This article explains the history of education throughout the lives of Latino's in America, beginning five centuries ago. It also shows us how and where education developed and succeeded, along with where it failed. Education in the Spanish-Mexican Era was mainly for the Indian population. They were taught literacy, music, and Spanish manners. They were even taught to forget and destroy their previous beliefs and religions. In the early nineteenth century the Spanish people saw literacy reach a necessity for motivating purposes. This is when education switched from focusing on children to now everyone. Money played a pivotal role why only a few schools were established. During this era Indians responded to education in many different ways ranging from harsh battles(Pueblos over the southwest), to refusing it and questioning their own identity, and then some just welcomed it.
Another era from 1890-1960 known as Latinos and the Expansion of American Education, was one of the most important in Latino history. This was due to the fact that education was opened up for any gender, race, sex, and age. This helped influence a change in the Latino's life of diversity and opened new doors in the twentieth century for them. However, many Latinos still lacked power and were living well below the middle class. Latino schoolchildren were faced with a rather week curriculum in elementary and secondary school. Spanish was even discontinued in schools so they could just focus on English, but many Latinos were placed in slow learning groups leading to many dropouts as they progressed age wise (could not keep up with competition). The few that did not dropout were put into non academic and vocational courses due to the test scores. Overall Latino students did poorly, but a few achieved success in the academics.
Another important time period known as Latino Education in the Contemporary Period refers from 1960 to today. In the 1960's increased resources and academic courses were provided to the lower academic schools which really helped out Latinos by improving their graduation rates and helped by pushing a greater amount of Latinos into college than ever before. A problem for Latinos was inequality. They tried to get policies established for them by going after the federal, state, and local agencies. Latinos were trying to eliminate any discrimination against themselves at school so they could have a better education situation and become more acknowledged. After this they attempted by throwing lawsuits at the school of segregation for where they placed a designated classes for the"educationally mentally retarded".
In the end this article shows us how Latinos used education beginning in the sixteenth century. Those who started with education first were rather privileged and had an advantage. On the other hand, those who received it in the later centuries had trouble adapting to it and had to play catch up because many were slow learners. Overall, education brightened and influenced the lives of few Latinos, the majority of those succeeding are happening today. When will Latinos become more of a factor in succeeding in education? Will it be anytime soon?