themselves—who add to the diversity of U.S. primary and secondary school
classrooms. The impact of these changes can be seen in Table 10.7, which shows
the continued growth of the cross-cultural student population in the United States.
Moreover, in the 2011–2012 school year, more than 9 percent of U.S. public school
students were English language learners, and over 20 percent of U.S. students spoke a
foreign language at home, according to census data. In California, 45 percent of
households speak a foreign language. At one high school in San Diego, California,
80 to 90 percent of the 1,100 students were first-generation immigrants in 2013.
The students, teachers, and staff had to manage communication that crossed thirty-
four languages and thirty-seven dialects.^25
Increased cultural diversity in the U.S. educational system has not been limited to
primary and secondary schools. Higher education has also experienced larger numbers
of co-culture enrollees. Perhaps you have noted this diversity on your own campus
and in some of your classes. Globalization has also raised the number of international
students and foreign-born faculty in U.S. universities. In 2011 there were 115,000
foreign-born educators and researchers working at U.S. higher education institutions,
an increase of approximately 29,000 over a ten-year period. The number of interna-
tional students enrolling in U.S. universities and colleges has grown over 70 percent
since 2000.^27 The numbers of educators and students would probably have beenTABLE 10.7 U.S. Public School (Pre-K–12) Enrollments^26
RACE/ETHNICITY %
BY YEAR 2001 2011 2023*
White 60 52 45
Black 17 16 15
Hispanic 17 24 30
Asian/Pacific Islander 4 5 5
American Indian/Alaskan Native 1 1 1
Two or more races — 34
*Projected.TABLE 10.8 International Students Attending U.S. Universities, 2013–^2014
(Top 10 Countries)^28
COUNTRY NUMBER OF STUDENTS % OF TOTAL
All nations 886,052 100.0
China 274,439 31.0
India 102,673 11.6
South Korea 68,047 7.7
Saudi Arabia 53,919 6.1
Canada 28,304 3.2
Taiwan 21,266 2.4
Japan 19,334 2.2
Vietnam 16,579 1.9
Mexico 14,779 1.7
Brazil 13,286 1.5356 CHAPTER 10• Intercultural Communication in Contexts
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