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presented is information on the students and their parents, the
results of the students' and parents' surveys, and student and parent
interviews.
Students and Parents
Before I was introduced to the students, I wondered if I would
be able to distinguish the Cubans from the other students in the
bilingual classes. Working with the 1970 Cuban refugees I noticed
that when many of the children arrived at school the first day they
seemed pale and small for their age. I wondered if this might be the
case for these students. I thought that perhaps the trauma they had
suffered might have marked them in some identifiable way. But no, they
were like all the other bilingual students in their classes. They
blended in with the rest of the student body of the school. They
appeared well-fed, many on the plump side of healthy. Most were at
tractive. The majority were well-groomed and clean. Hair color ran
the spectrum from very blond to red to black. Skin coloration ran from
very fair to black, fair complexion predominated. Most students wore
fashionable clothing. Many students wore gold jewelry, chains, earrings,
rings, and bracelets.
The teachers told me that when the students first arrived some
were thin and pale as I had encountered in the 1970 group. In the
years that most had been in the U.S. they had changed a great deal,
according to the teachers.