest percentage since 1968. More than 50 percent of Latino students attend majority Latino schools. According to researchers at the Civil Rights Project at UCLA, many of the gains made during integration have been reversed.
That report followed one by the Annie E. Case Foundation, which stated that black, Native American, and Hispanic children still face the most barriers to success. Currently, about 25 percent of Hispanic and African American families live under the poverty line, with an annual income of $24,000 or less. The report found that barriers for these minority groups exist at birth and only widen afterwards.
Noting that future US schools will be composed largely of minorities, the Casey Foundation’s Laura Speer said it is integral to America’s future that these children do not fall behind.
“The kids of color in our country are absolutely critical to the future success of the United States,” she said. “They are going to be the majority of our work force and we can’t afford to lose the talent they have and could have in the future behind. We need them to be successful.”
EXTRACTS ONLY - FULL @ SOURCE
No comments:
Post a Comment