4. Pamphet on the "Little School of the 400"
Among the justifications used by Texas school officials to segregate--and to fail--Mexican American students was their lack of English proficiency. Many schools also banned the speaking of Spanish, further osctracizing Spanish-speaking students and greatly undercutting their ability to learn.
As part of LULAC’s mission of Mexican American advancement (and assimilation, for that matter), the group founded the “Little School of the 400” in the late 1950s. These summer schools sought to teach young Spanish-speaking Texas children 400 basic English words before they began the First Grade, in hopes of improving their long-term educational success.
LULAC then used the schools as a model to lobby the Texas legislature to enact a state-wide initiative. Some experts believe the schools were also a model for nationwide Head Start programs, launched by President Lyndon B. Johnson in the mid-1960s.
Below are excerpts from a promotional pamphlet on the "Little School of the 400" that LULAC sent to its members and supporters.
“LULAC IN ACTION – HUMAN VALUES, UNLIMITED: A REPORT ON THE ‘LITTLE SCHOOL OF THE 400’: A Heart-Warming Project of the League of United Latin American Citizens, 1960”
THE PROBLEM AND ITS IMPORTANCE
One of the most difficult and perplexing problems of instruction in the elementary schools of Texas is the teaching of non-English-speaking children. These children must overcome a severe handicap before they can profit from the regular school program. In a democratic society where the controlling educational advantages of the State are available to the children of all the people, it is necessary for its Public Schools to devote special attention to the educational needs of the children of the one and a half million Spanish-speaking Americans as we have in Texas today. If necessary, special methods, and materials, must be used in bringing these Spanish-speaking children to an educational level commensurate with that of the English-speaking pupil who does not suffer from this language handicap.
THE PARENTS
A reputable firm of researchers, working for LULAC, has found that contradicting many prevalent opinions, Latin American parents are eager to train their children in English previous to their entrance into school, provided they know or are informed of the program. The idea that Latin American parents want the children to learn only Spanish is erroneous. The fact is that the average parent is not capable of teaching the child any English. Many do attempt to do so, knowing that they are teaching their children accented speech and realizing that accents once learned are hard to lose. In our investigations we have been convinced that Latin American parents will welcome this program and that they are now participating in it to the extent that they have been informed about it. Many ask that we be sure that the teacher speak without an accent. Some have also asked that we look to the improvement of their speaking Spanish by securing a person competent in that language as well. It appears that there is a great general interest on the part of parents to try to learn English along with the child. This seems to be particularly true in the case with the mothers.
THE PROGRAM
House Bill 51, enacted in June, 1959, by the 56th Texas Legislature, at the recommendation of LULAC and the Hale-Aiken Committee, has made it possible to finance from Minimum Foundation funds a program of public instruction for pre-school non-English-speaking-children.
The primary objective of the program is to teach oral English and thus prepare the children for their first year in regular school.
The students enrolled in the program are being carefully screened to determine their lack of knowledge of the English language.
The Program is scheduled to start sometime in June and close during the month of August, 1960. July 4 will be a holiday for both students and teachers. Teachers assigned to the program have attended School Workshops held in San Antonio, McAllen, and Del Rio.
Classes have been located where there is the greatest demand...
SOURCE:
"LULAC IN ACTION," League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) Clippings, 1963 - 1974, Box: 295, Folder: 14. Dr. Hector P. Garcia papers, Coll-5. Special Collections and Archives, Mary and Jeff Bell Library, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi.