Immigration has had such a profound effect on our society....And no where is that impact more obvious than in our schools.

—Monica Friedlander (1991), The Newcomer Program: Helping Immigrant Students Succeed in U.S. Schools

While the ethnic profile of newcomers varies state by state throughout the Northwest and Alaska, the educational profile of recent immigration throughout the region is the same: rapidly changing demographics in communities and schools, with K-12 educators consequently facing both challenge and opportunity.

Substantial diversity often exists among members of the same nationality. Recognizing this diversity is critical in developing successful strategies for working with immigrant families and students. Variations within immigrant groups from the same country of origin can be based on education and social class, the immigration experience, religion, and individual differences. These variations may call for different approaches, for example:
The needs and competencies of a child from a well-educated, middle-class family are vastly different from those of a child from a preliterate family
A child who was born in a refugee camp or whose family fled genocidal warfare has far different issues affecting learning than a child born in this country of immigrant parents
A child of Russian Orthodox Old Believer parents who immigrated in the 1960s comes from a vastly different family culture than does the child of Ukranian Pentecostal Christians who arrived in the late 1980s
The child of undocumented immigrant parents from Guatemala whose first language is Mixtec and who has never gone to school has different educational needs than the child of Mexican American parents who have lived in the United States for years, but still speak Spanish at home and maintain their traditional values and customs
The child of a Catholic Vietnamese family who arrived in 1978 will have different needs from a child of a Buddhist Vietnamese family who was born in a refugee camp and whose parents have finally been admitted to the United States after years in refugee camps

This wide diversity of backgrounds, beliefs, and experiences requires educators to acquire skills in avoiding stereotypes, recognizing individual and cultural differences, and developing cross-cultural communication. Many areas of K-12 education that relate to immigrant students are already well-developed fields of educational research and practice: English as a second language, bilingual education, and migrant education. Programs in these areas may already be available in school districts with significant immigrant or migrant student populations. Districts in need of developing such programs are directed to the broad literature and resources in these fields. This section of the guide has a more general purpose:
To provide teaching strategies and techniques for working with immigrant students within the context of the regular classroom
To provide suggestions for enriching the educational experience of all students so today’s children grow into adults who are respectful and understanding participants in a multicultural society

The challenges involved in working with students from diverse backgrounds and cultures may often seem overwhelming, but considerable research already conducted points to ways teachers and administrators can meet this challenge and improve their teaching and the learning of all their students. This process involves:
Receiving training in how to be culturally sensitive
Carefully evaluating each student as an individual to identify strengths as well as needs
Understanding each child within the context of his or her own culture
Employing culturally sensitive assessment and instructional strategies
Training all students to be culturally sensitive and capable of participating in a multicultural society
Involving parents and the community as authentic participants in the educational process

The strategies presented in this guide are designed to help regular classroom teachers more effectively educate immigrant students. Most immigrant students, however, need assistance in adjusting to the U.S. school system. Many school districts around the country have developed programs in response to local needs that are often referred to as "newcomer programs." Implementing such a program can assist immigrant student and teacher alike in the transition to the U.S. classroom.

Newcomer programs, though many don’t use this term, share common assumptions about the needs of recently arrived immigrant students, including that they:
May be of limited English proficiency (LEP)
Need a period of adjustment to both school and society
Need an emotionally safe atmosphere to make these adjustments
Need to be able to rapidly learn English, become acculturated, and reaffirm their self-esteem

Traditional ESL programs address only the language component of this transition. Newcomer programs address a host of other concerns, the specifics of which may vary or change to meet local conditions or the needs of individual students:
Less than age-appropriate education—Some newly arrived students may not be literate in their own languages or may come from preliterate cultures. Others may have experienced so much disruption that their educational attainment is below grade-level. Particularly for older students, providing individual academic attention can make the difference between closing the education gap with their peers or dropping out of school.
Unfamiliarity with the U.S. school system—Being thrown into a classroom with no preparation can be one of the most traumatic things an immigrant student faces. Things established students take for granted not only are unfamiliar to an immigrant student, but such lack of familiarity can set the immigrant student up for ridicule by peers: the grading system, school routine, social customs, how to use school facilities, and how to get help.
Personal trauma—Many refugee students bring with them the scars of personal traumas that their peers cannot imagine and will never know. Almost all immigrant students have been affected by the experience of leaving their home, family, and friends, and settling in a new place with new customs and a new language. Rebuilding their trust and confidence can be a key factor in their later success in the regular classroom.

Newcomer programs have been structured in different ways in different school districts. Differences include:
Whether the program is located on or off campus
Whether it is a school-within-a-school or self-contained program at a separate site
The length of the program—whether it is a full-day program, eventually transitioning to the regular classroom, or a part-day program, with students attending regular classes the rest of the day
Whether language instruction is a part of the program and, if so, whether programs are segregated by native languages or teach students with varied native languages

In addition to the goals and objectives discussed above, many newcomer programs reach beyond academics and school adjustment to address many of the techniques recommended in this guide:
Providing counseling services sensitive to the backgrounds of particular student populations
Providing health services and referrals tailored to the physical and emotional needs of immigrant students and their families
Reaching out to and communicating with immigrant families in their own languages as much as possible
Referring immigrant families to community services and resources to ease their transition to the community
Offering specialized programs, extracurricular activities, and career guidance to help students succeed in school and beyond

Newcomer programs must meet the educational opportunity requirements of Lau v. Nichols (1973) and avoid discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin (Title VI, Civil Rights Act of 1964). In general, newcomer programs have been found in compliance with Title VI by the Office for Civil Rights if they meet the guidelines outlined in its memorandum of December 4, 1990:
The school district is not under a desegregation order
Enrollment in the program is voluntary
The program is multiethnic, multiracial, and multilinguistic
The program is no more than one year in length
Eligibility is based on a need for language instruction and assistance in adapting to U.S. culture
The facilities and range of courses are comparable to other district programs

The following general strategies are intended to help classroom teachers and administrators improve the educational experience of immigrant students so they will have the best possible opportunity to achieve their potential within U.S. classrooms. Many of these strategies involve increasing cultural awareness and understanding. Resources in the next section may be useful in honing strategies for a particular school district or classroom with its own unique mix of cultures. Journal articles and books related to specific teaching strategies or techniques are also suggested as starting points for further learning.

Some strategies that you can use to help your immigrant students include:
Provide all children, and specifically immigrant children, with the right to retain their own culture and language and to become biliterate. Research shows that students who maintain their cultural identity as they become acculturated to U.S. schools have more academic success.
Use culturally appropriate diagnostic and assessment techniques as tools for identifying the strengths and needs of immigrant students.
Recognize and use different teaching techniques to enable bicultural students to learn through different approaches and learning styles.
Visit the homes of immigrant students to better understand an immigrant student’s natural support system (family, friends, those who provide after-school care, those who translate for the family, and the particular student’s immigrant community). Perhaps a volunteer could play this role.
Recognize that a student’s school performance is linked to social/ economic conditions at home. When appropriate, help immigrant families get in touch with community resources to meet family needs, such as housing, transportation, English-language instruction, training and employment, legal assistance, health care, family counseling, and social/cultural programs.
Familiarize yourself with the values, traditions, and customs of your students through reading, classes, and discussions with members of a particular group.
Help all students develop multicultural values and multilingual competence so youth and community will be better able to meet the social and communication needs of a culturally diverse society
Recognize and support cultural and linguistic uniqueness to help students become socially literate and able to communicate across cultures.
View the bicultural experiences of the immigrant child as assets that can be used to help all students develop concepts, literary skills, and critical thinking.
Recruit trained, culturally competent, and credentialed bicultural teachers who can provide strong role models as well as special assistance to help immigrant students excel in a new environment.
Recruit people from within the immigrant community to become certified staff, teachers’ aides, classified personnel, and volunteers to give immigrant students positive role models and to broaden the cultural perspectives of native-born students.
Conduct staff training that presents the legal requirements of immigrant education and allows existing staff to develop cultural competency.
Develop a core curricula that allows immigrant students to develop within the context of the regular classroom, rather than relying on compensatory and remedial education to meet their needs.
Provide different types of programs and a multicultural core curricula to address the diverse academic and linguistic development of both immigrant and native-born students.
Develop "newcomer programs" that help new immigrant children and their families become acquainted with the education system, expectations for students and their families, and the responsibilities of the school toward immigrant children and their families.
Incorporate and connect families to the education of their children and the school community by valuing and using their talents.
Invite members of an immigrant community who are not necessarily parents to become involved with the school and serve as translators and cultural interpreters so that teachers and students develop a broader understanding of different groups and their cultures.
Offer training opportunities for immigrant adults in language skills, work skills, and cultural adaptation that will help them in the larger community.
Encourage community groups and organizations to become culturally competent regarding one or more local immigrant groups. Appreciation of other cultures enriches community life and helps newcomers adjust to their new lives.

In addition to the myriad issues related to teaching any group of students in the classroom today, three issues are especially important in the education of immigrant students—cross-cultural communication, different learning styles, and stresses particular to immigrant adolescents.

INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION. Intercultural communication is a fundamental issue in the education of immigrant students. Intercultural communication refers to communication between two or more people who are somewhat to very different from each other on important attributes such as their value orientations, preferred styles of communicating, role expectations, and perceived rules of social relationships. By understanding the complexity of communication differences and how life experiences affect communication, you will be more effective in teaching immigrant students as well as students born in the United States of diverse cultural and ethnic backgrounds.

Communication differences not thoughtfully resolved can lead to symptoms of education failure, including:
Conflicts between students and between students and teachers or between schools and families
Polarized school performance
Psychosocial maladjustment
Gang activity

Communication styles may vary based on a student’s country of origin, his or her cultural group, the literacy of the cultural group, and the family’s social class and standing within its own group. In addition to these factors, communication styles have both overt and covert dimensions. Overt dimensions of culture—clearly identifiable cultural components—include:
Religion
Formal language
Values and norms as interpreted through philosophy, literature, or folklore

Covert dimensions of culture—unconscious and deeply ingrained behavioral and perceptual patterns—may include:
Concept of time. For example, in some cultures, the concept of "being late" does not exist.
Nonverbal signals. For example, eye contact in one culture signifies respect and in another disrespect.
Low-context versus high-context communication styles. A high-context style, typical of many immigrant cultures, relies on shared understandings of one’s cultural norms and nonverbal cues, while a low-context style, more typical in the United States, relies on the specific meaning of words. For example, in some cultures, "yes and no" responses are expected; in another culture, one has to figure out from the context whether the speaker is saying "yes" or "no."

Educators are often aware of overt cultural components yet do not recognize many of the covert dimensions of culture. It is easy to unintentionally discriminate or form prejudices against people. For example, some U.S. mainstream Americans tend to judge the person who doesn’t answer "yes or no" as dishonest or evasive. Teachers who continually expand their understanding of both covert and overt dimensions of culture will be better able to provide a more relevant and satisfying environment for all students.

LEARNING STYLES. Learning styles also vary on the basis of cultural group and educational experience. In the case of immigrant students, learning styles in the U.S. school culture are often difficult to comprehend:
Emotional style. The competitive, informal and often noisy classes in the United States can be a problem for students used to more formal, quiet, and structured learning
Sociological style. Learning alone as an individual is a social pattern native-born students may be more comfortable with, while learning within a group where students can help each other is often a more comfortable environment for many immigrant students In general, U.S. mainstream learning styles focus on inductive reasoning, problem-solving skills, literacy skills, and articulating one’s knowledge verbally. Other cultural learning styles may emphasize:
Observation and listening
Apprenticeship or performing a task in the context of daily work with the guidance of a mentor
Knowledge of the relationship aspect of learning rather than the content aspect of knowledge
Saving face rather than providing the "right" answer
Storytelling at older ages as a means of learning moral and cultural lessons

ADOLESCENCE. All adolescents struggle with identity issues, but for immigrant adolescents this process can be even more difficult. Conforming to the norms of U.S. culture often places immigrant students in direct conflict with the norms of their own cultures:
Independence and self-expression often conflict directly with the traditional values of family allegiance, responsibility for others, and obedience to authority
Emphasis on school and social activities can conflict with the need to care for younger siblings so parents or guardians can work, or even with the need for adolescents themselves to earn income to help support the family

Conforming to mainstream culture can be as traumatic for immigrant adolescents as failing to conform and being rejected by their peers. Conforming often means compromising one’s cultural values and going against one’s family. Most immigrant adolescents straddle two worlds, which adds considerably to the process of adjusting to adulthood.

Sensitivity to differences in communication and learning styles and to the additional stresses of adolescent adjustment for immigrant students can increase your ability to teach and assist immigrant students.

The following techniques are designed to help you understand your own cultural styles and traits and develop techniques for working with immigrant students in your classroom.

Improve your communication with immigrant students so they can learn more effectively.

Reflect on the limits of your own culture:
Analyze your own overt and covert traits
Critically examine your own values, beliefs, learning styles, and communication behavior

Work with grassroots organizations within an immigrant community:
Learn more about communication styles within that community
Call upon cultural interpreters to facilitate communication with immigrant students and parents or guardians

Be clear in your own style when communicating with immigrant students and their families:
Reach consensus through compromise
Address the immediate need only
Give clear, concrete advice

Do not assume that the other person will approach the discussion the same way you do:
Respect the cultural beliefs of others
Be patient
Consider periods of silence as an opportunity to reflect on what has been said rather than an imperative to speak
Be clear on what you expect the other person to do before and after the discussion
Look for and interpret nonverbal cues

Learn as much as you can about the individual or family you are dealing with, including:
Personal background
Native language
Cultural environment
Educational history
School experience
Health conditions
Family and other social support systems

Use communication styles that are comfortable for you and the immigrant student and family:
Find out whether it would be more helpful to meet individually rather than in groups
Communicate orally rather than in writing
Use "phone trees" to spread information among a number of families within one immigrant community

Be aware of how prior experiences of the immigrant student and family may impede information gathering:
Prior experience with authoritarian officials and governments may make immigrant students and families wary of disclosing personal information
Lack of understanding of how personal information will benefit the student may make student and parents reluctant to disclose family information
Fear of deportation or denial of citizenship, justified or not, may make immigrant students and parents reluctant to disclose current or prior information

Understand the needs of each immigrant child so each one can develop her or his own potential.

Immigrant students come to school with varying degrees of preparation and educational competencies, but all immigrant students face different hurdles than native-born children:
Some will need to develop English-language skills
Some may be illiterate or preliterate in their native languages
Some may lack basic academic concepts needed to function successfully in U.S. schools
Some may have academic preparation or a lack of preparation that makes it difficult to place them within age-appropriate classes or in regular classes relevant to their individual educational needs
Some may have needs that transcend academic concerns, such as difficulties at home or personal traumas, which need to be addressed along with their education

Here are some techniques for understanding the needs of each immigrant child:
Accurately evaluate each child so you will understand individual needs:
      Behavioral or physical disorders may be mistaken for difficulties in communication
      Difficulties in communication may also conceal real behavioral or health problems
      Difficulties in communication may be mistaken for developmental or mental problems
      Language differences, cultural knowledge, learning or behavioral disorders, and physical health problems may be related to one another
Transcend stereotypes and treat each student on an individual basis:
      Assuming that a child is academically gifted when he or she is not can result in emotional distress and school failure
      Assuming that a child should be docile because of stereotypes of his or her cultural group can affect the way you react to that child
      Assuming that a quiet or withdrawn refugee child has limited English-language skills may mask the personal trauma that the child has endured and may still be recalling
Use the intercultural communication skills you have developed to understand any conflicts between home and school roles:
      Meet with individual families to understand conflicting cultural roles
      Involve immigrant families in schooling to help them understand the education system
      Help parents or guardians access English language or family literacy programs if there is a need

Help foster English-language development.

English proficiency has a strong impact on success in school. A 1994 study found that the dropout rate of Latino immigrants was 49 percent for those who did not speak English well, but only 12 percent for those who spoke it very well. While there are several types of ESL and bilingual programs designed to address limited English proficiency, regular classroom teachers can also encourage English-language development for immigrant students:
Provide a nonthreatening environment for conversational opportunities in the classroom. Allow students to take risks and play with language by experimenting with sounds, words, and syntactical constructions.
Value a student’s first language. Encourage parents to talk with their children in their first or home language if that is their stronger language. (Using English will not be helpful if parents are uncomfortable or limited in their proficiency.) Include exercises or curricula that help you and other students learn aspects of immigrant students’ first languages.
Be aware that second-language learners will experience a nonverbal or silent period as they absorb information in their new setting but cannot or do not feel comfortable demonstrating it.
Recognize that second-language learning takes a long time: one to two years to develop basic interpersonal skills, and from five to seven years to develop cognitive or academic language proficiency.
Become familiar with your students’ home culture so that you can use culturally familiar examples or topics in your classroom when teaching new concepts.
Help students understand what they are hearing in the new language by: (1) selecting a topic of conversation that is familiar; (2) creating a context for what is being discussed; (3) using simple sentence constructions; (4) repeating important phrases; (5) incorporating students’ first languages into your instruction; (6) emphasizing key words to help with understanding; and (7) matching what you do with what you say.
Encourage informal conversations. Students learn a second language from peers, friends, relatives, and neighbors, as well as through more formal means.

Help families get involved with school so they can reinforce learning at home.
Recognize that many families come from cultures where teachers are accorded great authority and family involvement in schooling would be considered rude and disrespectful.
Communicate with families in person and in their primary language, if at all possible. Communicating with parents in their own language builds trust. Written communication assumes a degree of literacy, even in the native language, which may not be valid for all families. Use more than one means to reach parents. Don’t use students to communicate with parents, especially concerning parent-teacher meetings or complaints of bad behavior. Some students may "interpret" the message.
Strive at first to gain the trust of families and recognize that it may take repeated contacts before parents feel comfortable enough to become involved.
Be nonjudgmental in communicating with families. Support the family for their strengths.
Have a clear idea about what you want to get out of a meeting with a family, what you expect them to get from it, and how the meeting will help their child succeed in school.

Principals and administrators must also support family involvement if classroom teachers are to succeed. Administrative support can include:
Establishing flexible policies to accommodate varying family needs
Maintaining a welcoming environment for families
Creating a collegial atmosphere that invites family participation
Supporting staff-development efforts with appropriate resources
Supporting the overall strength and stability of families by referring families, as needed, to family literacy programs, vocational training, educational programs, English language programs, and medical, legal, and other social services
Developing newcomer programs to help orient immigrant families to the school and the community

Involve all families in developing a multicultural perspective that builds self-esteem by recognizing the cultures of all students in the classroom.
Try to enlist the help of all families in identifying appropriate goals and meaningful activities for family involvement, so the multicultural perspective is reinforced at home as well as at school.
Hold orientation meetings or meet individually with families to convey the importance of a multicultural perspective.
Share materials with families and help them find resources and activities that foster pride in their family and ethnic or racial heritage.
Involve families in activities that foster multicultural understanding, such as field trips, presentations to the class, celebrations, and other culturally relevant activities.
Involve family members in creating a book or displays about each child’s family, background, culture, interests, activities, stories, artifacts, and so forth.
Involve parents, grandparents, community leaders, and others in storytelling about their own cultures.
Focus on the similarities while celebrating the differences.
Be aware that some groups may observe traditional celebrations and commemorations that conflict with a district’s holiday schedule. When appropriate, school staff may want to consider modifying the holiday schedule. Teachers should also factor in the religious and cultural expectations placed on students when looking at completion of assignments and absences.

Be sensitive to the reluctance of some parents to become personally involved right away. This type of multicultural learning may seem very strange or they may feel uncomfortable with this kind of attention being focused on them. Be prepared to draw on other members of the community, if necessary. And don’t forget to share about your own cultural heritage and ethnic background. Your sharing gives students and parents an opportunity to feel more connected to you and broadens their acceptance of similarities and differences in others.

Be particularly sensitive to the fears and insecurities of undocumented students and the issues surrounding their right to an education.
Be aware that a 1982 Supreme Court ruling (Plyler v. Doe) guarantees all children residing in the United States the right to a free public K-12 education regardless of their immigration status.
Be aware that undocumented students will suffer greater stress and worry than other immigrant children.
Avoid actions that might send a signal to undocumented families that their right of access to education is in jeopardy:
      Don’t ask about a student’s immigration status.
      Don’t request immigration documentation.
      Don’t deny a student, on the basis of immigration status, the opportunity to enroll in school.
      Don’t ask questions of a student or a parent that might expose undocumented status.
      Don’t ask parents to apply for Social Security numbers for their students (undocumented immigrants aren’t eligible). Districts cannot require Social Security numbers. For identification purposes, a family can: (1) devise a number to use for identification, (2) use the number assigned by a migrant education program if they participate in one, or (3) apply for a taxpayer identification number (W-7 Application for IRS Individual Taxpayer), which is not reported to the INS.
If you become aware of a student’s undocumented status, treat them with the same respect and consideration you show all students.
If you become aware of a student’s undocumented status, be aware that federal law bars you from disclosing that information to any organization, including the INS.

Like good student assessments, this self-report card for classroom teachers is designed to help measure your own progress while identifying ideas for improving your classroom.

Administrators can take several steps to make their districts and schools more supportive and welcoming to immigrant students.

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