Immigration and Students’ Relationship With Teachers

Abstract

Students’ relationship with teachers is a building block toward student progress and success. Little is known, however, about the relationships the children of immigrants have with their teachers, which is particularly relevant today in the midst of the current social, political, and economic debate over the influence of immigration in U.S. schools. Analyses, which draw from the public-use Educational Longitudinal Study of 2002 and multiple regression analyses, indeed reveal imperative findings. Most notably, first-generation immigrant students report having strong relationships with teachers, but that relationship steadily deteriorates across immigrant generations. This article also discusses the importance of understanding the schooling of the children of immigrants in this nation’s educational system.

The Children of Immigrants’ Academic Self-Efficacy: The Significance of Gender, Race, Ethnicity, and Segmented Assimilation

“…Indeed, experiences with segregation and discrimination may contribute to poor outcomes of particular racial and ethnic minority immigrant subgroups of color (Feliciano, 2009;Lee, 2005Lee, , 2009Portes & Rumbaut, 2001Waters, 1999). Studies reveal that for students in immigrant families, race and ethnicity segment experiences with school violence, relationships with teachers, achievement, attitudes, and involvement with extracurricular activities (Greenman, 2013;Lee, 2005Lee, , 2009Olsen, 2008;Peguero, 2009Peguero, , 2011Peguero, , 2012Peguero & Bondy, 2011;Suárez-Orozco et al, 2009;Valenzuela, 1999). In this regard, the role of race and ethnicity may be significant in relation to the children of immigrants' academic self-efficacy.…”

School Order, Justice, and Education: Climate, Discipline Practices, and Dropping Out

“…Therefore, students' relationships with teachers can shape students' behavior in school as well as influence their educational progress and success. Research consistently reveals that adolescents who report healthy and strong relationships with their teachers show improved educational achievement, motivation, cognitive, emotional, and social development, prosocial behavior, and self‐esteem (Crosnoe, Johnson, & Elder, ; Davis & Dupper, ; Hamre, Pianta, Downer, & Mashburn, ; Peguero & Bondy, ). Likewise, adolescents who perceive their relationships with teachers as poor demonstrate diminished social, emotional, and behavioral responses to their education.…”

Enemies or Friends? Newcomer Immigrant Students’ Developing Conceptions of Diversity in High School

“…It seems that even in environments where the dominant discourse centers on assimilation and separation, spaces may exist in which diversity is respected and promoted. Sometimes, such spaces are cultivated in certain classes and in relationships with teachers and mentors (Gibson et al, 2004;Peguero & Bondy, 2011). Other times, the way in which multicultural education is practiced at school may affect the students' views about diversity (Fletcher, 2014).…”