PERCENT OF STUDENTS WITH LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENCY (LEP)
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Why is this important?
Not all children experience economic and social conditions that allow them to perform their best in our public school system. Like poverty, Limited English Proficiency (LEP) is an indicator of students at risk of performing poorly in school. It also reflects Long Island’s changing population and the resulting increase in disparity across schools and districts.
How are we doing?
Long Island schools are experiencing steady growth in the number of LEP students. The year 2006 represents the five-year high: In the average school, 5.6% of the students have limited English proficiency.
Low poverty schools on Long Island average very few LEP students, about 2.5% in 2006, essentially the same as 2005.
High-poverty schools, on the other hand, show marked increases in their percentage of LEP students. Between 2001 and 2006 LEP students in high-poverty schools increased by 54%. In 2006, over 24% of the enrolments in all high-poverty schools were LEP students. Since poverty and limited English proficiency are both risk factors for poor academic performance, these schools have multiple, overlapping obstacles. They have the neediest students--poor and struggling with English.