Gladys Calo said she was happy to see Hispanic students smiling as they danced the meringue in front of parents last week at Northwest Cabarrus Middle School. “I think our students were proud of what they were doing,” said Calo, a Spanish teacher who hosted Northwest’s sixth annual Hispanic Night. Odeyi Lopez, 11, said the program provided families a fun opportunity to get involved with the school. Parents were also told in Spanish of school policies and announcements, such as the formation of a multicultural club that will provide a better support system for their children. As many as 40 languages are spoken by students in Cabarrus County Schools, though most students who speak foreign languages speak one form of Spanish or another, said Marion Bish, the system’s federal programs director. Cabarrus County Schools assesses the English proficiency of incoming students who speak English as a second language to determine if they need additional school resources.

search for : , ,