English Language Use and Acquisition for U.S. Children

Robert Kominski, U.S. Census Bureau
Hyon B. Shin, U.S. Census Bureau

This poster examines the patterns of English-language use by children in the U.S. who are either immigrants into the country or who have parents who speak a language other than English at home. Using data from the 2006-2008 American Community Survey, we examine levels of English use and ability for these children. Age and length of time in the U.S. are used to graphically depict how both English use and ability rise with increasing age and duration. Focus is given to groups who report very low levels of English, including those who report speaking no English. From these diagrams we expect to estimates rates of ‘English integration’ for these individuals. Regression models will be used to estimate the independent effects of age and length of US residence, controlling for other family characteristics. We will estimate these effects and models independently for several of the largest non-English language groups.