A.+Immigrants+&+Immigration

By Dayana Q. and Yury DLC.
 ** INTRODUCTION **  Immigration is not a new phenomenon in US history, since the country was formed by immigrants. However, due to recent increases in immigration, it has become a controversial issue and one of the main topics in the government's political agenda. There is a debate around the idea of legalizing the children of illegal immigrants, but the truth is that regardless of the decision made; the education of millions of children is being affected by these resolutions. When immigrants arrive to the United States, or any other country different than their native land, they are faced with many hardships including economic, social, and most importantly, cultural. They have to give up many things in order to “assimilate” the new culture. They are faced with different sets of values that often make them struggle with identity issues. We selected these particular sites because the articles were interesting and current. We realized that many discussed issues of immigrants from our own native countries and the countries of our students. We found these articles particularly helpful because they provide current data, interesting approaches and arguments about education and immigration related to immigrant children. However, the most important reason why we picked these specific sites is because we believe that people should know that speaking of immigration is not merely speaking of statistics or numbers. When we speak of immigrants, we are speaking of human beings who have come to this country in search of better opportunities for themselves and their children. As immigrants ourselves, we know what it is like to have to, not only learn a new language and a new culture, but to also have to create a new set of values and to negotiate with your own ideas and principles in order to fit in and “assimilate” this new culture while trying to achieve a balance between both.

** MAIN POINTS ** ** LINKS AND ANNOTATIONS ** 
 * 1) Immigration has been a phenomenon that has existed in the United States for centuries. The projections of certain studies estimate that by the year 2050, 82% of the population in the United States is going to be from immigrant descent. YDLC
 * 2) Due to the large number of immigrants in the country, immigration has become one of the most controversial main subjects on the local and state political agendas. DQ
 * 3) There is a discussion regarding whether the children of undocumented immigrants should become American citizens or not. In the mean time, the children are being affected by legislations which limits their ability to acquire higher education. DQ
 * 4) Many immigrants face economic hardships when they arrive to the United States. These hardships often impose limitations on them, therefore, making their educational futures uncertain. DQ
 * 5) Besides facing economic hardships, many immigrants also face culture shocks when they try to assimilate the American culture. Many immigrants are faced with a new set of values which questions and defies the set of values they have  embraced thus far. DQ
 * 6) Budget cuts in the federal funding for education often affect bilingual education. In 2008, Mayor Bloomberg’s budget cuts eliminated $15 millions that would have gone towards English language learner teaching positions. This budget cut also affected all the schools, which lost $100 millions and forced principals and administrators to eliminate intervention programs. YDLC
 * 7)  Immigrant students perform better than native-born English-speaking students at the elementary and middle school levels. However, on an average, teenage immigrants perform lower because of different developmental characteristics, such as poor schooling in their native countries, that affect can negatively their ability to learn a new language and new customs.YDLC 
 * 8) <span style="-moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; background: #ffffff none repeat scroll 0% 0%; color: #000000;">Research shows that 82% of the Hispanic students in our public schools were born in the United States and 70% of these students speak a language other than English at home. These students are often placed in mainstream classes and are at risk since they are not receiving the proper services.  YDLC

1. Avitia, D. (2008). //Immigrants to Bloomberg: Where’s the Love?// New York: The New York Immigration Coallition, Retrieved September 29, 2009 from [] The education funding cuts that Mayor Bloomberg proposed and which will affect the millions of immigrant children and families in New York City. Mayor Bloomberg’s budget eliminated an existing allocation of 15 millions that would have gone towards English language learner teaching positions. The budget cut also affected all the schools, which lost 100 millions and which forced Principals and administrators to eliminate intervention programs, leave teaching positions vacant and even put some schools in a deficit. Many immigrants groups, such as the NY Immigration Coalition, joined forces and protested against these budget cuts which affected, amongst others, 14 million New Yorkers with limited English. DQ

2. Fry, R. & Gonzales, F. (2008). One-in-Five and Growing Fast: A Profile of Hispanic Public School Students. Washington, DC: Pew Hispanic Center Retrieved on October 5, 2009 from @http://pewresearch.org/pubs/937/one-in-five-and-growing-fast-a-profile-of-hispanic-public-school-students The Hispanic population of students in United States Public schools has nearly doubled from 1996 to 2006. As per the statistical it is reported that the Hispanic population of student in schools is expected to grow by more than 150% in the decades to come. Also, Hispanic students are learning the English language quickly which helps them succeed in their school work. However, foreign-born Hispanic students are more likely than their native-born counterparts to live in poverty, which also has an effect in the type of education that they receive. More than a third of Hispanic students live in poverty, compared with 16% of non-Hispanic students. YDLC 3. Krikorian, M (2002). //Alingual Education: Young Victims of Mass Immigration//. Washington, DC: Center for Immigration Studies. Retrieved on September 29, 2009 from [] <span style="-moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; background: #ffffff none repeat scroll 0% 0%;"> There are certain problems about educating immigrant children in the USA. Children from immigrant families who are born in the USA comprise almost half of the ESL, bilingual and mainstream classes’ students. Furthermore, because of the pressure from both at home and at school, these children are growing up knowing neither English nor Spanish well, as one teacher stated. This does not have anything to do with whether the child is intelligent or not, but rather with the lack of interaction with their parents. Because the parents often hold more than one job to support their home, their time with their children is often limited. DQ

4. Lopez, M.H. (2009). Latinos and Education: Explaining the Attainment Gap. Washington, DC: Pew Hispanic Center. Retrieved on October 7, 2009 from @http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1368/latinos-education-explaining-the-attainment-gap The majority of Latino student find that a college education is very important. However, due to the pressure of having to support their families financially, many Latino students face the dilemma of having to choose between getting a job or going school to earn a degree. Other reasons why these students decide not to go to college are because often times they have poor English skills and their dislike for school. This shows the importance of the work that bilingual teachers do with these students while they are in elementary, middle and high school and it shows how the support that these students receive in the schools, reflects later on in their lives and their career-making decisions.YDLC <span style="-moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; background: lime none repeat scroll 0% 0%;">

5. Roberts, S. (2008). //Proportion of Immigrants in U.S. Rises.// The New York Times, Online Resources. Retrieved September 21, 2009 from [] The Pew Center projects that between 2020 and 2025, 15% of the population will be foreign-born and that by 2050, this rate will raise to 19%. In addition, the study projects that the total population growth in the year 2050 will be 438 million and that 82% of this population increase will be due to immigrants. The increased rate of foreign-born population may significantly raise the popularity of bilingual education and therefore increase the demand for bilingual programs. DQ

6. Rudolf, J.C. (2006//). Illegal Education in New York City, Part I: A second generation of undocumented immigrants goes to school//. New York: The Epoch Times. Retrieved September 21, 2009 from []. Second generation illegal immigrants struggle to develop an identity and face hardships when going to college. Because of the limitations imposed on them for being illegal aliens, these young adults must face adversities and uncertainty when it comes to their future. It states that the number of undocumented children is not certain due to a Supreme Court ruling which protects the right of every child under the age of 18 to free educatio<span style="-moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; background: white none repeat scroll 0% 0%;">n. In Plyler Vs. Doe (1982), t<span style="-moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; background: white none repeat scroll 0% 0%;">he Supreme Court overruled a Texas statute which withheld from local school districts any state funds for the education of children who were not "legally admitted" into the United States. This statute authorized local school districts to deny enrollment to such children, which was unconstitutional. This ruling also made it illegal for schools to require proof of residency throughout the child’s education. DQ

7. Rudolf, J.C. (2006//). Illegal Education in New York City, Part II: A second generation of undocumented immigrants goes to school//. New York: The Epoch Times. Retrieved September 21, 2009 from []. <span style="-moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; background: #ffffff none repeat scroll 0% 0%;">Should <span style="-moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; background: white none repeat scroll 0% 0%; color: blue;"> second generation undocumented children become American citizens or not? O n the one hand, conservative s believe that allowing undocumented children to become American citizens would only send a message to the parents of these children and would seem like an incentive for bad parenting. On the other hand, although there is no political will for an amnesty right now, states such as New York are creating ways to help these undocumented children. In New York, over fifty percent of all the school children come from immigrant families, and, although ELLs have the highest dropout rate, efforts are being made to help them achieve a higher education through scholarships and in-state tuition discounts. DQ

8. Stiefel, L., Schwartz, A. E., & Conger, D. (2008). //Do Immigrants Differ from Migrants? Disentagling the Impact of Mobility on High School Completion and Performance.// New York: New York University. Retrieved on September 22, 2009 from [] <span style="-moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; background: #ffffff none repeat scroll 0% 0%;">There are many differences between foreign-born and native born student’s academics in elementary and middle schools. Students who come to the United States younger perform better than the average native-born English-speaking students during their elementary and middle school grades. However, this success is not necessarily sustained through high school. Due to economic, developmental and educational factors, teenage immigrants tend to perform lower educationally. These teenagers may have accumulated poor quality education in their native country and may experience developmental factors that affect their ability to learn a new language and new customs. YDLC

9. // The New York Times // (2009). Immigration and Emigration under the Obama Administration//.// New York: The New York Times. Retrieved on September 22, 2009 from [] <span style="-moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; background: #ffffff none repeat scroll 0% 0%;">The rapidly growing population of both illegal and legal immigrants in the United States has become a significant and major political <span style="-moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; background: #ffffff none repeat scroll 0% 0%;"> issue. Furthermore<span style="-moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; background: #ffffff none repeat scroll 0% 0%;">, numerous changes have been made t o the immigration laws since 1986. Many advocates for immigrant rights have fought for undocumented immigrants to have rights and so that they are not discriminated against. These advocacy groups are a major part of the many changes that the immigrations law have had. One of these changes is the right for all children to receive an education regardless of their migratory status. However, the truth is that once these undocumented children finish their secondary education, it becomes harder for them to acquire college education. In the new Obama administration, these issues, as well as the possibility of an amnesty for the undocumented immigrants in our country, are a priority in the President's political agenda. YDLC

10. Zahka, J.(2006). Dominican Immigrants Face Challenges in New York City Public Schools//.// New York: Worldpress, Online Resources. Retrieved September 29, 2009 from []. Dominican immigrants face <span style="-moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; background: #ffffff none repeat scroll 0% 0%;">numerous challenges in the New York City public schools. While at their native Dominica Republic, these children were punished for expressing their opinions in front of adults. Once they arrive to America, they are encouraged to voice their opinions and this represents a culture shock for them. In addition, these Dominican immigrants face stress and language barriers. Because of their language limitations, they are placed in bilingual classes in which they are “often treated as a burden on the school, rather than as equals with their English-speaking counterparts.” Because most of these immigrants attend schools which are located in low income neighborhoods, they often receive their education from poorly qualified teachers. Moreover, Dominican immigrants struggle in the NYC public schools because most of them arrive lacking the educational foundation in their native language, which makes their acquisition of the English language more difficult. DQ