DATA released by US Census Bureau this month showed nearly 5 percent of American families, or around 14 million people, speak little or no English, AFD has reported. This marked a rise of about 8 million since 2000 who don’t speak English at home. The data also showed that nearly one in five (19.7 percent) US citizens over the age of 5 speaks a language other than English at home, compared to 17.9 percent in 2000.
According to the US Census of 2000, approximately 18 percent of the nation spoke a language other than English at home. This represented an increase of 5 percent since 1990.
The increasing numbers of speakers of other languages in the US is of concern to many public servants, especially educators, who hold that language barriers mean added pressure for schools.
In Murrieta, a city in California, the rise in the number of people who speak a foreign language at home is reflected in classrooms. The number of students learning English increased by more than 300 percent from 2002 to 2006. “That’s very significant,” school district spokeswoman Karen Parris said, “If you have a large number struggling with English, it affects their other studies. And those students also need more support and intervention.” In North County, the Oceanside Unified School District has taught all classes in English for about a decade. “Our goal is to get them using English as soon as possible,” said District Superintendent Larry Perondi. “The best way to become proficient is to use it and write it and hear it.”
More adults are also learning English in Oceanside. Two years ago, about 500 adults took English classes offered by the school district. This year, that number is about 800.
