(March 2, 2005) - Schools fight language barriers - Programs try to involve immigrant parents

BRIAN FEAGANS
Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The (GA)

Joe Ahrens can be pretty funny for a principal. Now he can boast of getting laughs in two languages.

It happened one recent Monday as Ahrens emceed the Fifth Annual International Festival at Arcado Elementary School in Lilburn. Spanish-speaking parents wearing headphones listened intently as Elizabeth Herrera translated Ahrens' every word into Spanish using a wireless contraption called a Talk & Listen kit.

After a Romanian couple performed a wild, boot-slapping Transylvanian courtship dance, Ahrens took the microphone and asked the gymnasium full of people if they'd like to see him join the female assistant principal in a similar dance. A resounding "yes" followed.

"Keep wishing," Ahrens said.

Two distinct rounds of laughter followed -- the first when Ahrens said it, the second when Herrera translated.

It was a scene from the front lines of education in western Gwinnett County, a hot spot for new immigrants in metro Atlanta. Families from Asia, Europe, Africa and, most often, Latin America are settling into the apartment complexes and starter homes around Norcross and Lilburn. The local schools don't want just the children coming through the front door; they'd like to see the parents, too.

Research has shown that children whose parents attend school functions, quiz them on homework or find other ways to get involved in schoolwork end up with better grades and attendance, said Barbara Meyers, an associate professor in Georgia State University's Department of Early Childhood Education. Students without that support tend to have higher rates of delinquency and pregnancy, Meyers said.

But many of the newest parents at Gwinnett schools don't speak English and, in some cases, lack a formal education themselves.

The PTSA at Arcado, whose the Hispanic population is small but growing fast, has launched a pre-emptive strike with the $2,200 Talk & Listen kit. Herrera speaks into a headset that beams the translation to Spanish-speaking parents wearing earphones in the crowd.

Stripling Elementary and Berkeley Lake Elementary schools also use the kits, said Sloan Roach, a Gwinnett schools spokeswoman. Summerour Middle School in Norcross has ordered a set as well, she said.

No more PTSA

Luring the newcomers across language barriers with interpreters and bilingual fliers isn't always enough, however. Many families don't have cars. And long work hours make attending school functions difficult.

Take Nesbit Elementary, where two out of every three students consider English a second language . Officials at the 1,995-student school in Norcross were forced to ditch the PTSA altogether this year.

Few parents were sticking around long enough to act as officers, said Principal Cecilia Garcia. Some good candidates are in the country illegally and don't want to go through the credit checks required of some positions in sanctioned PTSAs, Garcia said. So the school created a council that acts much like a PTSA but isn't one. Parents and teachers split into separate English-speaking and Spanish-speaking groups that meet simultaneously.

Garcia said the school has to adjust to one of the most transient populations in the state. Students from 38 countries speak 25 different languages at Nesbit. More than 300 students aren't just new to the school this year but are new to the country, Garcia said.

"This week alone we've registered 10 children from Mexico who had not been in school before," she said.

Meyers and her colleagues at Georgia State are helping train teachers at Nesbit Elementary as part of a $5.7 million federal grant that also has targeted schools in DeKalb County, Fulton County and Atlanta.

Meyers said she was impressed to see Spanish-speaking staffers at Nesbit greeting a steady stream of parents during her visit to the school last week. "

That's very unusual and very important," she said. "They see this is a place that supports them and they'll come back."

Meyers cautioned that PTSA membership is only one yardstick for measuring parent participation. Sometimes parents who can't make it to PTSA meetings are tremendous cheerleaders for their children at home and attend parent-teacher conferences, she said.

Garcia said that's certainly the case with many parents at Nesbit.

"You have to redefine what's parent involvement," she said. "I don't think it's just about putting on bazaars and fund-raisers."

The 'All Nations' school

On the opposite side of Jimmy Carter Boulevard, Rockbridge Elementary's PTSA went through a rough patch a couple of years ago, said Pam Barrientos, a seven-year veteran of the group who now serves as vice president.

"We finally understood that parents didn't understand what [PTSA] was," said Barrientos, a health worker at the school . "Even if they wanted to get involved, maybe they didn't know how."

Officials at Rockbridge, whose student body is more than 60 percent Hispanic and made up of children from 32 countries, responded by making the school operate like a community center for immigrants. A parent center at the heart of the school offers English classes. A bank of computers is available for parents who want to use the Internet or work on a resume. They can fill out Spanish- language surveys that provide feedback on what type of programs they'd like to see added.

The flags of 30 countries hang in the cafeteria, called the "All Nations Cafe." The PTSA board includes natives of Cuba, Romania, Nigeria and Pakistan. And the group has started tailoring its events to immigrants as well.

At the school 's first-ever Math Fair last month, teachers transformed the cafeteria and surrounding classrooms into a fun house of games such as Cookie Walk, M&M Math and Dominoes Divisibility. The idea: to teach parents and students math games that can be replicated at home.

By the end of the night, 422 parents and children had passed through the doors of the 942-student school . Among those smiling was Susana Kullem, co-president of the PTSA. She said the night was an important piece of what Rockbridge is trying to build.

"For some, school is where you send your child to learn and home is home," said Kullem, a native of Cuba. "We've come to the conclusion that we've got to bridge it together."

At Arcado Elementary, Principal Ahrens expects that he'll face similar challenges soon. The Talk & Listen kit is only a first step, he said.

"We're just trying to get ahead of the curve," he said.

For now, he can take solace in the reaction of Daniel Morales, 32, and Maria Francisca Gonzalez, 27. The Mexican natives had come to one previous event at the school but left early because they couldn't understand much. But they were pleasantly surprised to see the translating devices at the International Festival. The couple pressed the earphones tightly against their ears as children Emily and Samuel jumped into their laps. They even laughed at one of Ahrens' jokes.

"With these," Gonzalez said, holding up the earphones, "we'll always come."