There are currently 50 million Hispanics living in the United States, a figure that represents 16% of the country’s total population

Hispanic children between five and 17 years of age usually score lower than the average student in annual reading and mathematics standardized tests. The dropout rate in high school is 17.6% among Hispanics, as compared to 5.2% among the white population and 8.1% among the entire U.S. population, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. Regarding SAT scores, Hispanics are scoring lower in mathematics and critical reading than the average U.S. student. According to the U.S. Department of Education, there are four factors that affect student achievement: Having a mother who has less than a high school education, being a member of a family on welfare or receiving food stamps, living in a single-parent family, and having parents whose primary language is one other than English. By the end of the 20th century, about seven out of 10 entering kindergarten from Hispanic or black families had one or more of these risk factors, compared to about three out of 10 of those from white families.