Asian Immigrant Students Research Articles

Narratives of the social scientist: understanding the work of John Ogbu

This article contextualizes the work of the late educational anthropologist John Ogbu in terms of uniquely American narratives that have explanatory and motivational value for different segments of the US population. The narrative Ogbu championed has explanatory value among several educational researchers, and is consistent with an ethnic immigrant narrative that has long held motivational value among African, Asian and European immigrant students in the United States – quite possibly including John Ogbu – who came to the US as an immigrant student himself. While I point out specific problems that undermine the accuracy of Ogbu’s assessments and the quality of his analysis, I also point out that (for better or worse), when it comes to the effectiveness and acceptance of such narratives among different groups of people, historical accuracy and objective truth is not as important as the extent to which the explanations offered hold explanatory and motivational value and resonate with individual or group experiences and understandings of the world.

Please Speak Up: Asian Immigrant Students in American College Classrooms

AbstractInformal conversations and structured opportunities for oral communication help international students overcome barriers to improving their academic language skills.

Asian-Immigrant Students—Unique Problems That Hamper Learning

Many Americans, including educators, mistakenly believe that all Asian immigrant children are model students. Because of their cultural and educational backgrounds they sometimes react to the American public school system with bewilder ment and/or disinterest. The author recommends that educa tors try to understand and work with parents.

The Language Learning Situation of Asian Immigrant Students in the U.S.: A Socio- and Psycholinguistic Perspective

Abstract This essay delineates the nature of the language learning situation of Asian immigrant students in the United States, drawing on insights from existing socio- and psycho-linguistic literature. Using Schumann’s acculturation model of second language acquisition, the author argues that: (1) the experience of immigration has a profound effect on the social and psychological distance felt by Asian immigrant students for native English speakers in their efforts to learn English; (2) their Asian ethnicity, given the current interethnic relations in the country, further increases this distance; (3) the above mentioned factors are more significant than the students’ linguistic and cultural “baggage” in accounting for their difficulties with the English language; (4) an ambivalence-ridden “no-win” situation is created when Asian immigrant students attempt to make English their own, causing them to adopt a range of responses unproductive for language learning; (5) consequently, the language needs of Asian ...