Trina Silva

Literacy as the Latino Immigrant’s Pathway to Assimilation

Many immigrants desire to come to America to achieve the dreams of freedom and success. Literacy is one of the key components for the path toward achieving the “American Dream.”  This includes learning to speak, read and write the language. Literacy is one of the most fundamental ways to assimilate with the dominant culture. While some immigrants have the English language mastered due to colonization in their home country or through education, the majority of Latino immigrants have the disadvantage of knowing very little to no English, which makes transitioning into a new country even more difficult. With programs specifically funded for English Second Language (ESL) learners, under-represented and first generation college students, there is hope given to the Latino immigrant that success can be achieved through education.  

Lack of English proficiency causes many Latino immigrants to not be able to achieve the same level of success as other immigrants that are more proficient in the language. 65% of Latino-Americans (ages five and up) speak English very well compared to 91% of the total U.S. population (www.pewhispanic.org). As Latino immigrants assimilate into the dominant culture there begins to be a disconnect among the generations. For example, my grandmother did not speak English, her children spoke both English and Spanish and most of her grandchildren spoke only English; because of this many of her grandchildren never had a simple conversation with her. For this reason one can see why a Latino immigrant would want to or need to hold on to the Spanish language.  In “Latino Lives in America” the importance of learning English is emphasized:

“English proficiency is widely considered to be part of the most important aspect of cultural adaptation. If Immigrants are to be successful outside of their ethnic enclaves, but immigrants may also value the retention of their native languages” (Fraga, et al., 42).

According to Fraga’s Latino National Survey, first generation Americans found it almost equally important to learn English (94.5%) and retain Spanish (90%) compared to fourth-generation Americans where 85.7% found it extremely important to learn English and 73.9% to retain Spanish. The “land bridge” that connects Mexico and the United States also creates an obstacle for Latinos to assimilate because new waves of immigrants continually enter and the Spanish language is constantly used amongst the recent and not-so-recent immigrants.  Latino immigrants also realize the financial value of being bilingual in a country where Spanish is the second most common language spoken with over 35 million speakers (www.census.gov).  Many jobs seek bilingual employees and pay more generously for those positions. In an effort to promote the English language among immigrants 31 states have passed laws making English the official language; Texas, however, has not chosen to name English as its official language.  To encourage literacy among immigrants who are not native English speakers some organizations provide basic English classes at no cost; however, it is up to the immigrant to seek out the available resources. Seeking out the sources that available can prove to be an obstacle for someone who is new to the country and does not know who to talk to or where to start looking. The Houston Center for Literacy (www.houread.org) provides links to places providing ESL classes throughout the metro area for those desiring to learn English.

While most Latinos primarily came to the United States to find work, there is the exception of a few who originally came to further their education (Fraga, et al., 33), in a study highlighted in “Latino Lives in America” it is voiced by the Latin immigrants in the focus group that education is important to them. Many expressed concerns about the quality of education in their school districts and expressed their desires for their children or grandchildren to attain higher education. An issue among Latinos is the high levels of dropout rates and low levels of attainment of education (Saenz & Murga, 51).  According to the National Center for Education Statistics, Latinos have had the highest dropout rates for over 30 years in comparison to other ethnic groups.  In 2009 it was recorded that 17.8% of Latinos dropped out of school. The desire for a better education is conveyed but is failing to become a realization in many cases in contrast to other racial/ethnic groups.  In an effort to help younger Latino immigrants transition into American public schools there are bilingual classes or grant funded programs such as the TRIO Programs that help students realize their full potential as a student.  The TRIO programs are federal programs that assist underrepresented students who are from low income households and/or first generation college students with mostly pre-college studies. These programs provide mentors, assistance with literature, math and science, choosing and applying to college, etc. These programs have a large number of Latinos in them since many of them come from low income families and will be first generation college students. In the four years I spent recruiting for a university in Dallas I mentored a student in a TRIO Program at an inner city DISD high school; this included emailing back and forth about aspirations and inspirations, attending field trips and eating lunch together. Many of the students were inspired to meet someone who looked like them who attended college and had a career; this provided a push for them to want it for themselves. Higher education is engrained in students' lives from an early age, some students as young as kindergarten; schools are taking initiative to promote higher education in schools by having college days where recruiters speak to students about going to college, teachers decorate in their school colors and encourage students to wear college paraphernalia. Attending a college, university or technical school is what the dominant culture views as the next step after graduating high school, however only 14% of Latinos over the age of 25 were estimated to have either a bachelors degree of higher according to the 2011 census.

In conclusion, while literacy and education is recognized by Latinos as a way to assimilate with the dominant culture, many still hold on to some of their cultural values and differences from the homeland. In “Challenging Fronteras” it is said that:

“Hispanics having more ‘successful’ integration experiences are more likely to maintain a symbolic connection to their ethnic  heritage, as manifested by the continued observance of holidays, the revival of ethnic foods, the practice of cultural rituals, etc., while in the areas of occupation, education, language and residence they increasingly model Anglos”  (Romero, et al., 11).

This assessment is one that I relate to and I am sure many assimilating Latino immigrants in the United States do as well. Latinos want to attain that “American Dream” of being successful without losing their identity as a Latino completely.

Works Cited

1. Fraga, Luis Ricardo, et al. Latino Lives in America: Making it Home. Philadelphia: Templeton University Press, 2010. Print.

2. Murga, Aurelia Lorena and Saenz, Rogelio. Latino Issues. Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO, LLC, 2011. Print.

3. Romero, Mary, et al. Challenging Fronteras: Structuring Latina and Latino Lives in the U.S. New York: Routledge, 1997. Print.

4.  www.houread.org   

5.  www.us-english.org

6. www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/trio/index.html

7. http://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=16

8. http://www.pewhispanic.org/2012/06/27/iv-english-proficiency-and-citizenship/