Refugee Students In The United States

Refugees face challenges most Americans cannot fathom. Each refugee experience is unique. Although many refugees are relocated to a new, safe country, the struggles they face do not end when they are resettled. New challenges emerge as they try to adapt to their new culture. Over half of refugees are children (McBrien 329). Thus, refugee children are forced to overcome many barriers. Cultural differences, language acquisition, and discrimination are major obstacles refugee children deal with (McBrien 330). Refugee children especially struggle as students. Since most refugee students are unfamiliar with the United States school systems, they find themselves lost in mainstream, American classrooms. The majority of refugee students are classified
The article “Educational Needs and Barriers for Refugee Students in the United States: A Review of the Literature,” by J. Lynn McBrien, demonstrates what refugees face when they first enter a classroom in the United States. McBrien draws on the struggles refugees face, such as, discrimination from peers, segregation, withdrawal from family and social life, misunderstandings between students and teacher, and unclear expectations (McBrien 333). If teachers are more aware of refugee needs they can teach them in more effective ways. McBrien goes on to explain how “newcomers assimilate into the White middle-class majority” (McBrien 331). Refugees try to “identify with Americans” to feel more comfortable in social situations (McBrien 332). However, many refugees since the 1970s have struggled more with acculturation due to their religious beliefs. Students tend to be more selective in who they allow to be welcome in their social life whether they can identify with them or not. Refugees that come from dissimilar backgrounds than Americans struggle more in schools. For instance, different religions from what students are familiar with, such as Islam, make American students less likely to befriend a refugee. These refugee students are less likely to “melt” into the culture that American students expect them to. Ultimately, the stigmas set by the American society can either “encourage or discourage welcoming refugees from various countries” which, in return, “plays a prominent role in their success” (McBrien 332). For teachers to understand refugees, they first must understand that there are major differences between refugees and immigrants. McBrien states, “refugees do not leave their homes by choice” (McBrien 334). Refugees are often sent to camps with poor living conditions “before they receive notice that a country is willing to resettle them” (McBrien 334). Although most refugee