Educating Immigrant Students in the 21st Century: What Educators Need to Know

"A comprehensive and important examination of the education of immigrant students in the U.S. Rong and Preissle's focus on cultural and linguistic transformation across four generations is truly unique."
—Stacey J. Lee, Professor of Educational Policy Studies
University of Wisconsin-Madison

"The book provides practical recommendations for teachers and administrators on how to make informed decisions about programs and practices, especially in the area of assessment and other accountability measures."
—Marisa Castellano, Visiting Associate Professor
University of Louisville

Clear guidelines for making informed instructional decisions for immigrant students.

Between 1990 and 2005, the number of immigrants and their children in the United States reached more than 70 million, or more than 20% of the nation's population. Today, educators face significant shifts in the educational landscape. This revised sourcebook supplies educational policy makers and administrators with the information they need to address new challenges in providing children of diverse backgrounds with a quality education.

This new edition of Educating Immigrant Children gives educators contemporary perspectives on immigration by clarifying the current demographic data and its significance for schools. The authors present updated information on the unique needs of immigrant students, including children from the Middle East and students of white non-Hispanic backgrounds, and help educators explore evidence-based practices and policies for adapting and improving the learning environment. The second editionexamines:

• Factors that influence linguistic transition and educational achievement
• Strategies for working with immigrant families
• Equitable assessment approaches and accountability measures
• Data-based management methods for informed decision making

Wide-ranging and illuminating, this book should be on the shelf of every educator and anyone who plays an active role in the education of immigrant children.

This comprehensive new edition clarifies current demographic data on immigration, addresses factors that influence linguistic transition and achievement, and explores evidence-based practices and policies.

Xue Lan Rong, a professor at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, is a first-generation immigrant whose native language is Chinese. As a classroom teacher, teacher educator, and educational sociologist, she has more than 25 years of teaching experience in public schools at various levels in the United States and China. She obtained her research experience via sociological, demographic, and pedagogical training. She has continually published in major sociological and educational journals and presented at national conferences on the topics of generation, race and ethnicity, national origins, gender, social class, and educational attainment and achievement of immigrant children since 1988, when she finished a dissertation on immigration and education at the University of Georgia.