Blog 14: Abstract & Final Summary

Blog 14:

ABSTRACT:

The purpose of this study was to examine the role that testing plays in the learning experience of native English speakers in Union City, New Jersey. Over the course of six weeks, I observed the community and analyzed the High School Proficiency Assessment (HSPA) test results for Union City’s two high schools. This community in particular is comprised of a large Latino population. The data collected revealed mixed results in which a percentage of native English speakers tested below their counterparts as viewed through the State results, but also that a percentage tested above these same standings. Part of these results support previous research, while the remaining is new territory. This study will illustrate how living in a largely Latino community, where Spanish is present at times more than English, can have a crucial effect on the school policies that are put in place to prepare students for academic success. What is important about these results is that it highlights the need to reevaluate the ways in which the school system is addressing the needs of not only the limited English speaking students, but a portion of the native English population as well. Equally important to note, is that while this culturally-rich world that surrounds students outside of school is to some degree hindering the academic advancement and success of some of its students, at the same time it is promoting the progress of others.

FINAL SUMMARY:

The sample used in this study reproduced some results that have been generated in the past, however the combination of conditions have prompted a deeper look into the differences that persist in the Hispanic population’s testing results, especially when this group includes native English speakers. This study serves to encourage further, more meticulous research be conducted with the goal of pinpointing the exact causes behind the lower testing results of the Hispanic student population. If native English speakers can be defined as those who primarily communicate in the English language, then this means that the high percentage of students in both schools who maintain that English is the first language spoken at home are to be considered native English speakers. The question then becomes, then why do the results of the study still place the white student population in a higher proficiency status then the Hispanic student population? This study should also serve as a reminder of the importance of changing unfair school policies that try to accommodate easy academic achievement, and that isolate students that are not linguistically proficient, thereby causing them to fall behind their peers and limiting their academic achievement potential. The central point is that these practices must be examined and corrected to treat students as individuals and not as statistics.