NATIONAL CENTER FOR EDUCATION STATISTICS

U.S. Department of Education

Office of Educational Research and Improvement NCES 95-767

Findings from

THE CONDITION OF EDUCATION 1995

THE EDUCATIONAL

PROGRESS OF

HISPANIC STUDENTS

NO.

4
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

Richard W. Riley

Secretary

OFFICE OF EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH AND IMPROVEMENT

Sharon P. Robinson

Assistant Secretary

NATIONAL CENTER FOR EDUCATION STATISTICS

Jeanne E. Griffith

Acting Commissioner

NATIONAL CENTER FOR EDUCATION STATISTICS

The purpose of the Center is to collect and report “. . . statistics and

information showing the condition and progress of education in

the United States and other nations in order to promote and accelerate the improvement of American education.”—Section 402(b) of

the National Education Statistics Act of 1994 (20 U.S.C. 9001).

September 1995

The text in this booklet was written by Thomas M. Smith of the Data

Development Division of NCES and appears in The Condition of

Education, 1995. Steven G. Klein of MPR Associates, Inc. adapted the

content to this format, Andrea Livingston and Karen Singson edited the

text, and Leslie Retallick and Lynn Sally designed the graphics and layout.
Education has always been seen as one means of upward mobility,

especially for those who are socially and economically disadvantaged. Hispanic children are likely to be at an educational disadvantage relative to whites for several reasons, including a greater likelihood of living in poverty and lower average levels of parental education.1 A larger percentage of Hispanic students also attend disadvantaged schools where the overall academic and supporting environments are less conducive to learning.2 In addition, a much higher

proportion of Hispanics than non-Hispanics are foreign born, meaning that Hispanic children are less likely to hear or speak English at

home and are more likely to have limited English proficiency. 

Although limited data availability often leads researchers to treat

Hispanics as if they were a homogeneous group, the U.S. Hispanic

population is diverse. The three largest Hispanic subgroups are

Mexican Americans, Puerto Ricans, and Cubans. Recent immigrants

from Central and South America constitute a fourth group. These

subgroups are concentrated in different parts of the United States,

their economic circumstances vary, and the timing of their immigration differs. In this fourth publication in the series of Findings

from The Condition of Education, overall trends for the U.S.

Hispanic population are provided, with breakouts for the largest

Hispanic subpopulations where data permit.

Both Hispanics and whites have made important educational gains

over the past two decades (see, for example, No. 1 in this series, “High

School Students Ten Years After A Nation At Risk”). In many regards,

however, Hispanics trail their white counterparts with respect to

educational access, achievement, and attainment, although some of

these differences have narrowed over time. Outlined below are some

examples of the educational differences between Hispanics and

whites with respect to preschool attendance, demographics, academic

achievement, dropout rates, school climate, parental involvement,

course-taking patterns, educational aspirations, college attendance

and completion, labor market outcomes, and adult literacy levels.

THE EDUCATIONAL PROGRESS

OF HISPANIC STUDENTS

1
• Hispanic children start elementary school

with less preschool experience than white

children, and this gap has widened over time.

Hispanic and white children differ greatly in their extent of participation in education before kindergarten. Several federal programs, such as Head Start, a popular program for disadvantaged

preschoolers, were launched to give children from low-income

families an early start in education. Yet, despite these programs,

fewer Hispanic children are enrolled in preschool than white

children, and the gap has widened over time. In 1993, 17 percent

of Hispanic 3- and 4-year-olds were in preschool programs

compared to 38 percent of white children. Since the mid-1970s,

white enrollment rates in preschool have increased more than

10 percentage points, while Hispanic enrollment rates have fluctuated, with the rate in 1993 approximating that in 1973.

3- and 4-year-olds 

enrolled in prekindergarten

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the

Census, October Current Population Surveys.

2

PRESCHOOL ATTENDANCE

20

25

30

35

40

45

Percent

15

10

‘73 ‘77 ‘89 ‘93

Hispanic

White

5

0

‘81 ‘85

17%

38%
• Hispanic children are the fastest growing

ethnic group in public schools.

The percentage of students in elementary and secondary public

schools who are Hispanic has doubled over the last two

decades. Enrollment of Hispanic students increased from less

than 6 percent of total public enrollment in 1973 to nearly 12

percent in 1993. This demographic change has been most pronounced in central cities and other metropolitan areas. 

Percentage of public school students who are Hispanic

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the

Census, October Current Population Surveys.

Furthermore, the ethnic isolation of Hispanic students has risen.

For example, between 1968 and 1992, the percentage of Hispanic

students attending schools that were 90–100 percent minority

increased from 23 to 34 percent.3

ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION

DEMOGRAPHICS

1973

5

4 4

1983 1993

Other metropolitan

Central cities

Nonmetropolitan

10

4

10

8

22

18

3
• Although gaps in the academic performance

of Hispanic and white students appear as

early as age 9 and persist through age 17,

some of these gaps have narrowed over time. 

As early as age 9, differences can be seen in the academic performance of Hispanic and white students. Academic proficiency in

reading, mathematics, and science, as measured at age 9 by the

National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), is lower

for Hispanic children than for white children. Although scores

for Hispanic 9-year-olds have increased in mathematics and science over the past 15–20 years, there has been little change in the

gap between the scores of white and Hispanic 9-year-olds over

this time period.

Hispanic-white gaps in reading, mathematics, 

and science for 9-year-olds 

(in scale points)

SOURCE: NCES, National Assessment of Educational Progress.

Although the achievement gap between Hispanic and white

13-year-olds has narrowed greatly in mathematics and science

since the late 1970s, a large gap remains in these subjects, as well

as in reading. For example, in 1992, the average mathematics

proficiency scores of Hispanic 13-year-olds fell about midway 

4

Math

21 22 23

1978 1986 1992

Reading

30

26

1975 1984 1992

Science

38

32 34

1977 1986 1992

34

ACHIEVEMENT
between the average proficiency scores of white 9- and 13-yearolds. This gap suggests that, on average, Hispanic children’s

level of math skills may be as much as 2 years behind that of

their white peers by age 13—a deficiency that they will carry

with them into high school. The size of the gap was similar in

reading and was even larger in science, with Hispanic 13-yearolds scoring at about the same level as white 9-year-olds.

Average proficiency scores

Subject White Hispanic

and year Age 9 Age 13 Age 17 Age 9 Age 13 Age 17

Reading

1975 217 262 293 183 232 252

1984 218 263 295 187 240 268

1992 218 266 297 192 239 271

Mathematics

1978 224 272 306 203 238 276

1986 227 274 308 205 254 283

1992 235 279 312 212 259 292

Science

1977 230 256 298 192 213 262

1986 232 259 298 199 226 259

1992 239 267 304 205 238 270

SOURCE: NCES, National Assessment of Educational Progress.

At age 17, NAEP scores indicate a large gap in reading, mathematics, and science achievement between whites and Hispanics.

The Hispanic-white gap in reading and mathematics, however,

has narrowed over time. For example, in 1975, average reading

proficiency among Hispanics at age 17 was well below that of

17-year-old whites, and even below that of 13-year-old whites.

In 1992, the proficiency gap had fallen by one-third, such that

17-year-old Hispanics were now reading at about the same level

as that of 13-year-old whites. Most of these gains in reading

were made by 1984, however. While the gap between the mathematics scores of Hispanic and white 17-year-olds also remains

large, Hispanic students continue to make proficiency gains.

5
• Dropout rates among Hispanic

high school students are declining.

Although the dropout rate is still considered high by many educators, the 10th- to 12th-grade dropout rate among Hispanics

was substantially lower in 1992 than it was a decade earlier.4

However, dropout rates for Hispanics are still much higher than

for whites. The reasons that both Hispanics and whites gave for

leaving school were more often school-related than job- or family-related concerns. Three out of 10 Hispanic female dropouts

reported leaving school because they were pregnant, about the

same proportion as white females.5

10th- to 12th-grade dropout rates

SOURCE: NCES, High School and Beyond Study and the

National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988.

With a lower proportion of Hispanic high school students dropping out, one might expect the percentage of 16- to 24-year-old

Hispanics who have not completed high school or earned a GED

(the status dropout rate) to have declined. However, there was

no measurable decline in the status dropout rate for Hispanics

between 1972 and 1992.6 This may be due, in part, to high

dropout rates for Hispanics before 10th grade,7 and high immigration rates for less educated Hispanic young adults who may

never enter U.S. schools.

6

PROGRESS IN SCHOOL

10

1982

Hispanic

White

1992

5

12

19
• Dropping out is strongly related to the length of

time a Hispanic family has lived in the United

States and to the family’s country of origin. 

In 1989, 43 percent of Hispanic 16- to 24-year-olds born outside

the 50 states and the District of Columbia had not completed high

school or earned a GED. The status dropout rates for first-generation and at least second-generation Hispanic Americans were

considerably lower (17 percent and 24 percent, respectively). It

should be noted, however, that Hispanic dropout rates are still

double those of non-Hispanics when the length of residency in

the United States is taken into account. In other words, high status dropout rates among Hispanics are not just a problem associated with recent immigration.8

Status dropout rates among 16- to 24-year-olds: 1989 

Recency of migration Total Hispanic Non-Hispanic

Total 13% 31% 10%

Born outside the 50 states 

and D.C. 29 43 8

First generation 10 17 6

Second generation 

or more 11 24 11

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, November

Current Population Survey, 1989.

Compared to the status dropout rate for all 16- to 24-year-old

Hispanics in 1989, the dropout rates for Mexican Americans and

Puerto Ricans were similar. However, the dropout rates for

Cubans and “other Hispanics” (including Central and South

Americans) were much lower.

7
Status dropout rates for persons aged 16–24

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of

the Census, November Current Population Survey,

1989.

Mexican Americans made up about 64 percent of the Hispanic

population in 1989, and about 74 percent of all Hispanic dropouts

in this age group. Among Mexican Americans born elsewhere,

the dropout rate was 55 percent; this subgroup accounted for

about 48 percent of all Hispanic dropouts.9

• Hispanic seniors are more likely than their

white peers to experience learning disruptions,

but have similar attitudes about discipline and

teaching quality in their schools.

Research indicates that a safe and orderly school environment is

key to effective learning. A student’s achievement can be affected by the degree to which the school maintains such an environment. In 1992, Hispanic seniors were more likely than white

seniors to report that disruptions by other students interfered

with their learning, that fights often occurred between different

8

All

Hispanics

Mexican

Americans

Cubans

Puerto

Ricans

Other

Hispanics

9

32

19

31

36

LEARNING ENVIRONMENT
racial/ethnic groups, and that they did not feel safe at their

school. Furthermore, Hispanics were almost three times as likely

as whites to report that there were many gangs in their school.

Hispanics were no less likely than whites, however, to report

that in their school “discipline is fair,” the “teaching is good,”

and that “teachers are interested in students.”

12th-graders’ attitudes about school climate: 1992

Percent agreeing or strongly

agreeing with statement

Statements about school climate White Hispanic

Teachers are interested 

in students 82 84

Teaching is good 85 89

Discipline is fair 68 75

Disruptions by other students

interfere with my learning 31 40

I don’t feel safe at this school 9 15

Fights often occur between different

racial/ethnic groups 21 32

There are many gangs in school 13 36

SOURCE: NCES, National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988.

• Hispanic-white differences in degree of parental

involvement are not large; however, they do

vary by the type of involvement.

The degree to which parents are involved in their children’s

education is also crucial to effective schooling. Although the

vast majority of eighth-grade students reported in 1988 that they

talked to their parents about school, Hispanic eighth-graders

were slightly less likely than their white peers to talk with their

parents about selecting classes, school activities, or class studies. 

9
Similar percentages of Hispanic and white students had parents

who checked their homework and limited their going out with

friends. Hispanic eighth-graders, however, were more likely

than their white counterparts to report that their parents had

limited their television viewing and that their parents had visited their classes.

Percentage of eighth-graders 

reporting parental involvement: 1988

Type of involvement White Hispanic

Talked about:

selecting classes 87 82

school activities 92 86

class studies 89 84

Checked homework 90 90

Limited TV viewing 63 67

Limited going out with friends 89 89

Spoke with teacher/counselor 59 57

Visited classes 26 34

SOURCE: NCES, National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988.

Parents of both Hispanic and white 12th-grade students in 1992

were equally likely to be contacted by school personnel regarding the academic performance of their child (56 percent and 53

percent, respectively). However, parents of Hispanic children

were less likely to be asked to volunteer at school than white

parents (39 percent and 59 percent, respectively).10

10
• Both Hispanic and white high school graduates

are following a more rigorous curriculum than

they were a decade ago.

Both Hispanic and white graduates of the class of 1992 took, on

average, four more academic courses than did their counterparts

a decade earlier. In 1992, Hispanic and white high school graduates had, on average, earned a similar number of total course

units (24 each) and academic units (17 and 18, respectively).11

Hispanic graduates were, however, less likely than their white

counterparts to have taken the core curriculum (4 units of

English and 3 units each of science, social studies, and mathematics) recommended in A Nation At Risk.12

Percentage of high school graduates taking the number of

courses in English, science, social studies, and mathematics

recommended in A Nation At Risk

SOURCE: NCES, High School and Beyond Transcript Study; 1987 and

1990 NAEP High School Transcript Studies; and National Education

Longitudinal Study Transcripts, 1992.

11

CURRICULUM

1982 1987 1990 1992

41

49

36

7

14

30

18

33

Hispanic

White
• Hispanic high school graduates are less likely

than their white counterparts to take advanced

science and mathematics courses, but are just

as likely to take foreign language courses.

Between 1982 and 1992, the percentage of both Hispanic and

white high school graduates who took advanced mathematics

and science courses increased dramatically. In 1992, Hispanic

graduates were more likely than white graduates to have taken

remedial mathematics, just as likely to have taken Algebra I, and

less likely to have taken geometry, Algebra II, or trigonometry

than were white graduates. Although similar percentages of

Hispanic and white graduates took biology, Hispanics were less

likely to have taken chemistry, physics, or a combination of biology, chemistry, and physics. However, Hispanic college-bound

graduates were just as likely as their white peers to have taken at

least 2 years of a foreign language in high school (72 percent and

75 percent, respectively).13

Percentage of high school graduates 

taking selected courses

Mathematics and 1982 1992

science courses White Hispanic White Hispanic

Remedial mathematics 27.0 48.5 14.6 24.2

Algebra I 84.0 66.8 94.0 92.5

Geometry 53.9 29.0 72.6 62.9

Algebra II 40.5 22.5 59.2 46.9

Trigonometry 13.8 6.8 22.5 15.2

Calculus 5.0 1.6 10.7 4.7

Biology 80.1 73.2 93.5 91.2

Chemistry 34.7 16.7 58.0 42.6

Physics 15.3 5.5 25.9 15.7

Biology, chemistry, and physics 11.2 3.7 22.6 12.8

SOURCE: NCES, High School and Beyond Transcript Study and National

Education Longitudinal Study Transcripts, 1992.

12
• On average, Hispanic students have lower

educational aspirations than white students,

despite having college recommended to

them at similar rates.

In 1990, 14 percent of Hispanic sophomores aspired to a high

school diploma or less, compared to 9 percent of white sophomores. Forty-seven percent of Hispanic sophomores aspired to a

bachelor’s degree or higher, compared to 61 percent of whites.14

Percentage of 1990 high school sophomores for whom 

college attendance was recommended after high school

SOURCE: NCES, National Education Longitudinal Study

of 1988.

Hispanic sophomores in 1990, however, were just as likely as

whites to have teachers and guidance counselors recommend

college attendance. Hispanic sophomores were also about as

likely to have their parents advise them to attend college as their

white counterparts.15

13

Fathers

Mothers

Teachers

Guidance

counselors

78

75

84

65

65

81

65

65

Hispanic

White

EDUCATIONAL ASPIRATIONS
• Although Hispanic students have lower educational aspirations than whites and drop out

at higher rates, the college transition rates for

Hispanic and white high school graduates are

similar.

The percentage of Hispanics enrolling in college in October

following high school graduation was 58 percent in 1992, a difference that is statistically indistinguishable from the college

transition rate for white high school graduates. 

High school graduates enrolled in 

college the October following high school graduation

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the

Census, October Current Population Surveys.

14

‘73 ‘77 ‘82 ‘87 ‘92

White

20

40

60

80

100

0

Percent (3-year average)

Hispanic

ENROLLMENT

POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION
15

Hispanic students accounted for nearly 7 percent of the total

enrollment at colleges and universities in 1992. At 2-year public

colleges, Hispanic students made up nearly 10 percent of total

enrollment, compared to nearly 5 percent at 4-year colleges and

universities.16

• Hispanic and white degree recipients concentrate in different fields of study at both the

associate’s and bachelor’s degree levels.

In 1991, at the associate’s degree level, Hispanic men were

slightly less likely than white men to major in other

technical/professional fields, but were more likely to major in

arts and sciences. Hispanic women were more likely than white

women to earn associate’s degrees in the arts and sciences and

in business, but were less likely to earn degrees in health-related

fields. Between 1987 and 1991, differences in the fields studied

by Hispanics and whites at the associate’s degree level narrowed for men and widened for women.17

At the bachelor’s degree level, in 1991, Hispanics were more

likely than whites to major in social and behavioral sciences

and were less likely to major in technical/professional fields.

Overall, Hispanic-white differences in the fields studied at the

bachelor’s degree level narrowed between 1977 and 1991,

although almost all of the decrease occurred between 1977 and

1985.18
Percentage of 

bachelor’s degrees conferred

1977 1991

Field of study White Hispanic White Hispanic

Total degrees 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0

Humanities and social/

behavioral sciences 33.7 41.6 33.3 36.7

Humanities 16.2 19.0 16.3 17.4

Social/behavioral sciences 17.5 22.6 17.0 19.3

Natural sciences 10.0 8.2 6.2 6.2

Life sciences 5.9 5.3 3.4 4.1

Physical sciences 2.5 1.8 1.5 1.1

Mathematics 1.6 1.2 1.3 1.0

Computer sciences and

engineering 5.8 5.3 8.6 9.7

Computer sciences 0.7 0.5 2.0 2.5

Engineering 5.1 4.8 6.6 7.2

Technical/professional 50.5 44.9 51.8 47.4

Education 15.5 16.3 11.1 9.6

Business and management 16.5 13.9 22.9 21.4

Health sciences 6.4 4.6 5.5 4.7

Other technical/

professional 12.1 10.1 12.3 11.7

SOURCE: NCES, IPEDS/HEGIS surveys of degrees conferred.

16
• Hispanic-white differences in postsecondary

persistence vary by initial degree objective.

Among beginning students whose goal in 1989–90 was a vocational certificate, a lower percentage of Hispanic students had

completed one by early 1992 than had white students (32 versus

53 percent). Among beginning students who sought an associate’s degree, however, Hispanic students were far more likely to

have been continuously enrolled or to have reenrolled after an

interruption in 1992 than their white counterparts (72 versus 53

percent). The persistence rates of Hispanic and white students

pursuing bachelor’s degrees were similar over this period,

although whites were more likely than Hispanics to have been

continuously enrolled.19

• Hispanics are about half as likely as their white

peers to complete 4 years of college, and this gap

has not diminished over time.

Although Hispanics and whites have similar college persistence

rates, young adult Hispanics in general have much lower college attainment rates than do young adult whites. In 1994,

slightly more than one-half of Hispanic high school graduates

25–29 years old had completed at least some college, compared

to nearly two-thirds of their white counterparts. In addition,

about 13 percent of Hispanic high school graduates in this age

group had earned a bachelor’s degree or more, compared to 30

percent of whites. These gaps in the educational attainment

rates of Hispanics and whites did not close between 1971 and

1994.

17

COMPLETION
Percentage of 25- to 29-year-old high school graduates 

completing 1 or more or 4 or more years of college

1 or more years 4 or more years

Year White Hispanic White Hispanic

1971 44.9 30.6 23.1 10.5

1976 53.8 36.3 29.3 12.7

1981 51.2 39.6 26.3 12.5

1986 52.3 42.9 28.1 15.3

1991 54.9 42.2 29.7 16.3

Some college Bachelor’s degree

or more or more

1994 62.7 51.5 29.7 13.3

NOTE: Beginning in 1992, the Current Population Survey changed the questions

it used to obtain the educational attainment of respondents.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, March Current

Population Surveys.

• Hispanics who do complete college take

longer, on average, than do whites. 

Of 1990 college graduates, 60 percent of Hispanic students completed in 5 or fewer years, compared to 72 percent of white students. Taking longer to graduate may result from changing

schools or majors, stopping out, or taking a reduced course load

for financial, academic, or personal reasons. The additional time

in college can be costly to the individual, as it delays entrance

into the full-time labor market.20

Percentage of 1990 college graduates completing the

baccalaureate degree within various years of starting college

Race/ 4 or fewer 5 or fewer 6 or fewer More than

ethnicity years years years 6 years

White 44.4 71.6 81.5 18.5

Hispanic 31.1 60.3 72.9 27.1

SOURCE: NCES, Recent College Graduates surveys.

18
• Baccalaureate degree attainment of Hispanics

varies by sex.

Hispanic women earn substantially more bachelor’s degrees

than Hispanic men, although the number of degrees earned by

both groups has increased since the early 1980s. The number of

degrees earned by Hispanic men increased by 50 percent

between 1981 and 1991, while the number earned by Hispanic

women increased by 86 percent.21 In contrast, the number of

degrees earned by white men increased by 2 percent over the

same time period, while the number earned by white women

increased by 22 percent.

Bachelor’s degrees conferred

(numbers in thousands)

Male Female

Year White Hispanic White Hispanic

1977 438.2 10.3 369.5 8.4

1981 406.2 10.8 401.1 11.0

1985 405.1 12.4 421.0 13.5

1987 406.8 12.9 435.1 14.1

1989 407.1 13.9 452.6 16.0

1991 415.5 16.2 488.6 20.5

SOURCE: NCES, IPEDS/HEGIS surveys of degrees conferred.

• Employment and earnings rates rise with educational attainment for both Hispanics and

whites, but are lower for Hispanics than for

whites with the same amount of education.

19

LABOR MARKET OUTCOMES
In 1992, more than one-half (54 percent) of recent Hispanic high

school graduates not enrolled in college were employed, compared to

slightly less than one-third (29 percent) of Hispanic recent dropouts.

Yet, white graduates not enrolled in college were far more likely

than Hispanic graduates not enrolled in college to be employed.

Employment rates for recent high school graduates not

enrolled in college and for recent high school dropouts

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census,

October Current Population Surveys.

Earnings among 25- to 34-year-old Hispanics, particularly

Hispanic females, show that the incentive to pursue additional

education is sizable. For example, in 1993, Hispanic males with

9–11 years of schooling earned 27 percent less than Hispanic male

high school graduates; those with a bachelor’s degree earned 60

percent more. Hispanic females with 9–11 years of schooling

earned 30 percent less than their counterparts with a high school

diploma; those with a bachelor’s degree earned 82 percent more.22

Between 1981 and 1993, the earnings advantage of completing

college increased for both Hispanics and whites. However,

Hispanic-white differentials in earnings exist at each level of

educational attainment. For example, white male college graduates 25–34 years old earned 23 percent more in 1993 than did

Hispanic male college graduates of the same age; similarly, white

female college graduates 25–34 years old earned 14 percent more

than their Hispanic counterparts over the same period.23

20

Graduates Dropouts

1978 1984 1988 1978 1984 1988 1992

100

80

60

40

20

Percent

0

100

80

60

40

20

Percent

0

1992

White Hispanic White Hispanic
• Hispanics have lower literacy levels than

whites overall and whites with similar levels

of education, but the gaps are smaller for

younger adults than for older ones.

Large gaps exist between the literacy skills of Hispanics and

whites both within and across levels of education. On the

National Adult Literacy Survey, Hispanics scored at levels that

were similar to whites with less education. In 1992, for example,

Hispanics with a 4-year college degree had prose literacy scores

resembling those of whites with a high school diploma. However,

the gap in literacy between Hispanics and whites is less for 16- to

24-year-olds than for 25- to 64-year-olds.24 The differences in the

labor market opportunities of Hispanics and whites noted above

may be related to the differences in the literacy levels of both

groups at similar levels of educational attainment.

Prose literary scores of adults: 1992

SOURCE: NCES, National Adult Literacy Survey, 1992.

21

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

Average

Graduate/

professional

degree

4-year

college

degree

2-year

college

degree

Some

college,

no degree

High

school

diploma

9–12 GED

years, no

diploma

Hispanic

White

0–8

years

0

ADULT LITERACY
In summary, Hispanic children are less likely to be enrolled in

preprimary education. Gaps in reading, mathematics, and science achievement appear at age 9, and persist through age 17,

although some of these gaps have narrowed over time. Hispanic

students are no less likely than white students to have their parents involved in their schooling, although Hispanic students are

in some cases more likely to face a disorderly school environment than their white peers. Both Hispanic and white high

school graduates are following a more rigorous curriculum than

they were a decade ago. Hispanic graduates are less likely, however, to have taken advanced science and mathematics courses

in high school than their white counterparts, but are just as likely to have taken foreign languages. Even though they have

lower educational aspirations than whites, Hispanic students

are about as likely as whites to make the immediate transition

from high school to college. However, educational attainment

levels are lower among Hispanic than white young adults. For

Hispanics, educational attainment is positively associated with

employment and earnings, although earnings and employment

rates are lower for Hispanics than for whites with the same

amount of education. Among adults, Hispanics have lower literacy levels than whites, both in general and at similar levels of

educational attainment.

22

SUMMARY
1Hispanic children are much more likely to experience poverty than

white children. In 1992, 39 percent of Hispanic children lived in

families with an income level below the poverty line, compared to 16

percent of white children. See The Condition of Education, 1994, 132,

based on Current Population Reports, series P-60, “Poverty in the

United States: . . . ,” various years.

2Samuel S. Peng, Dean Wright, and Susan T. Hill. Understanding RacialEthnic Differences in Secondary School Science and Mathematics

Achievement (NCES 95-710). U.S. Department of Education, National

Center for Education Statistics. Washington, D.C.: February 1995.

3U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education

Statistics, Common Core of Data, 1992; and U.S. Department of

Education, Office for Civil Rights, Elementary and Secondary School

Civil Rights Survey, 1968.

4U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education

Statistics. Dropout Rates in the United States: 1993. Washington, D.C.:

1994, table 21.

5Ibid., table 19.

6Ibid., figure 4.

7Hispanics in the 8th-grade class of 1988 were almost twice as likely as

their white counterparts to drop out between 8th and 10th grade: 9.6

and 5.2 percent, respectively. See Dropout Rates in the United States:

1993, table 18.

8Mary Frase. Are Hispanic Dropout Rates Related to Migration? U.S.

Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics.

Washington, D.C.: 1992, table 1. 

9Ibid.

10The Condition of Education, 1995, 353, based on the National Education

Longitudinal Study of 1988.

11The Condition of Education, 1994, 72, based on the High School and

Beyond Transcript Study; 1987 and 1990 NAEP High School Transcript

Studies; and National Education Longitudinal Study Transcripts, 1992.

12The panel’s recommendation of 0.5 units in computer science is not

included in this description.

13The Condition of Education, 1994, 78, based on the High School and

Beyond Transcript Study and National Education Longitudinal Study

Transcripts, 1992.

REFERENCES

23
14U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education

Statistics. America's High School Sophomores: A Ten Year Comparison.

Washington, D.C.: 1993, table 6.1.

15The Condition of Education, 1994, 36, based on America's High School

Sophomores: A Ten Year Comparison; High School and Beyond, 1980; and

National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988 and 1990.

16The Condition of Education, 1995, 139, based on IPEDS/HEGIS surveys

of fall enrollment.

17The Condition of Education, 1994, 84, based on IPEDS/HEGIS surveys

of degrees conferred.

18The Condition of Education, 1994, 86, based on IPEDS/HEGIS surveys

of degrees conferred.

19The Condition of Education, 1994, 42, based on the Beginning

Postsecondary Student Longitudinal Survey, 1992.

20The Condition of Education, 1993, 27, based on Recent College

Graduates surveys.

21The Condition of Education, 1994, 88, based on IPEDS/HEGIS surveys

of degrees conferred. 

22The Condition of Education, 1995, 292–94, based on U.S. Department of

Commerce, Bureau of the Census, March Current Population Surveys.

23Ibid.

24The Condition of Education, 1994, 66, based on Adult Literacy in America:

A First Look at the Results of the National Adult Literacy Survey, 1993.

24
For more information, see the following NCES publications:

The Condition of Education, 1995. Washington, D.C.: 1995.

The Condition of Education, 1994. Washington, D.C.: 1994.

Digest of Education Statistics, 1994. Washington, D.C.: 1994.

Dropout Rates in the United States: 1993. Washington, D.C.: 1994. 

America’s High School Sophomores: A Ten Year Comparison.

Washington, D.C.: 1993.

Other Findings from The Condition of Education:

No. 1: High School Students Ten Years After A Nation At Risk

No. 2: The Educational Progress of Black Students

No. 3: America’s Teachers Ten Years After A Nation At Risk

No. 5: The Educational Progress of Women

No. 6: The Cost of Higher Education

25