Journal Issue: Children of Immigrant Families

Posted by on October 15, 2004

[posted from Public Education Network newsblast]

CHILDREN OF IMMIGRANT FAMILIES

This journal issue focuses on the growing number of immigrant families in this country, and the challenges faced by their children as the next generation of Americans. For the most part, children of immigrants benefit from having healthy, intact families, strong work ethic and aspirations, and a cohesive community of fellow immigrants to ease their transition. But they also often face many obstacles, including poverty, discrimination, limited language skills, and lack of access to quality health care and education resources. Even though most children of immigrants are born in this country, and therefore are entitled to services and benefits the same as every other U.S. citizen, they often are not able to take advantage of these supports. As a result, though children of immigrants may start out with good health and high educational aspirations, these strengths can dissipate by adolescence. At each stage of their development, further efforts are needed to ensure that children in immigrant families have access to the resources they need to help them stay on positive pathways to success. The futures of these children — and of the entire nation — are at stake.

http://www.futureofchildren.org/pubs-info2825/pubs-info.htm?doc_id=240166