The Experiences of Refugee Youth from Burma in an American High School

Countering Deficit-Based Narratives through Student Voice

Lisa Roof, Mary B. McVee

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2020
• Print ISBN: 9780367561185
• eBook ISBN: 9781000292435
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Education General

This timely volume uses critical ethnographic methods to trace the experiences and identities of refugee students from Burma as they move through their final year of schooling in an urban high school in the United States.

Against the backdrop of increasing tensions surrounding immigration and identity in America, The Experiences of Refugee Youth from Burma in an American High School presents an analysis of the academic paths of adolescent immigrants and the challenges they face throughout their schooling. Delving into the historical and socio-political context of the school and surrounding landscape, this volume offers an immersive, insider perspective of the educational circumstances of SaySay, Paw Htoo, and Hlaing, the three newcomer youths—from Burma. Through detailed ethnographic narratives, readers are introduced to resilient adolescents who navigate their way through the maze of social expectations, language-learning demands, and ethnic-related tensions to rebuild their identities in the United States. By highlighting the students' stories and identities, the book shows how racism is subtly woven into the fabric of education in the United States, and how schools can provide more equitable schooling for newcomers from other nations.

This volume will benefit graduate students, researchers, academics, and pre-service teachers in the fields of English language learning, refugee and immigrant education, and the sociology of education. Those with an interest in urban and multicultural education will also find this text useful.

1 Introduction

Hearing the Voices of Refugee Youth from Burma

Littleleaf High School: SaySay, Paw Htoo, and Hlaing

Originally, I (Lisa) was introduced to Littleleaf as a graduate assistant working on a small project to help teachers in a linguistically and culturally diverse school—70% of all students were English learners (ELs) and over 40 different languages were spoken by students. Our task on the project was to help the teachers implement lessons related to the new forms associated with the Common Core State Standards (National Governors Association Center for Best Practices, Council of Chief State School Officers, 2010). I was to work with a handful of teachers as a literacy coach, providing them with resources, guidance, and advice as they worked with their students, who were primarily ELs. This position was supported by a state-funded grant led by faculty from a local university. In addition to hiring literacy coaches to work in the building, university faculty also provided weekly on-site professional development for teachers in the areas of literacy, language, and technology. The school had been identified as one of the lowest achieving schools by the state, and the goal of the project was for the local university to partner with the public school to assist school leaders, teachers, and students for support. The students who had refugee status were primarily from countries including Burma, Nepal, Somalia, and Pakistan. For the next year and a half, I spent about ten hours a week observing in many classrooms, helping teachers plan their lessons, getting to know the students, and immersing myself in the school environment.

After this intense year and a half at Littleleaf (more on the school context and history is provided in Chapter 4), spending time at the school with teachers and administrators, conducting observations in classrooms, and learning about the background of the school and community, I came to realize that refugees were a population whose voices often went unheard in the educational and academic literature. I also started to explore my own subjectivities as a White woman and researcher (see Chapter 4). At this time, Littleleaf had also experienced a recent influx of students who were originally from Burma, and I began to focus on this particular people group, trying to read every information source I could find. Given that I was already familiar with the school and its community and knowing there was a need to focus on work with refugees, and in this case, youth who were newcomers from Burma, I decided to seek permission to conduct dissertation research at Littleleaf. In the fall of 2014, I asked and was graciously invited into the lives of three youths—Hlaing, Paw Htoo, and SaySay—who had originally come to the United States with their families as refugees. For the next year, I spent time with these three students, interviewing them, observing in their classrooms, and learning about Burma, the immigrant and refugee community, and their lives.

When I met SaySay, Paw Htoo, and Hlaing at Littleleaf High School, all of them were in grade 12, their senior year (i.e., their final year of public schooling in U.S. secondary schools). Two of the students, SaySay and Paw Htoo, were Karen (Kah-REN), a people group from Burma from the southeast side of the country in a region called Karen state. Although this population resides in Burma, they are indigenous people of the region with their own distinct language and culture. Unlike SaySay and Paw Htoo, the third student, Hlaing, grew up speaking Burmese in her home because she was ethnic Burmese. (More information on the history, language, and ethnic groups in Burma is included in Chapter 2.)

SaySay

When I first met SaySay, he had been in the United States for a little more than three years. SaySay stood in front of a table in the art room, talking animatedly in Karen, his home language. The response of classmates and his gestures and tone conveyed he was telling a story. Four Karen girls, also students, stood around him, watching him intently, nodding their heads, and smiling. SaySay was easy to like. He would smile at those around him in a way that denoted camaraderie—as if they all shared a mischievous secret. Mrs. Clark, his business law teacher, noted “people congregate to him.” Several times, when he was paired with other students who were not interested in participating, he worked hard to include them, despite their resistance. He was also generous with his time, helping teachers make resources for their classrooms during his study hall. Teachers and classmates at Littleleaf viewed him as a self-assured and popular student.

SaySay always dressed in casual clothes—Adidas sneakers, jeans that were fashionably ripped, and a red long-sleeved shirt. He did not carry one of the typical Karen messenger bags that some students used, even though some of his friends used these bags. If I had encountered SaySay at any of the other high schools where I had worked, his dress or behavior would not have stood out as different from any other adolescent.

Observing him in art class, he seemed to be in his element. Once on a project involving painting a piece of muslin with a patterned design, he was not as far on his project as the other students. The teacher prodded him to hurry several times, but he would not be rushed. He worked methodically and seemed to have a picture in his mind’s eye of what he wanted. His strong sense of design gave him a place in art decisions in the school.

When I asked SaySay to choose a metaphor picture (see Chapter 4) that depicted his schooling experiences, he chose the picture of a long wooden bridge. He explained, “It’s a road. A road is never ending. That’s what I’m thinking. Education is never ending.” SaySay saw his schooling as a long journey that didn’t end. His schooling journey was viewed as a test of endurance.

Hlaing

Hlaing walked into geometry class wearing high black boots, colorful leggings, and a black sweater. Her nails were painted white with delicate purple violet designs, the school symbol. She set her white binder and a plastic zippered pencil holder on the desk, took out her highlighters, and placed her review book for geometry in front of her. She was the only student in the classroom to come prepared with the review book, a text to help her prepare for the state end-of-year exam. During the class, as other students joked or talked around her, she stayed singularly focused on the geometry proof the teacher was explaining, occasionally highlighting parts of the problem on her worksheet. Her ESL (English as a Second Language) teacher referred to her as a “typical overachiever,” and my observations confirmed this. She seemed determined to succeed in this school. She spent hours after school completing homework assignments and making sure the details were correct.

Math was her area of strength. At Littleleaf, students were given the opportunity to challenge the state-wide math assessments in the middle of the school year (January), regardless of their math course level. Hlaing took the exam and received the highest grade in the school, even though she had been in the United States for only five months. Hlaing was first placed in ninth grade at Littleleaf High School in September of 2013. Although she had already graduated from high school in Burma, she had been out of school for three years and knew little English. After five months, in January of 2014, when she took the math exam, Hlaing was promoted two years ahead to eleventh grade. When I met her, she was in her senior year and was planning to graduate in the spring of 2015 after attending school in the United States for less than two years. She was a winner of The Gates Scholarship, a prestigious college scholarship awarded annually to 1,000 students nationwide. Hlaing’s experiences were different from SaySay’s and Paw Htoo’s because she had not lived in a refugee camp. She was ethnic Burmese and lived in Burma until 2010 when she completed the final level of Burmese high school.

When I asked Hlaing to choose an image that represented her schooling experiences, Hlaing chose a bridge, the same picture that SaySay chose. Her words about the bridge showed that she had a different perspective than SaySay. For SaySay, it was about endurance and traveling on a long road. When I asked Hlaing to explain her choice, she said, “This bridge is not good. We have these in Burma. You can fall down.” Even though she chose the same picture as SaySay, her emphasis was on maintaining her footing and not falling off. For her, schooling was a precarious journey o...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Series Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Table of Contents
• List of Illustrations
• Acknowledgments
• Prologue
• Chapter 1: Introduction: Hearing the Voices of Refugee Youth from Burma
• Chapter 2: The Ant Climbing the Tree: The Importance of History and Context
• Chapter 3: “Why Do the Highest People Want to Break Me Down?”: Critical Race Theory and Language Practices
• Chapter 4: Following the Shoreline of a Study: The Ebbs and Flows of Data, Context, and Analysis
• Chapter 5: Burmese, Karen, American: Intersecting Identities for the Prom King, the Valedictorian, and the Teacher
• Chapter 6: The Self-Portrait: How Narratives Trap and Empower Us
• Chapter 7: Into the Maelstrom: Bullying, Stereotypes, and Racial Tension
• Chapter 8: Working Toward a Paradigm Shift
• Appendix
• Index