The challenges of illiterate immigrants

[PLC1]

Programs Focus on Illiterate Immigrants

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Before Bob Jansen can teach English to the adult immigrants in his lowest-level class, he has to show about a quarter of them how to hold a pencil.

Adult education teachers like Jansen are finding themselves starting from scratch as uneducated immigrants and refugees from conflict regions of Africa and rural areas of Mexico and Central America flock to the United States.

Immigrants, or illegal aliens? Well, yes.

An estimated 400,000 legal and 350,000 illegal immigrants are unable to read or write even in their native language, according to a July 2007 report from the Migration Policy Institute, an independent Washington think tank.

The immigrants, some of whom attended school for the first time in refugee camps, tend to flounder alongside classmates who attended school in their native countries.

That's no surprise, but is the government allowing for the difficulties faced by illiteracy?

"One hand of the government is letting preliterate people come here as refugees," said David Holsclaw, director of Don Bosco Community Center's English as a Second Language Program, which serves about 2,500 students a year. "And another hand of the government is making it hard to serve them because they want to tie our funding to testing."

No, I guess not.

I can remember having the children of these immigrants in my class. Often, the children had not been to school either. I can remember a fourth grader who came in the spring of the year, just before the all important big NCLB test, on which the school's success or failure is based.

Surely, I said, we aren't expected to give her the test? Of course. We must test all students, all of them, and they all have to pass the test.

 

[Popeye]

Considering an estimated 350,000 of these illiterate immigrants are illegal, I have a sure answer, deport them. Whether illiterate or not, illegals have become a drain on our society.
http://immigrationcounters.com/

 

[Segep]

Or we could teach them to read and pay taxes so they could become productive citizens. But it's much easier to blame them for our shortsightedness and incompetence.

 

[Popeye]

Or we could teach them to read and pay taxes so they could become productive citizens. But it's much easier to blame them for our shortsightedness and incompetence.

They are here illegally, you know, like breaking the law. Why should such activity be rewarded?

 

[Segep]

Because it might benefit the country in the long run?

 

[PLC1]

Or we could teach them to read and pay taxes so they could become productive citizens. But it's much easier to blame them for our shortsightedness and incompetence.

Or, we could spend our resources teaching our own citizens to read, write, and do math so they could be productive and pay taxes, then insist that employers not hire illegals so that they would have to stay in their own countries.

We could do that, but then, there are those who profit from the cheap labor, and they are the ones who contribute to political campaigns.

 

[Segep]

We could do that, but then, there are those who profit from the cheap labor, and they are the ones who contribute to political campaigns.

Bingo. We have only ourselves to blame.

 

[PLC1]

Bingo. We have only ourselves to blame.

And Democratic and Reblican leaders going back decades. Eisenhower was the last one to try to really do something about illegal immigration, I believe.

 

[USMC the Almighty]

Eisenhower was the last one to try to really do something about illegal immigration, I believe.

Yup. It was called OPERATION WETBACK.

 

[numinus]

Considering an estimated 350,000 of these illiterate immigrants are illegal, I have a sure answer, deport them. Whether illiterate or not, illegals have become a drain on our society.
http://immigrationcounters.com/

The japanese has always considered business as war.

While one may consider such an assertion debatable, one CANNOT deny the fact that the economic drive of capitalism (particularly the industiral west) within the last 3 centuries has polarized the world into the filthy rich and the dirt poor.

One cannot help but notice the analogy within similar lines - for surely, war would create its fair share of casualties, the innocent being made to bear the brunt of this burden.

 

[USMC the Almighty]

While one may consider such an assertion debatable, one CANNOT deny the fact that the economic drive of capitalism (particularly the industiral west) within the last 3 centuries has polarized the world into the filthy rich and the dirt poor.

I don't think this is true. What would you consider yourself numinus?

a) filthy rich
b) dirt poor

 

[numinus]

I don't think this is true. What would you consider yourself numinus?

a) filthy rich
b) dirt poor

An over-worked, under-paid professional. How does that prove or disprove what I'm saying?

 

[heyjude]

Why isn't the US addressing the problem of illiteracy to Mexico? The Mexicans treat many of their people like animals and the US just looks the other way. Many of the native people in Mexico don't even speak Spanish. Why can't this country pressure them to do something?

 

[Segep]

An over-worked, under-paid professional. How does that prove or disprove what I'm saying?

Because based on what you said, you must consider yourself either filthy rich or dirt poor.

If you're filthy rich, can I borrow a few hundred bucks?

 

[PLC1]

Why isn't the US addressing the problem of illiteracy to Mexico? The Mexicans treat many of their people like animals and the US just looks the other way. Many of the native people in Mexico don't even speak Spanish. Why can't this country pressure them to do something?

How is it our responsibility to solve Mexico's problems? Let's solve our own first.