Why Latinos Children Are Failing in Education?

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Recommended: Language development impacts cognitive development

According with Jean Piaget whose theory on child development has been a great influence in education; language development is the most important phase during the Preoperational stage of cognitive development. During this stage children develop and build up their knowledge and vocabulary by asking questions and expressing ideas through words, images and drawings. This stage is considerate to happen from two years of to seven years of age (Kendra Cherry). Language development has direct implications in the intellectual development of a child, and it is one of the main tools to develop our thinking process. We use words to store and access memories or other information. For Latinos children and especially recent arrivals whose language is Spanish entering to school where their primary language (Mother tongue) has no validation neither use may be traumatic and even hinder their future opportunities to succeed in a school system that is complete foreign in concept and in language. In order to integrate and create opportunities for the Latino students to succeed the in the educational system we must create programs that address the specific needs of the Latino community such as bilingual education where students learn to speak, read and write in their mother tongue language first.

Communication skills are crucial not only in the learning process but also forging social interactions with others because language helps to express ideas and understand someone else ideas. Children with limited language abilities may have difficulties developing reasoning skills and acquire new concepts. Latino students need to develop strong literacy skills in their own language before they are introduce to a second language. Learning in their own lang...

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Oyler, Dianne. “Re-Inventing Oral Tradition: The Modern Epic of Souleymane Kante” Indiana University Press. 2002. Literature Resource center. Project Muse. LaGuardia Community Coll. Lib., Long Island City, NY. 22 Sep. 2008

http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/research_in_african_literature/v033/33.loyler.html

Blain, Sue. “Multilingualism`masks deficient teachiong of reading`.” Business Day (south Africa). 26 Jun. 2007. 22 Sep. 2008

http://www.lexisnexis.com.rpa.laguardia.edu:2048/us/Inacademic/deli...

Cope, Bill, and Mary Kalantzis. Multiliteracies,Literacy learning and the design of social futures. New London Group: London and New York, 1997.

Reyes, Luis. “The benefits of Bilingual Education for English Language Learners.”

NYSUT News Wire. 26 Oct. 2007. 8 Feb. 2008

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