“True or False? My newcomer should be referred to the child study team. He is often disruptive in the classroom and kicks and hits the other children. There is something wrong with him aside from not knowing the language. FALSE.” (Haynes, 2007)
Students who are new to a country and act out in the classroom are most likely suffering from culture shock. Kalvero Oberg first coined the term “culture shock” in 1960 to describe the feelings that people have when they move to an unfamiliar culture (Haynes, 2007). People differ greatly in the degree to which culture shock affects them, but almost everyone is affected by it in one way or another. Symptoms vary, but can include:
- boredom
- withdrawal (e.g. spending excessive amounts of time reading; avoiding contact with host nationals)
- feeling isolated or helpless
- sleeping a lot or tiring easily
- irritation over delays and other minor frustrations
- suffering from body pains and aches
- longing to be back home
As educators, we need to remember and realize that when people move to another country they leave behind a familiar home, familiar school, and perhaps a familiar culture. The usually leave behind family members, friends, teachers, and pets. “Children often do not have the full support of their parents because the parents are experiencing culture shock, too” (Haynes, 2007).
Five Stages of Culture Shock according to Haynes (2007):
1. Honeymoon stage – newcomers are excited about their new lives. They are very positive, curious, and anticipate new exciting experiences. Everything is wonderful and they are enjoying learning about the new environment.
2. Rejection stage – They reject their new surroundings because there is so much that they do not understand. Some students may become aggressive and act out their frustrations.
3. Regression stage – ELLs are frustrated because they cannot communicate and are bombarded with unfamiliar surrounds, unreadable social signals, and unrelenting barrage of new sounds. They are homesick and miss their family, friends, and familiar sights and sounds”.
4. Integration Stage – newcomers start to deal with the differences between the old and new cultures. They begin to feel a new sense of belonging. They learn to integrate their own beliefs into their new environment and begin to find ways to exist with both cultures.
5. Acceptance Stage – Newcomers are now able to enter and prosper in the mainstream culture. Some students will adopt the mainstream culture at school and follow the values of the home culture outside school.
Tips for how teacher can help to help students dealing with culture shock (Miller, 2012):
- Teach students about culture shock. Knowing what to expect can give students a sense of recognition and control.
- Encourage students to continue learning their native language. Make a dual language book library in the classroom and encourage students to borrow materials to share at home.
- Establish and carefully explain classroom routines to newcomers. By doing this, you create a classroom culture that students can settle into quickly, thus reinforcing their sense of safety.
- Plan for projects where students can teach you and their classmates about their culture. This will foster a feeling of mutual respect in the classroom. Each member will feel she has something valuable to contribute to your promotion of global understanding.
- Help students connect to activities that might interest them outside of school. Art classes, sports teams, and hobby programs can help students feel part of a new community network.
- Encourage students to find or form support groups with other students who may be at the same point in the U-curve of culture shock.
- Allow time for reflection. Teach students vocabulary for feelings. Using pictures of children showing different emotions can be helpful in teaching expression. If students are old enough, let them journal
- Teach and model conflict resolution skills. Have students role play scenarios, so when difficult real-life situations occur, they will have the tools to react in a healthy way.
By understanding the culture shock experience, and its stages, teachers can better support the experience of the immigrant children in their classrooms. Teachers need to continue to be loving, caring and supportive individuals. They should get to know as much as they can about their ELLs, the more they know the easier it will be to activate their prior knowledge, plan lessons and activities based on their interests, and build a positive relationship with them.
References:
Haynes, Judie. (2007). Getting Started with English Language Learners: How Educators Can Meet the Challenge. Retrieved from: https://books.google.ca/books?id=S7NTCh3vJ4IC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Getting+Started+with+English+Language+Learners:&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjfjpznipjSAhWhh1QKHSr4BjkQ6AEIGjAA#v=onepage&q=Getting%20Started%20with%20English%20Language%20Learners%3A&f=false
Miller, Colleen. (2012). How to Help Students Survive Culture Shock. Retrieved from:http://blog.languagelizard.com/2012/02/23/how-to-help-students-survive-culture-shock/
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