New Faces

Course Description

Teachers across America are looking into the eyes of new faces. Demographic shifts are both informing and alarming, and assure that classroom teachers will be seeing "new" faces in ever growing numbers. This will be true as long as this great country offers hope and opportunity to the world; they will keep coming, both legally and illegally. The children of immigrants are bringing to our classrooms new and formidable challenges and now is the time to prepare to meet those challenges. This course has been designed to provide skills and knowledge that will empower the classroom teacher to meet the needs of "new faces" and at the same time improve the educational opportunity for all students.

Objectives

• Learn the history of immigration in America, become aware of important immigrant related legislation, and consider current issues associated with legal and illegal immigration
• Identify and correct myths about immigration
• Investigate and describe "The Immigrant Experience"
• Review the research and analytical theories related to immigration
• Name and describe determinants that drive cultural conflict
• Address issues and concerns of English Language Learners>
• Identify assimilation issues, concerns, and problems
• Develop parent involvement strategies
• Analyze cross-cultural issues
• Compose generalizations regarding "newcomers"

Curriculum Design & Time Requirements

The teaching methodology provides extensive opportunities for experiential learning of concepts applicable to immigrant education. Participants will develop appropriate and effective paths to cultural assimilation using acquired concepts, and also will apply the concepts to “real” problems common to the immigrant experience. This is a forty-five hour graduate level course taught in the classroom.

Course Materials

The required text for this course is Bridging Cultures Between Home and School: A Guide for Teachers by Elise Trumbull. In addition, participants will be provided a student guide.

Session Outline

Session 1: History of U.S. Immigration Legislation
Contents:

1. Get to Know Each Other
2. Review Issues and Concerns
3. Ice Breaker
4. Course Overview
5. Setting Personal Goals
6. Overview of the History of Immigration
7. Current Status of Immigration
8. Court Decision and Legislation
9. Current Issues Associated with Immigration

Session 2: Identify and Correct Myths
Contents:

1. What is an Immigrant? Diversity Among Immigrants
1. Home-School Conflict
2. Individual vs. the Group
3. Independence vs. Helpfulness>
4. Praise vs. Criticism
5. Cognitive vs. Social Skills
6. Oral Expression vs. Respect for Authority
7. Parent's Role vs. Teacher's Role
8. Personal Property vs. Sharing
2. Review of Population Statistics/Demographics/Census Data
3. Reviewing 8 Myths Regarding Immigrants
4. Where and Why Immigrants Locate
5. A Classroom Lesson

Session 3: The Immigrant Experience
Contents:

1. Adjustment Issues
2. Family and Cultural Support
3. Cultural Differences
4. Generational Issues
5. Acceptance/Rejection Continuum
6. Case Study: "Mexicans"
7. A Classroom Lesson

Session 4: Research and Analytical Theories
Contents:

1. Review of the Research on Immigrants
2. Theories
3. Social Capital/Asset Accumulation
4. Attainment Transfer
5. Some Generalizations
6. A Classroom Lesson

Session 5: Cultural Conflict
Contents:

1. Identify Sociological Determinants of Cultural Conflict
2. Social Consequences of Diversity
3. Commonalities - Building Blocks of Tolerance
4. Balancing Assimilation and Differentiation
5. Mid-Term Exam

Session 6: English Language Learners
Contents:

1. Growing Challenge and Terms
2. Terms and Bilingualism
3. Political Concerns
4. Background Assessment
5. Building Lessons
6. Teaching Hints

Session 7: Assimilation Issues
Contents:

1. Similarities and Differences
2. Bridges
3. Review
4. Culturally Neutral Knowledge
5. Readiness Learning Center
6. Practice

Session 8: Parental Involvement
Contents:

1. Introduction
2. Objectives
3. Effective Communication
4. Values Orientation/Recommended but Not Always Successful - Newcomers
5. Parental Involvement Program
6. Assignments

Session 9: Cross Cultural Issues
Contents:

1. Course Generalization
2. Role Expectations
3. Improving Parent/Teacher Conferences
4. Learning What Works
5. Case Study
6. Teachers as Researchers
7. Outline a Multicultural Lesson: Scope and Sequence
8. Summarize Course

Session 10: Bridging Cultures and the Path to Citizenship
Contents:

1. Course Review
2. Session Objectives
3. Course Generalizations
4. Checklist
5. Policy Consideration
6. The Question
7. Resources Review
8. Course Evaluation
9. Final Exam
10. Revisit Issues and Concerns
11. Close-Up

Grading

		Assignment	Points			Grading Scale
		Attendance & Participation	20			100 – 93	A
		5Bridges Final Project5	25			92 – 85	B
		Session Reflections	30			84 – 77	C
		Mid-term Exam	10
		Final Exam	15
		Total Points	100

Student Requirements

	1.	Attend all class sessions for the requisite number of hours (45) and actively participate in all class activities.
	2.	Complete all reading assignments. Reflect upon the major ideas in the assigned readings and the application of those ideas in your school and classroom.
	3.	Complete the Bridges Final Project.
	4.	Pass the mid-term and final exam.

Student Academic Integrity

Participants guarantee that all academic class work is original. Any academic dishonesty or plagiarism (to take ideas, writings, etc. from another and offer them as one's own), is a violation of student academic behavior standards as outlined by our partnering colleges and universities and is subject to academic disciplinary action.

Register

To register to take TEI's New Faces course, go to the Course Registration page.