Born in the U.S.A.: English Language Learners

Most educators agree that language acquisition is the key to individual students’ educational success and to the nation’s future economic prosperity. Developing English language skills, however, is a challenge for a significant number of American students. More than one in ten of all preK-12 students in the U.S.—totaling over 5.3 million children—are English Language Learners, yet common assumptions about this rapidly expanding population are often incorrect. The majority of these youngsters are not immigrants: over 75 percent of elementary students classified as English Language Learners were born in the U.S. Although the largest groups are in California, Texas, New York, Florida, and Arizona, English Language Learners are a growing presence throughout the country, with the fastest growing populations in South Carolina, Indiana, Nevada, Arkansas, North Carolina, Virginia and Delaware. And many of America’s schools are not yet able to serve these millions of students effectively, according to a new report, Investing in Our Next Generation. Carnegie Corporation supported the Grantmakers for Education briefing “Addressing the Educational Opportunities and Challenges Facing English Language Learners” upon which much of the report is based. Investing in Our Next Generation is a clarion call to grantmakers, educators, business leaders, policymakers and others to expand their collective efforts to improve learning outcomes for English Language Learners to ensure that all members of the next generation of Americans has the academic skills to succeed.