JULY 2013

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NEWCOMER PROGRAMS /NEW ARRIVAL CENTERS

NOTE TO SAN DIEGO COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICTS

Newcomer Programs/New Arrival Centers Defined

A Newcomer Program is a transitional program that provides intensive instruction for 1-3 semesters designed to bridge the gap between newcomers needs and regular language support programs by helping them acquire beginning English skills, provide some instruction in core academic content areas, and guide the students acculturation to the U.S. school system (Short, 2002, p.175). These programs typically serve middle and high school-aged migrant and refugee students who have little or no formal educational experience, are English language learners, and are below grade level (Short, 2002). In San Diego County, they have termed such programs New Arrival Centers. There are several of these programs across San Diego that serve middle and high school students. Yet, coteachers for the recently established New Arrival Center at Marshall Elementary School say that theirs is the only [elementary] one available in San Diego. With an increasing migrant and refugee population in San Diego who bring with them many school-aged children, the need for quality New Arrival Centers is evident. How would providing more New Arrival Centers at the elementary level serve and benefit students, schools, and communities?

Photo Credit: Exiled Tibetan and Ladakhi students by Wen-Yan King. Retrieved from Flickr.com, 10 July 2013.

DATA COLLECTION 2 Two-Day Observations New Arrival Classroom, Monroe Clark Middle School New Arrival Classroom (2nd/3rd grade, 4th/5th grade) 2 Interviews Kristy Drake, Teacher at Monroe Clark Middle School Amy Vagdama-Smith & Susy Althof (Co-teachers New Arrival Center/Kindergarten Teachers

HOW WOULD PROVIDING MORE NEWCOMER PROGRAMS/NEW ARRIVAL CENTERS AT THE ELEMENTARY LEVEL SERVE AND BENEFIT STUDENTS?

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REVIEW OF THE RESEARCH: BEYOND LANGUAGE AND ACADEMIC ASSISTANCE

Newcomer programs typically serve middle and high school students (or ages 10-26) because of their need to catch up to their age-level peers in a short amount of time, while schooling competes with more adult responsibilities that they may need to assume on behalf of their families (Higgs, 2005; Short 2002). While it may be the case that elementary students have more time to adjust to schooling and gain language and academic skills, evidently these programs see the need to assist students as early as the 5th grade. The unique needs of all newcomer students include assistance with academic, language, cultural, and social adjustment (Cairo et al., 2012). The National Center for Research on Diversity Excellence (CREDE) did a 4-year research study of 115 middle and high school newcomer programs, and found that effective programs (distinct from typical English language learning programs) include native language literacy development, orientation to school and the community, and foundational content courses, and they help the students learning a range of school skills[and] involve the families in the range of services they offer such as social, health, and employment services (Short, 2002, p.175). The key aspects that would be beneficial to elementary students that may not be included in mainstream or typical ELL programs are those aspects of cultural and social adjustment for the whole family. Current immigration policies, the fluctuating nature of them, and/or previous experiences that may have caused families to leave their homes are situations that make the transition into new school and community cultures particularly trying for students. Fear and anxiety [of deportation, jeopardizing legalization status, etc.] leads to fear and anxiety in a child. A frightened, anxious child is likely to find learning more difficult (Reynaldo Contreras, 2002, 148). The integration of refugee children into school [due to potentially traumatic pre-arrival experiences] will be particularly challenging, and the sensitivity of teachers and the support of specialist psychologist and other services will play an important role (Hannah, 2007, p.35). Specialized professionals, and overall sensitivity and referral training for teachers would definitely be beneficial to include in newcomer programs/ new arrival centers to create a welcoming and nurturing environment. Programs and staff that are specifically dedicated to newcomer populations also create that nurturing environment that students appreciate and benefit from. F.A.C.E. Time (Families and Communities Educating) (an after school program), F.A.C.E. Time Summer, and Prime Time Family Reading programs implemented in Kentucky elementary schools have contributed to a sense of community, safety, and belonging; helped cultivate friendships between participants and outside community peers; improved social behavior in terms of comfort, self-confidence, and more out-going nature; and provided students with more productive ways of dealing with emotional and behavioral issues. They have led to improved academic scores; and decreased time that students needed to spend in future ESL programs. They have helped develop relationships between parents and schools; establish a more open school community; validate school professionals and their knowledge; and establish collaborative partnerships (Cairo et al., 2012).

KEY ASPECTS OF NEWCOMER PROGRAMS/ NEW ARRIVAL CENTERS THAT WOULD BE

PARTICULARLY BENEFICIAL FOR ELEMENTARY STUDENTS ARE THE CULTURAL AND SOCIAL ADJUSTMENT GOALS FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY.

Photo Credit: Refugee camp by Travlr. Retrieved from Flickr .com10 July 2013

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REVIEW OF THE DATA

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I
Photo credit: Community by Jeff Kubina. Retrieved from Flickr.com 10 July 2013

n observations of the New Arrival Center at Marshall

SOCIAL/CULTURAL SERVICES IN CURRENT ELEMENTARY PROGS

Medical and Dental Assistance Mental Health Support Family Literacy/ESL Classes Computer classes Parent Education Workshops (Boyson et al. 2002, pg.25) Reading, Music lessons, Academic instruction/tutoring, Social behavioral exploration or cultural expression, Photography/literacy, Story telling African drumming Hands-on science and math lessons, Writing, social studies (on represented countries), art, P.E. (Cairo et. Al, 2012)
CURRENT MODELS ACROSS THE COUNTRY

Program-within-a-school Whole School Separate Site Half Day Full Day Less than half a day After School Combination (Short, 2002)

Elementary (half day program-within-a-school), and at Monroe Clark Middle School during their summer, the language and academic goals set forth by San Diego Office of Language Acquisition for the New Arrival Centers aimed for secondary learners seemed to be effectively met; in spite of the minimal training that they are provided (according to the Marshall teachers). Experiences such as using texts as references to fill graphic organizers about where and how students used to live, wear, and eat compared to what they do here in the States (Marshall); writing and publishing personal narratives, and doing group presentations about historical immigrants (Monroe Clark) promoted everyday and academic language experience and content exposure, but also brought up a lot of insights into pre-arrival experiences and revealed sensitive situations that the teachers were unsure what to do with except to create their classroom as the safe space for such dialogue. In interviews, the teachers of these classes express that there is a need for social assistance as a part of the New Arrival Programs. Marshall teachers express that there is a need for a Welcome Center, where all siblings are together for a while, and there is a parent orientation, so that families are eased in to the school culture, introduced into a nurturing environment, and are introduced to local resources by a community liaison. Monroe Clark Middle School teacher says, Im a teacher, but Im inherently a social worker. She explains that she needs to take it upon herself to connect families to social services, and personally helps them navigate the fundamentals of U.S. living (such as grocery shopping, public transportation, etc.). Shes also experienced that the New Arrival Center serves as a space where the students have common ground in terms of relating to each others experience, learning how to resolve conflicts, and build a community that buffers the effects of bullying from their mainstream peersan positive effect that the F.A.C.E. Time program was able to gain at the elementary level amongst their students (Cairo et al. 2012).

Im a teacher, but Im inherently a social worker.Kristy Drake, New Arrival Center Teacher

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IMPLICATIONS
This data collection and literature review leads to a couple suggestions for San Diego district offices to consider: The San Diego school districts should look into more elementary school NAC programs of some kind for their incoming newcomer students. Not only would this help students transition into sites mainstream classes and English language learner programs academically and linguistically, but would also help to address the social and cultural needs of the whole family. This would build better home-school connections and position schools as great social agents for the communities that they serve. They should provide more training for New Arrival Center educators need to be in place across the board. Going beyond providing a general overview of the NAC program and curriculum, training needs to be in place to be able to deliver this curriculum, but also be sensitive educators to the prior experiences of their students.

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Photo credit: Scaffolding by emilieclaireevans. Retrieved from Flickr.com 10 July 2013

REFERENCES
Center for Applied Linguistics. Edited by Boyson, B.A., Coltrane, B., Short, D.J. (2002). Proceedings of the first national conference for educators of newcomer students. Retrieved from http://crede.berkeley.edu/research/crede/pdf/newcomer.pdf , 24 June 2013. Cairo, A., Sumney, D., Blackman, J., Joyner, K. (2012). F.A.C.E. Time (Families and Communities Educating): Accommodating newcomers in elementary school. Promising Practices. Winter 2012. P.55-58. Retrieved from http://www.eric.ed.gov/PDFS/EJ1001527.pdf 20 June 2013 Hannah, J. (2007). The role of education and training in the empowerment and inclusion of migrants and refugees. Comparative and Globalization, Comparative Education and Policy Research, Vol.2, p.35. Retrieved from http://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-1-4020-8349-5_3 24 June 2013 Higgs, E. (2005). Chalk talk--Specialized high schools for immigrant students: A promising new idea. Journal of Law & Education. Vol.34, No.2. 332, 336. Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=7&sid=af0796a4-2331-4b15-9b4b5b90f28e70dd%40sessionmgr14&hid=20&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=eft&AN=502589757 20 June 2013. Reynaldo Contreras, A. (2002). The impact of immigration policy on education reform: Implications for the new millennium. Education and Urban Society, Vol.34, No.2. 148. Retrieved from eus.sagepub.com 20 June 2013. Short, D.J. (2002). Newcomer programs: An educational alternative for secondary immigrant students. Education and Urban Society, Vol.34, No.2, 174177. Retrieved from eus.sagepub.com 20 June 2013.

Consider establishing more elementary level New Arrival Centers to address all the unique needs of newcomers and create stronger school-community relationships