Supporting Young Children of Immigrants in PreK-3. Occasional Paper Series 39
Author: Silin, Jonathan, Ed.
Date: 2018-04-00
Type: Collected Works - General
Subjects: Young Children,Immigrants,Educational Policy,Educational Practices,Equal Education,Disabilities,Gender Differences,Racial Differences,Ethnicity,Social Class,Social Bias,Advocacy,Student Characteristics,Cultural Awareness,Misconceptions,Culturally Relevant Education,Research,Hispanic Americans,Presidents,Politics of Education,Bilingual Education,Spanish Speaking,English (Second Language),Environmental Influences,Safety,Library Role,Administrator Role,Early Childhood Education,Parent Participation,Refugees,Parent Attitudes,Experiential Learning,Student Projects,Personal Narratives,Trauma,Family School Relationship,Parent Teacher Cooperation

In this issue of the Occasional Paper Series describes practices and policies that impact the early schooling of children of immigrants in the United States. The authors consider the intersectionality of young children's lives and what needs to change in order to ensure that race, class, immigration status, gender, and dis/ability can effectively contribute to children's experiences at school and in other instructional contexts, rather than prevent them from getting the learning experiences they need and deserve. The essays all grapple with the need to approach programs, research, and school practices with respectful, strength-based views of communities. They frame inequities, disparities, and &quot;gaps&quot; as institutional challenges rather than child, family or community deficits. Together the authors articulate an agenda of advocacy for young children of immigrants. Work that engages children and families in strength-based, asset-oriented ways should: (1) Recognize strengths and capabilities of children, families, and communities; (2) Avoid programs, policies, discourses and practices that begin with deficit views of immigrant families and communities; (3) See the children of immigrants as intersectional and complex; and (4) Create programs that begin from the expertise and experience of immigrant families. Contents include: (1) A Vision for Transforming Early Childhood Research and Practice for Young Children of Immigrants and Their Families (Fabienne Doucet and Jennifer Keys Adair); (2) Intersectionality and Possibility in the Lives of Latina/o/x Children of Immigrants: Imagining Pedagogies Beyond the Politics of Hate (Ramón Antonio Martínez); (3) No Room for Silence: The Impact of the 2016 Presidential Election on a Second-Grade Dual-Language (Spanish-English) Classroom (Sandra L. Osorio); (4) Building Safe Community Spaces for Immigrant Families, One Library at a Time (Max Vázquez Domínguez, Denise Dávila, and Silvia Noguerón-Liu); (5) Administrators' Roles in Offering Dynamic Early Learning Experiences to Children of Latinx Immigrants (Alejandra Barraza and Pedro Martinez); (6) Rethinking &quot;Parent Involvement&quot;: Perspectives of Immigrant and Refugee Parents (Zeynep Isik-Ercan); (7) Experiential Knowledge and Project-Based Learning in Bilingual Classrooms (Adriana Alvarez); (8) Over the Hills and Far Away: Inviting and Holding Traumatic Stories in School (Lesley Koplow, Noelle Dean, and Margaret Blachly); (9) Building Bridges Between Home and School for Latinx Families of Preschool Children (Gigliana Melzi, Adina R. Schick, and Lauren Scarola); and (10) Building Bridges, Not Walls, Between Latinx Immigrant Parents and Schools (Kiyomi Sánchez-Suzuki Colegrove). [Individual articles contain references.]