I COULD CONTINUE TO CITE AREAS WHICH SHOW A MARKED GROWTH IN Mr. FORD. Thank you very much. Mr. Soriano, we will hear from you. STATEMENT OF DR. JESSE SORIANO Dr. SORIANO. In my testimony what I would like to do is tell you what migrant edcucation has done, at least in my State. Increasingly, as the years have passed, the legislation which created migrant education must be viewed as one of the finest examples of the wisdom with which our Congress can act. Migrant education legislation brought into existence an educational program which has indeed become a milestone in America's education history. The migrant program has not only served children with a commitment unsurpassed, it has also had impact on America's total educational system. Witness the creation of the National Migrant Student Record Transfer System, a concept developed and implemented cooperatively by almost every single State Department of Education in the nation. In Michigan I have seen migrant education provide the major impetus for the creation of bilingual education. It was indeed migrant education funds which spotlighted the needs of bilingual/bicultural children and provided the initial support for the development of bilingual curriculum materials. Migrant schools became the training grounds for hundreds of our present-day bilingual teachers and bilingual administrators. It has been migrant program teachers, too, who with their unbounded enthusiasm and commitment, have refined and developed teaching techniques and strategies which in turn have been transported to the regular school programs to the benefit of all children, not only migrant children. In Michigan, migrant education programs were some of the first to train teachers in the writing of skills objectives, and in the development of objective-referenced testing-all of which has culminated in the development of the national migrant skills lists soon to be entered in the National Migrant Student Record Transfer System. I might add proudly that it was Michigan who first introduced the minimal performance objectives in mathematics, which in turn became the model for our national skills lists. Migrant educators, you see, were some of the first to recognize the inappropriateness of standardized testing and to do something about it. I think equally as important is the awareness which migrant education has brought to local communities throughout the nation, not only my own State. Communities which had heretofore viewed migrants and their children as intruders and undesirables, are now beginning to appreciate and respect the cultural diversity of the migrant families. Migrants are now beginning to receive the respect and regard due any American citizen; and it was migrant education and continues to be migrant education which proved to be the catalyst for creating a spirit of cooperation and understanding between people. But it isn't only local communities which have been affected. In Michigan this past year the Michigan Legislature passed a concurrent resolution designating the month of June as Migrant Education Month-this, a type of recognition not often accorded education programs. In my own agency, Dr. John W. Porter, Superintendent of Public Instruction, has long considered the education of migrant children to be a top priority for Michigan education. In fulfilling its primary respsonsibility-that of meeting the special educational needs of children, Michigan's migrant programs have proven to be flexible and innovative, contrary to some perceptions, designing their approaches to be compatible with the characteristics of migrant children. Where the children are bilingual, bilingual staffing and bilingual materials are used. When necessary, concepts are taught first in the child's primary language. In the case of all migrant children, materials and class activities are made relevant to the child's experience and background. In Michigan, all migrant project staffs-including cooks, bus drivers, and custodians-are involved in ongoing pre-service and inservice training to improve their awareness and appreciation for the cultures of migrant children. Teachers and teacher aides are encouraged, and in many cases required, to visit the migrant camps and interact with migrant parents. As a result, migrant parents have become more supportive of the educational programs and participate in their development and implementation. Although it is difficult to evaluate the educational success of short-term programs-particularly where children come and go without giving notice-all the testing data available indicates that children in Michigan's migrant program are making substantial progress in the language arts and math, the basic skills. This is particularly true in the improvement of their oral English language facility. Testing data from several of Michigan's programs indicate average growth of six months in oral English, during a six-week program. Reading and math test results show equally dramatic gains. Possibly some of the most gratifying results, however, have come about in the area of the effective domain where reports by teachers and migrant parents, as well as test results, show that migrant children are changing their feelings about school and about their chances for success. Migrant children are showing more initiative n school, more self-assurance, and more willingness to participate in classroom activities. Attendance has shown a great improvement and children look forward to attending migrant schools. But if the academic success of migrant education programs is difficult to gauge, the success of the supportive components is not. Migrant educators can tell you how many painfully decayed and abscessed teeth have been treated; we can tell you how many children can now see because they received glasses; we can tell you how many pairs of new shoes we've given to children who had never seen a new pair of shoes; we can tell you how many children have received nutritionally-balanced meals-children who might otherwise experience hunger; we can tell you the number of times we've been able to detect and have diagnosed illness which, if left untreated, might have proved fatal. If the migrant program has not always been successful as an academic program, it has nonetheless made the lives of thousands of migrant children better. All the apparent success notwithstanding, migrant education needs to be improved and much remains to be done. Migrant education legislation must be made more comprehensive; it must provide for more than just school age children. It must provide for infant care and preschool and it must provide for postsecondary education. Migrant students who are fortunate enough to finish high school must not be stopped at university gates simply because they cannot afford the high cost of tuition. Migrant education legislation if it is to be successful must be made not only more comprehensive but more acceptable to the State education agencies which are called upon to administer the programs. States must be allowed greater latitude in administering the program and the rules and regulations governing migrant education must not impose undue and unnecessary demands upon State agencies. The required program accountability can be achieved through a closer working relationship between Federal Government and the States. Heed must be taken of the great burden which State educational agencies already carry. The Federal Government must be not only a provider, but also a facilitator. If the role of facilitator is to be carried out successfully, the following things must happen. The United States Office of Education must deploy more technical assistance to migrant education programs. It must provide greater assistance in the areas of program development and evaluation. It must also assist the States in the dissemination of information. I am not suggesting prescription, incidentally. The Department of Health, Education, and Welfare must, in turn, coordinate the efforts of its several agencies which presently provide services to migrants. Legislation must be written which emphasizes compatibility of programs, thus assuring effective and efficient unduplicated effort. Unfortunately, at present many States perceive there to be little or no coordination and cooperation between the agencies at the Federal level. The Federal Government must continue to look to State education agencies as the primary agencies for the implementation of categorical programs such as migrant education. State educational agencies have proven themselves and all evidence seems to suggest that they will continue to be the leaders in the future progress of education. Categorical funding must be continued inasmuch as State legislatures and local school boards given their own priorities may not be able to respond to the needs of transient migrant children. However, at the same time that categorical funds are required, the Federal Government must take measures which will motivate State educational agencies and local school districts to assume their rightful reponsibility. Perhaps one of the measures might even be to establish some added cost or shared cost incentives. I am saying this on experience which we have had which indicates local agencies are not happy to provide categorical programs simply because they don't have the funds to provide the same programs for their residence children. In summary, I would like to say that migrant education has been tremendously successful and will continue to be successful with your support. It will continue to serve a group of children who have been denied equal educational opportunity more than any other. It will continue to be a program to which Congress can point proudly. I thank you very much. [The prepared statement of Dr. Soriano follows:] MICHIGAN MIGRANT EDUCATION PROGRAM TESTIMONY SUBMITTED TO SUBCOMMITTEE ON ELEMENTARY, SECONDARY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND LABOR OCTOBER 12, 1977 CARL D. PERKINS PREPARED BY MR. CHAIRMAN AND MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE: IT IS AN HONOR TO ONCE AGAIN COME BEFORE YOU AS I DID IN 1973 TO SPEAK ON BEHALF OF MIGRANT EDUCATION AND MIGRANT CHILDREN. INCREASINGLY, AS THE YEARS HAVE PASSED, THE LEGISLATION WHICH CREATED MIGRANT EDUCATION MUST BE VIEWED AS ONE OF THE FINEST EXAMPLES OF THE WISDOM WITH WHICH OUR CONGRESS CAN ACT. MIGRANT EDUCATION LEGISLATION BROUGHT INTO EXISTENCE AN EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM WHICH HAS INDEED BECOME A MILESTONE IN AMERICA'S EDUCATION HISTORY. THE MIGRANT PROGRAM HAS NOT ONLY SERVED CHILDREN WITH A COMMITTMENT UNSURPASSED, IT HAS ALSO HAD IMPACT ON AMERICA'S TOTAL EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM. WITNESS THE CREATION OF THE NATIONAL MIGRANT STUDENT RECORD TRANSFER SYSTEM, A CONCEPT DEVELOPED AND IMPLEMENTED COOPERATIVELY BY ALMOST EVERY SINGLE STATE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION IN THE NATION. IN MICHIGAN I HAVE SEEN MIGRANT FDUCATION PROVIDE THE MAJOR IMPETUS FOR THE CREATION OF BILINGUAL EDUCATION. IT WAS INDEED MIGRANT EDUCATION FUNDS WHICH SPOTLIGHTED THE NEEDS OF BILINGUAL/RICULTURAL CHILDREN AND PROVIDED THE INITIAL SUPPORT FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF BILINGUAL CURRICULUM MATERIALS. MIGRANT SCHOOLS BECAME THE TRAINING GROUNDS FOR HUNDREDS OF OUR PRESENT-DAY BILINGUAL TEACHERS AND BILINGUAL ADMINISTRATORS. IT HAS BEEN MIGRANT PROGRAM TEACHERS, TOO, WHO WITH THEIR UNBOUNDED ENTHUSIASM AND COMMITTMENT, HAVE REFINED AND DEVELOPED TEACHING TECHNIQUES AND STRATEGIES WHICH IN TURN HAVE BEEN TRANSPORTED TO THE REGULAR SCHOOL PROGRAMS-TO THE BENEFIT OF ALL CHILDREN. 98-491 78-3 |