by: anonymous
One of the articles I found most compelling this semester was the Allen (2006) piece about immigrant student integration in schools in Quebec. In this study the researcher observed and interviewed five students in the accueil program who were over the age of sixteen, eager to complete their secondary studies like their peers in their home countries, and barred from mainstream classes in their second year in Quebec because of their “inadequate” French. These students expressed feelings of discouragement, depression, anxiety, and disappointment. Because they were delayed and held back, many of the students viewed French as a barrier to learning rather than an academic tool for success. What I found the most heartbreaking was a Korean girl’s descriptions of her feelings of failure, blaming herself for her circumstances, and not feeling smart like she had in her home country (Allen, 2006).
Continue reading “language is a tool not a status symbol”