Population Estimates of School Age Language Minorities and Limited English Proficiency Children of the United States, 1979-1988.

Estimates of the school-age, 5-17-year-old, language minority and Limited-English-Proficient (LEP) populations in the United States are discussed. The estimates are based on the population counts for first, second, and third generation Hispanics, Anglos, Asians, and Blacks derived from the June 1988 Current Population Survey. The language minority population is estimated by determining the ratio of language minority children to the total population for each race-ethnic-generation group from the November 1979 Current Population Survey. The LEP estimates, derived from multiplication of the non-English languages background (NELB) population by LEP-to-NELB ratios established in previous studies, are much higher than some projections that do not reflect the impact of recent high rates of Hispanic and Asian immigration. Fifteen tables and figures are provided to illustrate population statistics, language usage, generational distributions, etc. (LB)