Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - 12

N.J. District Bucks the Trend, Draws Latinos to Preschools
nationally, children born into Hispanic families are less likely than other children to enroll in preschool—but that’s not so in Perth amboy
By Lesli a. Maxwell
hen the 2012-13 school year opens in this small industrial city on the Raritan Bay across from Staten Island, N.Y., nearly every new kindergartner will be a graduate of the local school district’s public preschool program. In a city where 90 percent of public school students are Latino, and 61 percent qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, Perth Amboy has achieved something few communities with a majority-Hispanic student population have: a nearly perfect record for enrolling every eligible 4-year-old and many 3-year-olds in one of its preschool classrooms. In 2011-12, nearly 1,500 children took part in the 10,500-student school system’s early-childhood program. “The difference between how these kids come to us as 3-yearolds, oftentimes only speaking Spanish, and how they leave us as kindergarten-ready 5-year-olds is amazing,” says Mary Jo Sperlazza, the supervisor of early-childhood programs in the Perth Amboy district. “We really focus on developing their oral language and other skills they need to be independent.” That early jump on schooling has been a cornerstone of this city’s strategy for the past decade to boost student achievement districtwide. And it is part of a broader, New Jersey-

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Perth Amboy, N.J.

wide effort to close the achievement gaps that exist between poor students and their affluent peers before they even enter kindergarten. But nationally, children born into Latino families are less likely than their peers in other ethnic groups to take part in early-childhood programs that are designed to prepare youngsters in the knowledge and skills they need for school. That difference has far-reaching implications for Latinos’ later academic success, early-childhood experts say. “One of the main benefits of preschool that many Latino children lose out on is the exposure they would get to the types of expectations that they will find once they are in school,” says Luisiana Meléndez, a clinical assistant professor at the Chicago-based Erikson Institute, a graduate school focused exclusively on child development. “It’s extremely helpful to all children who come from outside the mainstream culture to learn the culture of school and what kinds of behaviors are appropriate.”

Early-Years Gap
Even though their presence in preschools has been on the uptick in recent years—owing in large part to the expansion of states’ public prekindergarten programs—Latino children still remain the least likely of the major ethnic and racial groups to be in early-childhood classrooms, es-

12

education week | June 7, 2012

emile wamsteker for education week



Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012

Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012
Table of Contents
Latinos’ School Success: A Work in Progress
A ‘Demographic Imperative’: Raising Latinos’ Achievement
Mexico
Immigration Law Casts Shadow Over Schooling in Alabama
Puerto Rico
N.J. District Bucks the Trend, Draws Latinos to Preschools
El Salvador
College Remains Elusive Goal For Many Latino Students
Dominican Republic
Special Barriers Can Constrain Latinas’ Educational Progress
Cuba
Miami-Dade Educators’ Advice to Districts: Embrace Diversity
Guatemala
Graduation Rate Keeps Climbing; Strong Gains for Latino Students
Graduation in the United States
As New Federal Rules Kick In On Graduation Rates, States Change Their Calculations
A Focus on Latinos
Graduation Policies For the Class of 2012
Sources and Notes
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - Cover2
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - Table of Contents
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - Latinos’ School Success: A Work in Progress
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - 3
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - A ‘Demographic Imperative’: Raising Latinos’ Achievement
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - Mexico
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - 6
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - 7
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - Immigration Law Casts Shadow Over Schooling in Alabama
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - 9
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - Puerto Rico
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - 11
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - N.J. District Bucks the Trend, Draws Latinos to Preschools
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - El Salvador
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - 14
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - 15
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - College Remains Elusive Goal For Many Latino Students
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - 17
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - 18
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - Dominican Republic
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - Special Barriers Can Constrain Latinas’ Educational Progress
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - Cuba
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - Miami-Dade Educators’ Advice to Districts: Embrace Diversity
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - 23
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - Guatemala
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - Graduation Rate Keeps Climbing; Strong Gains for Latino Students
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - Graduation in the United States
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - As New Federal Rules Kick In On Graduation Rates, States Change Their Calculations
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - A Focus on Latinos
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - 29
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - Graduation Policies For the Class of 2012
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - 31
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - Sources and Notes
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - Cover3
Diplomas Count - Issue 34, 2012 - Cover4
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