Isabel Santa, who is affiliated with the Hispanic Council for Reform and Educational Options (Hispanic CREO) in Washington (DC, US), recounted a discouraging story under the title “Lack of communciation, lack of education” in the Orlando (FL; US) Sentinal. She expresses outrage about the failure of Florida educators to communicate appropriately to parents who do not speak English. She has a list of failures, but she describes the one that precipitated her statement in this way:
Recently, I received a phone call from a confused and caring Arcadia Hispanic parent who didn’t understand an English letter she received from the DeSoto school district. About a month ago, her 8-year-old daughter was diagnosed with a learning disability. Never did this mother imagine her daughter needed special education nor did she imagine that a letter regarding better opportunities for her child would be sent to her in a foreign language. In her best English, she read the letter to me over the phone; it stated that her daughter may be eligible for the McKay Scholarship. The McKay Scholarship offers parents of special-needs children who are dissatisfied with their current school an opportunity to transfer to another public or private school.
Link to Ms. Santa’s article.
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