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-------- ACHIEVEMENT INDICATORS -------- International Achievement in Mathematics and Science Reading Achievement Mathematics Achievement -------- OTHER INDICATORS -------- Dropout Rates Public School Revenues and Expenditures School Crime and Safety High School Transcripts, 2005 Bachelor's Degree Recipients, 10 Years Later -------- PAST INDICATORS -------- Dropout Rates, 2005 International Performance of U.S. 15-Year-Old Students in Science and Mathematics Literacy Public School Revenues and Expenditures Mathematics Achievement Reading Achievement Dropout Rates Computer and Internet Use High School Career and Technical Education (CTE) Students Food and Exercise in Elementary Schools Trends in Adult Literacy First Generation Students in Postsecondary Education Mathematics Achievement Reading Achievement The High School Senior Class of 2004 Trends in Academic Progress Dropout Rates 2002 Dual Credit in U.S. Public High Schools Gender Differences in Postsecondary Education School Crime and Safety, 2002 International Comparisons in Science and Math Trends in Education Equity of Girls and Women Full-day and Half-day Kindergarten Reading Achievement Mathematics Achievement Dropout Rate 2001 Trends in Academic Progress International Comparisons in Reading Literacy Postsecondary Enrollment of Language Minorities Volunteer Service Civics Achievement Geography Achievement History Achievement Science Achievement Writing Achievement The High School Transcript Study Postsecondary Remedial Education Student Victimization Out-of-Field Teaching Postsecondary Attainment School Crime and Safety, 2001 Internet Access

Postsecondary Enrollment of Language Minorities

Changes in English Language Use

The number of Americans speaking a language other than English at home has more than doubled since 1979. While there was no detectable change in the proportion of language minorities¹ among those of traditional postsecondary school age (18- to 24-year-olds) between 1989 and 1992, the proportion began to increase after 1992 (figure 1). The percentage of these young adults speaking languages other than English increased from 15 percent in 1992 to 19 percent in 1999.

Figure 1. Percentage of 18- to 24-year-olds who spoke a language other than English at home: Selected years: 1979–1999

SOURCE: Figure 4 in U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. Language Minorities and Their Educational and Labor Market Indicators–Recent Trends, NCES 2004–009, by Steven Klein, Rosio Bugarin, Renee Beltranena, and Edith McArthur. Washington, DC: 2004.

Postsecondary Enrollment Status

Young adults who spoke English at home were more likely than those speaking other languages to be enrolled in a postsecondary institution in 1999 (37 percent vs. 28 percent) (table 1). However, there were no detectable differences between the enrollment of language minorities who spoke English very well and those speaking only English at home (38 percent and 37 percent, respectively). Among high school completers, there were no detectable differences between language minority 18- to 24- year-olds and those who spoke only English at home to be enrolled in college in 1999 (43 percent and 44 percent, respectively) (table 2). However, among high school completers, language minorities who spoke English very well were more likely than their counterparts who spoke English with difficulty to be enrolled in postsecondary education (49 percent vs. 29 percent). Furthermore, among high school completers, language minorities who spoke English very well were slightly more likely than those who spoke only English at home to be enrolled (49 percent vs. 44 percent).

As table 2 shows, the language that 18- to 24-year-old high school completers spoke at home may be associated with whether they were enrolled in postsecondary education in 1999. Specifically, among high school graduates, those who spoke an Asian language at home were more likely than those who spoke either Spanish or those who spoke only English at home to be enrolled in postsecondary education (65 percent vs. 35 and 44 percent, respectively). Even among those who spoke English with difficulty, Asians were more likely to be enrolled in postsecondary education than other language minority groups (64 percent compared with 17 percent of Spanish speakers and 42 percent of speakers of other non-European languages).²

Table 2. Number of 18- to 24-year olds who had completed high school, and percentage distribution according to postsecondary enrollment status, by language

		Enrollment status
Language characteristics	Total number (in thousands)	Percent enrolled in college (percent)	Percent not enrolled in college (percent)
Total	21,179	43.5	56.5
Spoke only English at home	17,978	43.6	56.4
Spoke other language at home	3,200	43.1	56.9
English-speaking ability
Spoke English "very well"	2,304	48.7	51.3
Spoke English with difficulty	897	28.7	71.3
Language spoken at home
Spanish	2,012	35.3	64.7
Asian	468	64.7	35.3
Other European	309	55.3	44.7
Other non-European	412	47.5	52.5
Spoke English "very well"
Language spoken at home
Spanish	1,451	42.4	57.6
Asian	355	65.0	35.0
Other European	207	63.0	37.0
Other non-European	291	49.9	50.1
Spoke English with difficulty
Language spoken at home
Spanish	561	16.8	83.2
Asian	113	64.0	36.0
Other European	101	39.5	60.5
Other non-European	121	41.8	58.2

NOTE: Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding. High school completers include those who completed high school by means of an equivalency test such as the GED.

SOURCE: Table 13 in U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. Language Minorities and Their Educational and Labor Market Indicators–Recent Trends, NCES 2004–009, by Steven Klein, Rosio Bugarin, Renee Beltranena, and Edith McArthur. Washington, DC: 2004.

¹ Language minorities are defined as individuals who speak a language other than English at home.

² Please see Appendix C: Survey Methodology and Data Reliability of Language Minorities and Their Educational and Labor Market Indicators–Recent Trends for a discussion of issues of potential bias. Scroll down to Appendix C on page 63.

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