Abraham is a 14-year-old immigrant boy from Pakistan. Abraham has a young brother named Yosef who is 9 years old and a sister named Jasmine who is 6 years old. He and his family immigrate to America. The family is very excited and has high hopes and expectations from their new homeland, America. The plane lands in Newark airport, New Jersey, and they are on their way to the immigration process. 

Abraham:

I am very Excited!

The family faces a language shock. Luckily, Abraham understands a little bit of English language because he went to an English School in Pakistan but he is not very proficient. During immigration, the family faces a lot of hurdles to answer the questions when asked by an immigration officer.

Officer: Can I have your passports please?

Ummm!!!! sorry no English.  

PASSPORTS PLEASE !!!!

Finally, they step into an American land with a little bit of disappointment in their heart after the whole process. Where ever the family goes, they encounter only English Language. The whole family realizes, to become an American they have to learn English or else they will not be able to survive in their new homeland. 

Abraham and his siblings start public school. They are lost in class activities. Abraham seems like a very shy. He does not speak in class and sits in corner because he can’t speak in English.

Learn English!

He embraces the goal of becoming fluent in speaking English language. It is a fact that learning English is a fundamental requirement for acceptance and participation in an English dominant world. 

Abraham faces unwelcoming peers. Some American peers’ attitude towards Abraham breaks his heart because they always pick on him and frighten him. 

Hey you don’t belong here.

You are not like us!

SCHOOL

John

Abraham high hopes and expectations collide with a reality of being an unwelcome immigrant student in school.

Abraham is not the only one who faces problems with American teens. In fact, the research says, 70 % of the immigrant students report severe tensions or problems with American-born teens.

Ms. Sandra: Abraham you should speak in English only. You will not become an American if you speak in other language.

But Ms. Sandra, I love my native language as much as I love English Language.

Why Can’t I speak both languages and be an American too!!!

Teacher

Abraham

His textbooks and all the classroom activities are in English language only. According to formal school policy, court law, and program design, the educational task facing immigrants in order to become American is a matter of becoming English speaking. Research tells us that Americanization workers considered multilingualism a threat to cultural unity and social stability. Because of this reason, the push towards monolingualism was demonstrated in textbooks and teachers' manuals. 

English

Only

English

Only

English

Only

English Only

American peers mistreat and take advantage of Abraham because of his limited English proficiency (LEP). Thus, he interacts with them only when it's really necessary. Data suggests that LEP creates an invisible reinforcement for segregation between immigrants and American youths. LEP becomes a label of "the other" (vs. Americans as "we”) --the people who come from "other" countries.

Segregation

American peers scorn at him when he speaks to his friends in his native language.

Abraham feels ashamed of his language. Research tells us that immigrant students feel language shame or sense language embarrassment and anxiety due to harsh criticisms from their peers. Some report teasing and/or language and cultural stigmatization in schools as youngsters.

Mommy! my teacher criticizes and

insults me when I speak in Urdu.

I don’t want to speak in Urdu anymore.

Son! don’t be embarrassed. Your language is a part of you.

Mom

Abraham

Abraham begins questioning his bilingual identity. Like Abraham, many immigrant students in elementary and middle school reported that their teachers denigrated their native language to the point that it caused them to question their bilingual identity.

Teachers tell Abraham, if he speaks in English, he will come closer to his American peers and can hang out with them. This mindset came from the previous educators who believed that English language instruction would serve as a cultural unifier to bring immigrants and native-born Americans together, creating a coherent national identity through "the use of one language and of the same ideals"

You me friend?

Abraham, with his imperfect English, tries to speak with Harry and offer friendship.

I don’t understand what you are saying?

Ummmmm!!! Friendship?

Sorry, it seems hard to communicate with you.

Abraham struggles to interact with Harry due to his limited English proficiency (LEP). A study based on 16 immigrant youths confirmed that LEP made social interactions with Americans difficult and some teenagers perceived that their "poor English" could irritate American peers.

Abraham struggles in comprehending the social studies, math, and science subjects because he can't understand the language of the teacher or the language in the textbook. He does not find ESL classes very useful. Research reveals that a majority of these classrooms fail to provide strong English language development because of its insufficient attention to writing, reading comprehension, and academic vocabulary.