Bilingual Education:
Information on Limited English Proficient Students
HRD-87-85BR: Published: Apr 30, 1987. Publicly Released: May 14, 1987.
Additional Materials:
- Full Report:
Contact:
In response to a congressional request, GAO provided information on limited-English-proficient (LEP) students who obtain educational services through federal funds to help them learn English well enough to participate in all-English classes.
GAO found that: (1) the Department of Education estimates that there are 1.2 to 1.7 million LEP children in the United States; (2) LEP population estimates are sensitive to such indicators as whether a non-English language is the first or second household language and whether a child speaks a non-English language at home; (3) states and the District of Columbia estimate that there are about 1.5 million LEP students in the United States; (4) this total understates the LEP population because states depend on school districts' self-reports on the number of LEP students; (5) states do not systematically or routinely collect data concerning the concentration of LEP students by language minorities in school districts; (6) of the states that aggregate data by school and/or by grade, 78 percent of their 909,427 LEP students are in high-concentration areas by language, while 22 percent are in low-concentration areas; and (7) of the states that aggregate data by school district, 72 percent of their 165,920 LEP students are in high-concentration areas, while 28 percent are in low-concentration areas. GAO also found that: (1) states and the District report that LEP students receive language aid through federal, state, and local funds; (2) there are no adequate national data on the extent to which schools are using native languages in transitional bilingual education programs; (3) the minimum number of students that schools need to justify a bilingual education program differs from state to state; and (4) LEP students spend 2 to 4 years in both transitional and alternative programs.
Apr 17, 2018
Higher Education:
Characteristics of Graduate PLUS BorrowersGAO-18-392R: Published: Apr 17, 2018. Publicly Released: Apr 17, 2018.
Apr 4, 2018
-
K-12 Education:
Discipline Disparities for Black Students, Boys, and Students with DisabilitiesGAO-18-258: Published: Mar 22, 2018. Publicly Released: Apr 4, 2018.
Feb 22, 2018
-
Emergency Management:
Federal Agencies Could Improve Dissemination of Resources to CollegesGAO-18-233: Published: Jan 23, 2018. Publicly Released: Feb 22, 2018.
Feb 7, 2018
-
Department of Education:
Resource and Achievement TrendsGAO-18-154: Published: Feb 7, 2018. Publicly Released: Feb 7, 2018.
Jan 23, 2018
-
Higher Education:
Expert Views of U.S. AccreditationGAO-18-5: Published: Dec 22, 2017. Publicly Released: Jan 23, 2018.
Dec 18, 2017
-
Federal Student Aid:
Better Program Management and Oversight of Postsecondary Schools Needed to Protect Student Information [Reissued on December 15, 2017]GAO-18-121: Published: Nov 27, 2017. Publicly Released: Dec 4, 2017.
Nov 30, 2017
-
Private School Choice:
Federal Actions Needed to Ensure Parents Are Notified About Changes in Rights for Students with DisabilitiesGAO-18-94: Published: Nov 16, 2017. Publicly Released: Nov 30, 2017.
Sep 20, 2017
-
Higher Education:
Education Should Address Oversight and Communication Gaps in Its Monitoring of the Financial Condition of SchoolsGAO-17-555: Published: Aug 21, 2017. Publicly Released: Sep 20, 2017.
Sep 14, 2017
-
K-12 Education:
High School Sports Access and ParticipationGAO-17-754R: Published: Sep 14, 2017. Publicly Released: Sep 14, 2017.
Sep 13, 2017
-
Higher Education:
Students Need More Information to Help Reduce Challenges in Transferring College CreditsGAO-17-574: Published: Aug 14, 2017. Publicly Released: Sep 13, 2017.
Looking for more? Browse all our products here
Explore our Key Issues on Education
Explore our other Key Issues here
