Thesis (Ph. D.)--UCLA, 2007. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 230-236).

Theses (M. Ed.)--University of Alberta, 2001. / A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Education in Counselling Psychology, Dept. of Educational Psychology, University of Alberta. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 94-108).

Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Smith College School for Social Work, Northampton, Mass., 2009. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 193-200).

Thesis (MEd)--University of Stellenbosch, 2005. / Bibliography. Also available via the Internet.

This study aims to enrich existing local sociological literatures on Mainland new arrivals by exploring the assimilation of their children, including 1.5 generation born in Mainland China and second generation born in Hong Kong. In particular, it focuses on the everyday schooling experiences of children of Mainland new arrivals, such as their learning experiences, their relationship with school or teachers, and their everyday communication with peers. Combining Michele Lamont's concept of boundary and Pierre Bourdieu's concepts of field and capitals with contemporary assimilation theories in the U.S., this study conceptualizes assimilation as a multidimensional process through which migrants and their subsequent generations use different available strategies and capitals to adopt, negotiate, and draw boundaries in various social fields in order to be recognized members of the host community they are living in. Drawing on 11 in-depth interviews with children of Mainland new arrivals studying in secondary school, this study finds that, contrary to the oppressive experiences of first generation Mainland new arrivals especially mothers, second / 1.5 generations have more room or structurally enabled agency to negotiate rather than simply adopt boundaries defining "us" and "other" in the school context. This can be seen, for example, when second and 1.5 generation students alike actively use and modify social meanings represented in cultural products such as electronic games and TV programs to draw boundaries to build and sustain peer relationship in school.

While educators have recognized that students from other countries often face traumatic experiences in their initial period of adaptation to the receiving country's schools and society, little attention has been devoted to understanding the nature or educational significance of these experiences. Traditionally, educators have equated adaptation difficulties with host language deficits, while other, possibly more consequential dimensions of the adaptation experience have gone unrecognized, and have not been represented in educational policy and funding decisions. Accordingly, this study is directed toward providing a more comprehensive understanding of the adaptation experiences of adolescent students who have recently arrived in Canada from other countries, and addresses a critical need for understanding these experiences from the perspectives of the students themselves. Inquiry is advanced within a descriptive, exploratory, and explanatory study which predominantly utilizes a phenomenological, qualitative methodology. The study's principal methodology builds upon Edmund Husserl's philosophical foundation by incorporating the existential perspectives of Maurice Merleau-Ponty, the life-world social dimensions of Alfred Schutz, and the historical-contextual and interpretive elements of Max van Manen's hermeneutic phenomenology. Fieldwork occurred over a six month period in a suburban Canadian secondary school. Study findings and recommendations derive from analysis of interviews, observations, and self-reports of three male and three female grade 10 students who arrived in Canada not more than 20 months prior to the outset of the study. Initial adaptation experiences of study participants point to three principal findings. The study's finding that despite adaptation challenges, students from abroad often achieve at or above receiving society norms within a short period after arrival, suggests that educators should consider how successful academic patterns of newcomers might be adopted by receiving society members. Participant experience indicates that host language acquisition is but one dimension of a multidimensional adaptation experience, and that it is seldom the student's most critical adaptation concern, even in terms of host communication skills. Participants experienced establishing friendships as their most critical and difficult adaptation concern, and looked to friendship to provide uncertainty reduction, access to and inclusion in the receiving society. / Education, Faculty of / Curriculum and Pedagogy (EDCP), Department of / Graduate

The purpose of this qualitative study is to understand the beliefs and experiences of Korean immigrant parents who chose to send their children to a Korean dual language bilingual education (DLBE) program in the United States. Utilizing cultural historical activity theory and bilingualism as theoretical and conceptual frameworks, the author explored (a) how these parents’ prior experiences, transnational/transcultural knowledge, ethnic and cultural identities, and language ideologies have contributed to their educational decision and (b) how the parents are mobilizing their children’s heritage language education through a DLBE program. To honor and value the participants’ emic view, this study employed in-depth individual interviews, activity-based focused group interviews, home visits, and participant observations. Furthermore, for participants to experience and explore dynamic ways to share their stories and lived experiences, the author facilitated opportunities for multiple multimodal research activities such as a shared community walk, a word association activity, and a map drawing activity. The findings revealed that the most important motivation for choosing a Korean DLBE program over English-only programs came from their strong Korean ethnic pride and identity, which they all felt obliged to pass on to their children. Additionally, the participants became social, cultural, and educational resources for each other to compensate and overcome various challenges in supporting their children’s bilingual education due to the short bilingual teacher retention, isolated program configuration, and discontinuity of the program after elementary school. All the participants embodied the importance of maintaining heritage language and culture, actively supporting their children’s in and out of school experience and advocating for their children’s bilingual education. This study offers implications and suggestions for teaching and research as well as for ethnically, culturally, and linguistically marginalized immigrant bilingual communities. The author hopes to contribute to research and pedagogical practices in bilingual/bicultural education, heritage language learning, and community-based research, focusing on finding ways to better serve minoritized immigrant communities in the United States.

The overall purpose of this preliminary study is to generate more information in the area of intercultural marriage. The specific objectives of the study are to explore the extent to which families of intercultural marriage are aware of the issues of biculturalism that are discussed as significant in the literature; the extent to which partners of intercultural marriage discuss these issues with one another or with their children; the extent to which the family members' subjective reports of "awareness" are consistent.

No description available.

No description available.