Assimilation refers to the process of an individual from a different culture adopting the culture in the new country to integrate into society. Though, this week’s learning materials have highlighted that assimilation for immigrants does not allow for full integration into society; rather, when “Asian and Latino immigrants assimilate, they also assimilate to the United States racial hierarchy…they assimilate by becoming people of color in a racially divided society” (Chomsky, 2007, p. 106).
Furthermore, assimilation can cause conflict between cultures. For example, “some teachers used soap to wash the mouths of Mexican American students who spoke Spanish in schools in Southwestern states such as Arizona” (Banks, 2017, p. 372). Ultimately, teaching children to reject their native culture, making it impossible to meet the standards of embracing their native culture at home and rejecting their culture in school. Thus, schools are not helping first and second generation immigrant children understand their multiple identities, rather their focus is to teach children how to be successful in American society.
Do you think our current education system is still encouraging first and second generation immigrant children to adopt the national civic culture, in other words assimilate? If yes, does this need to be changed?
What do you think could be done differently? If not, is our current education system helping children understand and embrace their multiple identities?
Banks. (2017). Failed Citizenship and Transformative Civic Education. Educational Researcher, 46(7), 366–377. https://doi.org/10.3102/0013189X17726741
Chomsky. (2007). They Take Our Jobs: And 20 Other Myths about Immigration. Beacon Press.
