Hispanics' Schooling: Risk Factors for Dropping Out and Barriers to
Resuming Their Education (Letter Report, 07/24/94, GAO/PEMD-94-24).

In 1990, the school dropout rate for Hispanics between the ages of 16
and 24 was high--about 30 percent. The comparable rate for non-Hispanic
blacks was 18 percent, and for non-Hispanic whites it was 10 percent.
Drop-out rates were not uniform by country of origin, ranging from 36
percent for Central Americans and 34 percent for Mexican Americans to 12
percent for South Americans. Dropout rates were much higher for
Hispanics not born in the United States (43 percent) than for U.S.-born
Hispanics (20 percent). Further, among those born outside the United
States, recent arrivals were at greatest risk of dropping out. GAO found
that the risk of dropping out of U.S. schools was higher for 16- and
17-year-old Hispanics who fell into one or more of the following
categories: not born in the United States, limited in English-speaking
ability, from poor families, or either married or mothers. Hispanic
dropouts faced the following formidable barriers to completing their
education: 40 percent spoke English "not well" or "not at all," more
than half needed three years or more of schooling to finish high school,
more than one third had incomes at or below the poverty line, and most
had job or family responsibilities.

--------------------------- Indexing Terms -----------------------------

 REPORTNUM:  PEMD-94-24
     TITLE:  Hispanics' Schooling: Risk Factors for Dropping Out and 
             Barriers to Resuming Their Education
      DATE:  07/24/94
   SUBJECT:  Demographic data
             Hispanics
             Secondary school students
             Attrition rates
             Immigrants
             Public schools
             Students
             Disadvantaged persons
             Minority education
             Aid for education
IDENTIFIER:  Census Bureau Public Use Microdata Sample
             Mexico
             Puerto Rico
             Spain
             Census Bureau Current Population Survey
             Arizona
             California
             Colorado
             Florida
             Illinois
             Massachusetts
             New Jersey
             New Mexico
             New York
             Texas
             
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