Running Head: PUBLIC EDUCATION AND IMMIGRANTS 1

The Impact of Public Education Systems on Immigrants

Mimi K. Trieu

Global Studies and World Languages Academy

Instructor: Mr. Gregory Falls

December 2018
PUBLIC EDUCATION AND IMMIGRANTS 2

Abstract

Immigrants have faced many challenges in regards to cultural assimilation. While arriving to a

land of opportunities, they had to leave family members behind in their places of origin.

Language barrier is the universal problem that immigrants face along with financial struggles to

support the family. There is a line of progression for the three sections: Vietnam, Virginia Beach,

and Sweden. Vietnam pushes their students to take many rigorous coursework. They follow the

motto, “More means better.” Virginia Beach City Public Schools has provided assistance with

English for both students and parents from supportive teachers places of worship. Sweden

ensures that every child has equal and equitable access to educational opportunities. Also, all

asylum-seeking children have rights to an education. Parents of English as a Second Language

(ESL) children have to sacrifice their lives for their children to have better educational

opportunities. Due to this sacrifice, the only positive outcome is to depend on their children for a

better future.
PUBLIC EDUCATION AND IMMIGRANTS 3

Table of Contents

Abstract …………………………………………………………………….. 2

Introduction …………………………………………………………………….. 4

Literature Review …………………………………………………………….. 6

Limitations …………………………………………………………………….. 8

Discussion …………………………………………………………………….. 10

The Universal Problem of Immigration …………………………….. 10

The Education System in Vietnam …………………………….. 13

The Education System in Virginia Beach …………………………….. 14

The Education System in Sweden …………………………….. 16

Conclusion …………………………………………………………………….. 17

References …………………………………………………………………….. 19

Appendix A …………………………………………………………………….. 23

Appendix B …………………………………………………………………….. 25

Appendix C …………………………………………………………………….. 27
PUBLIC EDUCATION AND IMMIGRANTS 4

The Impact of Public Education Systems on Immigrants

Mother To Son
Langston Hughes

Well, son, I’ll tell you:

Life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.
It’s had tacks in it,
And splinters,
And boards torn up,
And places with no carpet on the floor—
Bare.
But all the time
I’se been a-climbin’ on,
And reachin’ landin’s,
And turnin’ corners,
And sometimes goin’ in the dark
Where there ain’t been no light.
So boy, don’t you turn back.
Don’t you set down on the steps
’Cause you finds it’s kinder hard.
Don’t you fall now—
For I’se still goin’, honey,
I’se still climbin’,
And life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.
(Hughes, 2018).

Imagine a little girl, facing adversity in a place where the dirt roads were littered with

refuse and mechanical parts from the daily motor accidents. This girl, for the first five years of

her life, grew up in Vietnam in a ten-room residence with thirty-five members of her extended

family. They shared a bowl of food, the steam rising from the clumpy rice, the content not

enough to fill everyone’s aching stomachs. The heat, the lack of food, the closed living space all
PUBLIC EDUCATION AND IMMIGRANTS 5

provoked emotions, and one family member pushes another down the long staircase. She is left

crying in the shadows cast by the sunlight shafting through the dirty windows.

The impact of this impoverished state still affects the little girl today. At seventeen, she

has literally lost inches from her height due to malnutrition as a toddler, and the scars of harsh

memories pushes her further and further away from that world. The journey to get back on her

feet and climb the metaphoric stairs of life was long and filled with more adversity. It started in

the new world in Virginia Beach.

That girl struggled both at school and at home. She was bullied as a child because she did

not speak proficient English. For that same reason, her cousins often excluded her because they

did not kept their native language. Language barrier was the author’s largest obstacle to

overcome. Looks can be deceiving in English. Why, for example do ​tomb​ and ​comb​ not rhyme?

Also, why does the adjective come before the noun, or why are conjugations even necessary? In

Vietnamese, none of these grammatical rules apply, making the learning even more challenging.

Unfortunately, immigrants learning English do not always receive the help they need, often

facing discrimination and exclusion. The girl still remember the tears she shed because she could

not master English as quickly as she needed. She know that her empathy as well as her English

skills can make the kind of difference that she did not have as a child; therefore, she is willing to

assist other immigrants that have been in her shoes. While immigrants come to the United States

to find a better life, there are many obstacles that adult and child immigrants must face.

Language barriers and cultural assimilation are often much more challenging than expected. A

built-in support system can be offered by VBCPS with a better understanding of the challenges

immigrants face. This paper also faces barriers and limitations.

PUBLIC EDUCATION AND IMMIGRANTS 6

Literature Review

` The United States is known to comprehend the positive changes in society through

industrialization, urbanization, and most significantly, immigration. During the 1920s, the vast

majority of immigrants came from Europe. Later in 2002, there has been a drastic increase in

immigrants from Latin America and Asia (Massey, 1981). While immigrants primarily come to

the United States to have a better life, according to Waters and Jimenez (2005), immigrants face

challenges through cultural assimilation due to language and education system, socio-economic

issues, and psychological effects that children and adults face (Waters and Jimenez, 2005, p.

105).

Interracial Marriage

Studies has shown that intermarriage is a huge part of assimilation. There is a higher

intermarriage rates with Asians and Latinos with whites. For example, if a child has a native

parent and a non-native parent, that child would have an advantage to the education system

oppose to a child who both has two non-native parents (Waters and Jimenez, 2005).

Psychological Effects of Immigrants

From the research of Angelini, Casi, and Corazzini (2015), immigrants struggle to

maintain in a new society because of mental health, social stress, and discrimination. Because

immigrants are naive from their new surroundings, they can get into conflict with the natives,

which results in unstable conditions (Angelini, Casi, and Corazzini, 2015). According to the

American Psychological Association, western culture tends to have xenophobia, which is the fear

of foreigner that can also result in discrimination among schools, employment, and

neighborhoods. In addition to neighborhoods, it is the most essential element towards

PUBLIC EDUCATION AND IMMIGRANTS 7

contributing in their community. However, they do not get the opportunity to assimilation due to

majorities being prejudice towards small groups (American Psychological Association, 2018).

The article, Unity in Diversity, contradicts the American Psychological Association and the

research of Angelini, Casi, and Corazzini. The government of Canada and the United States have

assisted immigrants significantly by ensuring technical support, supporting funding and grants,

and accessing policymakers. These activities from the government convey a sense of comfort for

new immigrants (Bloemraad, 2007).

Social-economic Issues

According to the article, Immigration’s Effect on the Economy, there are substantial

amount of immigrants living in the United States. A majority of immigrants do not have access

to education; therefore, they take up many laborious jobs, such as construction and farming.

Furthermore, this produces a conflict within the United States for workers without a college

degrees due to the fact that there are many immigrants taking over limited jobs. However,

companies have been taking advantage of immigrants. Since they have poor communication

skills due to language barrier, companies are paying immigrants insufficient wages in order to

reduce the prices of consumer goods (Amadeo, 2018).

Language and Education

In an article about lonely language learners, ​English Language Learners​ (ELL) students

have a difficult time socializing with their peers. The problem was indicated because of the

teaching methods imposed on the education system. The school is taking precious time from

ELL students to make friends because of separate instruction time (Kilman, 2009). Through the

research conducted on English Language Learner, the education system places a negative
PUBLIC EDUCATION AND IMMIGRANTS 8

stereotypical label on these students. Although an ELL is fluent in English, the education system

places them in their native language classroom. In addition, they have to constantly take exams

to consistently measure their English skills (Lloyd, 2017). However, ​Immigrant Children and

Youth c​ ontradicts the idea that the United States Education System has helped immigrants

achieve their educational goals by sharing international journals, acknowledging the fact that

immigrants have their reasons to migrate, emphasizing new ideas to welcome new foreigners

(Adelman and Taylor, 2015, p. 324).

Educators are passionate to help adult immigrants to assist them assimilate into the

United States cultural norms. In addition, educators are trying to persuade adults that learning

English enables multiculturalism instead of taking their native language away (Ullman, 2010).

Although there has been studies on assimilation of immigrants, these research have been

profoundly on identifying the issues that immigrants face. While many scholars have conducted

experiments to ease immigrants into a new society, immigrants are still struggling to adapt to a

new education system.

Limitations of Study

The author was born in Vietnam. She went through a 9,000 mile journey to come to the

United States. Because she did not have assistance as a child, she wants to start a project to make

a difference in other people’s life by providing assistance with English to immigrant students and

their parents. While this project is the author’s lifelong passion, there are limitations to her work.

She is only focusing on three countries, which are Vietnam, the United States, and Sweden.
PUBLIC EDUCATION AND IMMIGRANTS 9

Experience Limitations.​ Since the author lived in Vietnam for a short period of time,

she did not get the full experience of the Vietnamese Education System; therefore, she must rely

on her Vietnamese students to assist her conduct research. Moreover, gathering sources in

Vietnamese will be a challenge for the author because reading and writing in Vietnamese is

difficult. The author had to go through culturalization as a child. As a result, she had to focus

primarily on her English instead of Vietnamese.

Location Limitations. ​After moving to the United States to have a better life, she is not

limited by her English skills, but she is limited by her location. The United States contains a total

of fifty states with localities having jurisdiction over their own public schools. Because the

author lived in Virginia Beach, Virginia her whole life and have not been to any other states, she

can only focus on her experience and knowledge of Virginia Beach City Public Schools. On a

larger scale, the author does not have any knowledge of the education system on a federal level.

Language Limitations.​ Sweden is approximately 4,200 miles away from the United

States. The author did not have an opportunity to study in Sweden and adapt to its culture. Due to

her stable life in the United States, the author does not plan on living in Sweden in her lifetime;

therefore, she does not speak Swedish, which makes gathering resources difficult. Furthermore,

the author is having a difficult time finding a Swedish translator to help her with her research.

While Sweden is known for its education system, the author does not have personal experience

with Sweden’s Education System.

Comparing Virginia Beach, which is a city to Sweden, which is a country is a challenging

task. There will be challenges because it is going to be difficult to identify the similarities and

differences between two education systems since they are both different scales in population. By
PUBLIC EDUCATION AND IMMIGRANTS 10

only focusing on three countries, the author is limited to the amount of research to conduct. Also,

the rest of the world is not implemented into this project.

Discussion

The Universal Problem of Immigration

Challenges for immigrants are universal. There are no “crystal stairs” for them to climb,

in fact, trying to climb the stairs to success for immigrants are often flaunt with instramountical

obstacles. According to Tallwood High School ESL teacher Bernadette Parris, she articulates

that ESL students experience culture shock, which is the feeling of discomfort trying to

assimilate into a different culture. Moreover, ESL students are confused because of

acculturation. They have to maintain their own culture but also become part of a different

culture. A primary example of obstacles seen by children immigrant is the education system.

While familiarizing into a different education system, ESL students have a difficult time with

social skills. They are afraid to socialize with native speakers because they are afraid to make

mistakes due to the fact that their pronunciation is not perfect. Since most ESL students are

introverted, they are unable to make friends. It is typical to see native-speaking children perceive

judgements on the new coming immigrants. Prejudice is a concern for all ESL students because

the unwelcoming feeling causes stress, which is detrimental to their health (Parris, 2018).

Parris mentions that parents play a significant role in the lives of ESL students. Because

parents work long hours due to minimum wage, they do not have time to read to their ESL

students. In the beginning of their education, ESL students’ vocabulary are limited because their

literacy rate is low. This could potentially have long-term effects throughout their education;
PUBLIC EDUCATION AND IMMIGRANTS 11

therefore, reading is important for school success. Since parents have their own concerns, ESL

students are left on their own to survive a new education system (Parris, 2018).

Any one of these obstacles would be huge for any child to overcome, yet every

immigrant who travels to another country for a better life must overcome them. Furthermore, the

obstacles of ESL students and parents does not get any easier, especially for parents.

Mr. Nguyen’s story is one of misfortune and isolation. As a widower without any

extended family in the United States, Nguyen is left raising two adolescent boys in a foreign

country. This situation has led native-born Americans to be prone to prey on his challenges. He,

like many first generation immigrants who do not have mastery of the language or culture, can

easily be preyed upon in everyday transactions. (See Appendix A for the full interview).

According to Christina Nunez, she highlights the challenges that immigrants encounter

while living in the United States. She emphasizes that there is not enough time in the day among

taking ESL classes, searching for a decent job, and taking care of their children. Nunez verifies

Nguyen’s personal narrative by implying language barrier is the universal problem that all

immigrants face, especially in the workplace because they can easily be taken advantage of.

While Nguyen emphasizes language barriers, Nu​ñ​ez also articulates about cultural

barriers as problematic to immigrants. Nunez provided an example of how western cultures

consider hiking as an activity to bond and know the importance of teamwork, but immigrants

remember hiking as a time they had to flee from their homes. Misinterpretations can be taking

place (Nu​ñ​ez, 2014).

A specific example happening today that pertains to immigration is a universal problem

is the dispute between the United States and the Mexican Border. Caitlin Oprysko explains that
PUBLIC EDUCATION AND IMMIGRANTS 12

President Donald Trump maliciously tweets, “Mexico should move the flag waving Migrants,

many of whom are stone cold criminals, back to their countries, (Trump as cited in Nu​ñ​ez,

2018). This quote implies that President Trump is unwilling to let these Mexican immigrants

cross the border by ordering U.S. authorities implement tear gas to those that rush to the border.

He does not provide any evidence to support that Mexican immigrants are “stone cold

criminals.” The tears of women and children continues to rage as they seek for asylum, but they

are prevented from to have a better life because of political debates. Immigration remains a

universal problem because millions of people die to have a better life.

It may be difficult to truly understand the scope of this problem if only numbers are

focused upon. Highlighting individual stories is equally important when talking about massive

issues. One story of a Mexican immigrant is that of Ms. Beatriz Hayes, a custodian for Tallwood

High School, which illustrates this issue (See Appendix B for the full interview). Hayes, like

others from Mexico, fought her way from the corruption of Mexico, where, in her estimate,

ninety percent of the people in a community would be involved in selling drugs to survive. She

also brought out the reality that the financial opportunity available for hard working immigrants

would increase the value of income one hundred times over.

A political figure who has provided financial and political opportunity is Chancellor

Angela Merkel of Germany. She has helped ease Syrian refugees and immigrants by creating an

open-door policy. Merkel was able to accomplish this policy by demonstrating compassion to her

approach (Vonberg, 2018). However, her main opponent, Horst Seehofer from the Christian

Social Union argues that Merkel’s approach led to the government collapsation in Germany. In

order to prevent Germany from collapsing, Merkel decided to listen to her opponent and made
PUBLIC EDUCATION AND IMMIGRANTS 13

stricter policies for immigration to Germany (Ngo, 2018). While Merkel was trying to be

inclusive, her enemies struck her ideas down by being selfish.

The Education System in Vietnam

London justifies that the Vietnam War has cause Vietnam to enter extreme poverty,

which interfered with the education system. When Vietnam fell under communism, The

Communist Party of Vietnam started to escalate. The Communist Party of Vietnam has promised

a full commitment to providing support for education by providing funds for construction to

upgrade schools. Their essential success in improving the education system is to raise campaign

and engage students through basic literacy courses. Furthermore, the goal is to increase literacy

by thirteen percent (London, 2003).

However, Nghia Nguyen, a high school student in Vietnam who has now immigrated to

the United States, juxtaposes London’s justification of The Communist Party of Vietnam

assisting the education system. Through his high school experience, Nguyen’s academic journey

was more than just a basic literacy test. Many Vietnamese students are obliged to take twelve

strenuous subjects, such as Math, Chemistry, Biology, Astronomy, Oceanography, History,

Vietnamese, Art, Music, Teen Living, Physical Education, and another foreign language since

the model in Vietnam is “the more classes there are, the smarter students become” (Nguyen,

2018).

Although Virginia Beach is a small scale compared to Vietnam, Vietnam should

incorporate an essential idea to promote a healthy living, which is more does not mean better.

For example, in Virginia Beach City Public Schools system, students may only take up to eight

classes. With less classes, they are able to incorporate extracurricular activities, such as sports,
PUBLIC EDUCATION AND IMMIGRANTS 14

clubs, honor societies, and other after school activities. Also, students will most likely get the

eight hours of sleep that growing adolescents deserve. As a result, the essential idea of more does

not mean better will lead to a healthier life.

The Education System in Virginia Beach

Virginia Beach City Public Schools Student Statistics.​ Although Virginia Beach is a

microcosm of the national system of support for immigrants, it provides more educational

support than Vietnam. Mrs. Renee Collier, the Virginia Beach City Public Schools ESL

Coordinator, has statistics on the Virginia Beach education system ESL students and parents.

There are currently 1,354 English Learners in the city of Virginia Beach: nine hundred seventeen

Elementary English Learners, two hundred thirty-one Middle School English Learners, and two

hundred five High School English Learners. Out of 1,354 English Learners in the city, six

hundred forty-four students attained English proficiency; elementary school one hundred

seventy-three students, middle school three hundred two students, and one hundred sixty-nine

high school students. Due to political issues, there are some students who refuse language

services offered by Virginia Beach City Public Schools. There are currently ten students in

elementary school and fifteen students in middle school who fall into this category (Collier,

2018).

Virginia Beach City Public Schools Teacher Statistics. ​Virginia Beach City Public

Schools have thirty full-time and 2.5 part time ESL teachers. Elementary school currently has 16

full-time and 1.5 part-time teachers. Middle school currently has seven full-time ESL teachers.

High school has seven full-time and 1.5 part-time teachers. Two teachers have been serving the

Newcomer Program at Landstown High School, which has just launched this school year
PUBLIC EDUCATION AND IMMIGRANTS 15

(Collier, 2018). The student-faculty ratio makes it difficult for English Learners to learn.

Students have role models to look up and to share their feelings with; therefore, there should be

an increase in student-faculty ratio.

On Time Graduation for ESL Students. ​Once they are found eligible for ESL services,

students are given the opportunity to take courses as foreign language credit so that they can

meet graduation criteria. These are the courses that they may take: English as a Foreign

Language (EFL) I, EFL II, and Read 180. To take these course there is a prerequisite. EFL I

requires an English Language Development (ELD) level criterion of 1.0-2.5. Once they have

taken this course for one year, they can take EFL II if they meet the eligible English Language

Proficiency (ELP) level of 2.6-4.3 and pass EFL I. In addition, all ESL students can take ESL

Effective Reading Skills for High School Students at any ELD level of 1.0-4.3, also called Read

180 / System 44 (Collier and Parris, 2018).

The Adult Learning Center Support.​ The city of Virginia Beach has developed

programs to assist adults. The Adult Learning Center has been a program to assist parents of

English Learners. However, due to adult immigrants long working hours, they have scheduling

conflicts. Classes usually takes place in the evening, but the parents are working hard to support

their family. In addition, there is a high fee associated with the English lessons.

Local Support.​ New Covenant Presbyterian Church, located on Kempsville Road, has

been providing free English lessons to adults of different backgrounds. Stan Kennedy, the New

Covenant Presbyterian Church tutor, has provided a facility to assist with English learning. He

first launched the program on September 2017. He created the schedule that indicates that the

class lasts for 2 hours from 7-9 p.m. with a 15-minute break. The food is free with water and
PUBLIC EDUCATION AND IMMIGRANTS 16

coffee. They test the adults to place them in the right level. Their classes are not formal English

like a typical English class at school. Instead, they help adults with everyday conversational

English. There are a total of 30-35 adults learning. Since there are five teachers, each teacher

gets 7 adults. The goal of the teachers are to have a heart to teach these adults. They want to see

progression in their students to be successful citizens. As long as they have the response that they

have, their program will continue to launch through advertisements, such as seeing the sign

outside of the church, viewing the internet, and observing signs from public facilities (Kennedy,

2018). Although these teachers are improving the lives of ESL adults, there is inadequate amount

of time to comprehend to material since it only takes place once a week. Therefore, the author is

determined to expand the program.

Virginia Beach is just one city to assist immigration; however, the world is currently

experiencing massive migrations of immigrants to countries throughout the world as a result of

recent wars and the destruction of entire countries. This begs the question: What do other

countries do to support school-aged immigrant children?

The Education System in Sweden

According to the article ​Education In Sweden​, Sweden’s education system has provided

every child with free access to education. It is mandatory for Swedish children to attend ten years

of schooling. All children must start school at the age of six (2018). Pre-school in Sweden is for

children ages one to five. At this level, they emphasize play is an important to increase a child’s

well-being and development. There are four levels of education in Sweden: Pre-school, lagstadiet

(grade 1-3), mellanstadiet ( grade 4-6), and hogstadiet (grade 7-9). Gymnasium (grade 10-12) is
PUBLIC EDUCATION AND IMMIGRANTS 17

optional. As students reach this level of education, Sweden requires them to have strong passing

grades in Swedish, English, and mathematics.

Because of these additional requirements, Sweden has improve teaching as a profession.

The New Education Act of 2011 promotes freedom of choice through providing principles for

further education. Furthermore, there Sweden has invented a new grading system that would

benefit the students. They have incorporated letters A to F in 2011.

According to the article ​Education​, While Swedish children are getting opportunities to

go to school, Sweden also ensures that all asylum seeking children have the right to go to school.

Infants who are one-year-old may attend preschool without paying any fee as their parents go to

work because the municipality where the asylum seekers live is responsible for equal access to

education. The Migration Agency may not reveal personal information without the parent’s

consent. Sweden benefit parents because if they have a residence permit, they are eligible to train

for Swedish for Immigrants (SFI). This program allow parents to learn Swedish to assimilate into

the Swedish culture.

Conclusion

Immigrants will continue to face obstacles and challenges imposed by society, which

represents the broken staircase that they need to climb. Each immigrant has their own different

broken staircases that they need to climb. These broken staircases can range from language

barriers to government corruption to deprivation of food. Because of these broken staircases,

parents of ESL students are constantly working long hours to financially support their family;

therefore, they do not have time to learn English.

PUBLIC EDUCATION AND IMMIGRANTS 18

Parents do not have a solution to their problems. The source that parents rely on is their

children furthering their education to change the family history. Since students have a longer

road to travel, they have more time for better educational opportunities. Moreover, learning

English is easier for students at a young age. Although this concept is easier said than done, the

power of overcoming adversity is the way to reach to the top of the staircase.

Now that the little girl has reached the age of maturity, she is determined to help others

that have walked the same path. Zig Ziglar once said, “There is no elevator to success, one has to

take the stairs” (2017). The little girl feels empathetic towards the plight of immigrants and

wants to help. She has a strong comprehension of what these groups of people are going through.

Instead of taking the stairs, she plans on building an escalator to ease their pain from tutoring

ESL kids to informing parents on paperwork to creating a unified support system.

PUBLIC EDUCATION AND IMMIGRANTS 19

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Amadeo, K. (2018). Immigration Pros and Cons. Retrieved December 3, 2018, from

https://www.thebalance.com/how-immigration-impacts-the-economy-4125413

Angelini, Casi, & Corazzini. (2015). Life Satisfaction of Immigrants: Psychological Stress and

Mental Health.

Assimilation Concerns for Immigrants [Personal interview]. (2018, October 10).

Bloemraad. (2007). Unity in Diversity: Multiculturalism and Integration Among Immigrants.

Collier, R. (2018, December 6). ESL in Virginia Beach [E-mail interview].

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weden/While-you-are-waiting-for-a-decision/Education.html

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Kennedy, S. (2018, December 4). Adult ESL Assistance in New Covenant Presbyterian Church

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PUBLIC EDUCATION AND IMMIGRANTS 22

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-take
PUBLIC EDUCATION AND IMMIGRANTS 23

Appendix A

Interview with Mr. Duc Nguyen

Interview Questions:

● What was your educational background story in Vietnam?

● Why did you decide to immigrate to America?
● Was the process of immigration difficult?
● How did you feel arriving to the country of opportunity?
● What struggles do you continue to face?
● What do you hope for you two sons?

Duc Nguyen, the father of two immigrant children, immigrated to the United States to

have a better future. Nguyen emphasized his life struggles living in Vietnam. When the Vietnam

War continued to escalate in 1975, Vietnam did not provide any educational support for students

and parents; therefore, Nguyen move to Saigon, the capital of Vietnam, to pursue a decent

education (Nguyen, 2018).

By the time of his senior year in high school, his mother passed away, which led to his

father marrying another woman. This time was a difficult one for Nguyen. On top of losing his

mother and adjusting to his father’s second wife, he was not provided with any financial support.

Consequently, as an eighteen-year-old adult, Nguyen had to advocate for himself. He had to

move out and rent his own apartment by working nine hours each day. Although he went through

adversity, he knew that education was the only way to escape poverty. Nguyen’s persistence

helped him graduate high school in 1995, but he did not stop learning (Nguyen, 2018).

He continued to pursue a higher education by attending college where he majored in

economics. In 2001, he wanted to challenge himself by going to law school in Saigon to become

a lawyer, which is a high salary job.

PUBLIC EDUCATION AND IMMIGRANTS 24

On the personal level, he met the love of his life in 2004, and soon after they welcomed

their first child. They had their second child in 2006. Because Nguyen was balancing family,

work, and night classes, he did not have leisure time, and he only have four to five hours of

sleep. These factors did not prevent Nguyen from his dream job to become a lawyer. After nine

years of hard work, he graduated law school in 2010 and became a lawyer.

Even though being a lawyer met his standard of living, he decided to immigrate to the

United States after the death of his wife in 2015. The time seemed right for Nguyen to escape

this communist country. Nguyen wanted his two sons to have a better future. However, the

process of coming to the United States is difficult especially filling out paperwork due to the

language barrier.

After a long journey to a country full of opportunities, Nguyen continued to face new

challenges. Language barrier was the biggest obstacle that he had to overcome. The language

barrier made it difficult for him to become a lawyer again. Instead, Nguyen had to do laborious

jobs but in order to find employment, he must have his social security number.

Because of the language barrier, it continues to be difficult for him to get his driver’s

license in both the paper test and the verbal test. His current method of transportation that he can

resort to is walking. He can only rely on his two sons for a better life. The proudest moment is

that his two sons have freedom for education where no bias is taken place.
PUBLIC EDUCATION AND IMMIGRANTS 25

Appendix B

Interview with “B.H.”

Interview Questions:

● Can you please describe your background story about your education?
● How are you able to speak English and Spanish?
● What factors in Mexico has led you to immigrate to the United States?
● Although you have immigrated to the United States, what challenges do you continue to
face?
● How were you able to support your sons financially?
● If you were to be honest with me, do you enjoy working as Tallwood High School’s
Custodian?
● Do you depend on your sons for a better future?

B.H. was born in Mexico City, New Mexico. Her highest level of education was

completing high school. Despite her father being an English teacher, she did not continue her

studies. Unfortunately, she did not take advantage of this opportunity; therefore, her biggest

regret is not continuing English.

She came to the United States in 1999 because of Mexico’s selfish, corrupted

government. In these conditions, she was unable to receive an honest payment for a hard day’s

work. Furthermore, jobs were obsolete due to Mexico’s depleted economy. Because of this,

many people are in poverty, which leads to malicious behavior, such as killing, bribing, and

robbing. Consequently, Mexicans are making money by selling drugs. B.H. articulates that these

malicious behaviors have been passed down from generation to generation. This endless cycle

will continue to happen unless the government starts improving.

PUBLIC EDUCATION AND IMMIGRANTS 26

While living in the United States, B.H. continue to face adversity. Since she quit learning

English, the language barrier hampers her communication with native-speakers in the workforce.

She has to work three jobs: a custodian, a construction worker, and a waitress.

In addition, B.H. faces discrimination by her co-workers. Her only option is to ignore

them and raise money to support her two sons. She is constantly stressed because she does not

have time to interact with her sons. She would work hard all-day. By the time she comes home,

they would be already asleep because they are trying to prepare for the next day.

Although she has encountered many adversities, she is blessed to be in the United States.

The government has provided her family with Medicare to assist them pay for medical expenses.

The job she enjoys the most is being a school custodian because she can monitor her son’s

education. Additionally, the teachers respects her with kindness. They do not judge B.H. on her

socioeconomic status. Her only dream is for her sons to be successful. She does not want to

depend on them. She is willing to sacrifice her life for her sons to have a better future.

Despite all the good, she is concerned for her family back in Mexico because President

Trump is threatening to close the border.

PUBLIC EDUCATION AND IMMIGRANTS 27

Appendix C

Interview with Mrs. Ludmila Yuzhbabenko

Interview Questions:

● Can you please describe your background story about your education in Ukraine?
● What factors in Ukraine has led you to immigrate to the United States?
● Although you have immigrated to the United States, what challenges do you continue to
face?
● How were you able to support your sons financially?
● Do you depend on your sons for a better future?
● What are your opinions on the dispute between Russia and Ukraine today?

Ludmila Yuzhbabenko was born in Odessa, Ukraine. After graduating high school, she

attended Odessa State University with a major in education and a minor in English. As time

progressed, she obtained a Master’s Degree for both her major and minor. Although she has met

her personal goals, she needed to be the best mother she could be. As a mother of three sons,

Yuzhbabenko wanted to provide them with a better life, a better education, and better job

opportunities.

Many Americans believe that Russia and Ukraine are the same country. When Russia

claimed part of Ukraine’s land, it caused the Soviet Union to collapse. As a result, many people

struggled economically in 1991. Therefore, her American Dream was to give her children more

opportunity.

The American Dream came at a price. The cultural battle inside of Yuzhbabenko’s head

is one that most immigrants would understand. Even though Yuzhbabenko had arrived to the

United States, she misses her immediate family and her extended family. Furthermore, she gets

homesick because of cultural differences. Ukraine is a collectivist society, where everything is

done in groups, whereas America is an individualist society, which is based on personal

PUBLIC EDUCATION AND IMMIGRANTS 28

independence. Her biggest contemplation question is, “Am I doing the right thing?” While being

a parent, it is important to be a role model for her sons.

In time, though, Yuzhbabenko found her way. Since Yuzhbabenko’s husband is an

engineer, she was fortunate to financially support her sons. Also she held part-time job as a

substitute within the Virginia Beach Public Schools system. While financially supporting her

son, she does not want them to hold part time jobs. She ended up raising successful young men.

Although they were successful young men, she still depends on them for a better future. The first

son own his business, the second son became an architect, and the third son is applying for

colleges. They are preparing retirement for her.