Puerto Rican Males Isolated In Schools, Study Concludes
Many Puerto Rican males feel alienated in U.S. schools, one of the country’s largest Hispanic advocacy groups reports in a recent study.
The National Council of La Raza study found that many Puerto Rican men from ages 16 to 24 said they believed their teachers did not want to teach them and that their curriculum had little relevance. The report was based on focus-group interviews conducted by community-based organizations in Boston; Chicago; Brooklyn, N.Y.; and Newark, N.J.
The young men interviewed also cited fear of violence as a main factor keeping them from attending school on a regular basis.
The report notes that Puerto Ricans have the highest rate of family and child poverty among Hispanic groups, and urges educators and policymakers to pay special attention to this population.