In 2009, some 21 percent of children ages 5–17 (or 11.2 million) spoke a language other than English at home, and 5 percent (or 2.7 million) spoke English with difficulty. Seventy-three percent of those who spoke English with difficulty spoke Spanish.
The number of school-age children (children ages 5–17) who spoke a language other than English at home rose from 4.7 to 11.2 million between 1980 and 2009, or from 10 to 21 percent of the population in this age range (see table A-6-1). From 2006 to 2009, this percentage remained between 20 and 21 percent. After increasing from 4 to 7 percent between 1980 and 2000, the percentage of school-age children who spoke a language other than English at home and spoke English with difficulty decreased to 5 percent in 2009.
Among school-age children who spoke a non-English language at home, the percentage who spoke English with difficulty generally decreased between 1980 and 2009. For example, 41 percent of these children spoke English with difficulty in 1980, compared with 36 percent in 2000, some 25 percent in 2006, and 24 percent in 2009. School enrollment patterns have also changed over time for these children: the enrollment rate increased from 90 to 93 percent between 1980 and 2009.
In 2009, the percentage of school-age children who spoke a language other than English at home and spoke English with difficulty varied by demographic characteristics, including race/ethnicity, citizenship status, poverty status, and age (see table A-6-2). Sixteen percent each of Hispanics and Asians spoke a non-English language at home and spoke English with difficulty, compared with 6 percent of Pacific Islanders, 3 percent of American Indians/Alaska Natives, and 1 percent each of Whites, Blacks, and children of two or more races. Differences were also seen among racial/ethnic subgroups of Hispanic and Asian school-age children. For example, 25 percent of Vietnamese school-age children spoke a non-English language at home and spoke English with difficulty, compared with 8 percent of their Filipino peers. For Hispanic subgroups, 19 percent of Dominican school-age children spoke a non-English language at home and spoke English with difficulty, compared with 7 percent of Puerto Rican school-age children. In terms of citizenship status, 4 percent of U.S.-born citizens spoke a language other than English at home and spoke English with difficulty, compared with 11 percent of naturalized U.S. citizens and 35 percent of non-U.S. citizens. Regarding poverty status, the percentage of poor school-age children who spoke a language other than English at home and spoke English with difficulty (10 percent) was greater than the percentages for their near-poor (7 percent) and non-poor peers (3 percent). Children in families with incomes below the poverty threshold are classified as poor, those in families with incomes at 100–199 percent of the poverty threshold are classified as near-poor, and those in families with incomes at 200 percent or more of the poverty threshold are classified as nonpoor.
Concerning differences by age, the percentage of 5- to 9-year-olds who spoke a non-English language at home and spoke English with difficulty (7 percent) was greater than the percentages of 10- to 13-year-olds and 14- to-17-year-olds who did so (4 percent each). These patterns by age held across most demographic and socioeconomic characteristics.
Of the 2.7 million school-age children who spoke a language other than English at home and spoke English with difficulty in 2009, about 73 percent spoke Spanish, 13 percent spoke an Asian/Pacific Islander language, 10 percent spoke an Indo-European language other than Spanish, and 4 percent spoke another language (see table A-6-3). English-speaking ability also varied by state in 2009. In five states—Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, West Virginia, and Montana—the percentage of 5- to 17-year-olds who spoke a non-English language and spoke English with difficulty was about 1 percent. The states with the highest percentages were Arizona and New York (6 percent each); Nevada and Texas (9 percent each); and California (11 percent).
Technical Notes
Respondents were asked whether each child in the household spoke a language other than English at home. Those who answered "yes" were asked how well each child could speak English using the following categories: "very well," "well," "not well," and "not at all." All children who were reported to speak English less than "very well" were considered to have difficulty speaking English. Spanish-language versions of the questionnaires were available to respondents. Estimates have been revised from previous publications. For more information on the Long Form Decennial Census and the American Community Survey, see supplemental note 3. Race categories exclude persons of Hispanic ethnicity. For more information on race/ethnicity, poverty status, and geographic region, see supplemental note 1.
Click figure to enlarge
