IMMIGRATION:

IMMIGRATION:

A WebQuest for 9^th Grade English

Using the

PUBLIC POLICY ANALYST

Created by Ms. Kollaris

Grace Dodge Career & Technical High School

Give me your tired, your poor,

Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free...

Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,

I lift my lamp beside the golden door!

from The New Colossus, Emma Lazarus, NYC, 1883

INTRODUCTION

America has traditionally been referred to as a "melting pot," welcoming people from many different countries, races, and religions, all hoping to find freedom, new opportunities, and a better way of life. No other place in the world has such a diverse population. It is this diversity that makes America what it is and, at the same time, creates the challenges it faces.

As a recent immigrant yourself, you have been invited by Immigration and Naturalization Services (INS) to work as a social worker. Your role is to help the newly arrived immigrants in your city feel comfortable, confident, and welcomed in their new country. You will have to research social problems facing these newcomers, research public policies that deal with immigration, and come up with the best possible solutions in helping immigrants deal with these social problems.

America’s future is at stake here. There will always be immigrants coming to this country, and your job is critical if we want our country to remain the land of the free, and the home of the brave. Follow the guidelines set up, and with your help, newly arrived immigrants will feel more at home. Good Luck!

TASK

As a social worker for INS, your task is to assist in welcoming newly arrived immigrants and helping them with the problems they may face. You will be researching the social problems that come along with immigration: learning a new language; overcoming prejudice and discrimination; unemployment and poverty; education related issues; stress and other health issues; assimilation and acculturation; as well as many other issues that immigrants may face. After researching the social problems, you will then come up with solutions in order to help the new immigrants.

In your task, you will . . .

· Research the social problems related to immigration.

· Complete the Public Policy Analyst Worksheets (See Process).

· Create a 3 page typed pamphlet that discusses one social problem and solutions to that problem that citizens can partake in in order to alleviate the issue that faces immigrants. This pamphlet will be submitted to INS and will be distributed among newly arrived immigrants as well as native citizens in your city.

PROCESS

You will follow the guidelines below in order to produce your finished product. . .

___ Step One: You will be assigned one partner. Your task as a team is to research the different social problems associated with immigration. Use the following internet resources to assist you.

___ Step Two: You will choose one social problem to focus on and research solutions and any public policies that may help in overcoming the problem. Use the following internet resources to assist you.

___ Step Three: You and your partner will then complete the following Public Policy Analyst Worksheets (click on the links). This is particularly important. These worksheets will help you to complete your WebQuest and help you with your final project.

#1- Defining the Social Problem

#2- Gather evidence of the problem

#3- Identify the causes of the problem

#4- Identify and evaluate the existing public policies

#5- Developing public policy solutions

#6- Selecting the best policy solution

___ Step Four: Your team will then produce an ‘immigrant-friendly’ pamphlet that clearly states the title of your social problem related to immigration, how the problem affects immigrants as well as the rest of the community, and solutions that one can take in order to help alleviate the problem or help the immigrant with the problem. (Use the rubric below as your guideline).

___Step Five: Finally, your team’s pamphlets will be included in a display and will also be handed out to the school community.

RESOURCES

Link to these useful resources to help you with your research...

Different groups and the challenges they face

A teen’s story in coping

Drop out rate of immigrants

An immigrant’s experience

New to America

Learning English

The New Americans

Why immigrants come to America & how they are treated

Culture shock

Immigration & Gender

Immigrants of the past, present, & future

You should also use the following search engines to further research the topic of violence…

EVALUATION

You will be graded according to the following rubric. Use it as a guideline to help you and your partner complete the required task and receive a perfect score! (In order to receive an A, all criteria in column 4 must be evident)

CONCLUSION

Every year, thousands of immigrants come from different countries in search of a better life, and they try to find that life in America. For many, this is a difficult task, for there are many challenges that face these newcomers.

Through the completion of this WebQuest and your pamphlet, you will have helped newcomers experience a more hopeful journey, full of pride, keeping the immigrants’ spirits alive as they make their way to a place that is completely new to them.

STANDARDS

English Language Arts:

#1: Language for Information and Understanding

#2: Language for literary response and expression

#3: Language for Critical analysis and evaluation

#4: Language for Social Interaction

Social Studies:

Compare and contrast the experiences of different ethnic, national, and religious groups, including Native American Indians, in the United States, explaining their contributions to American society and culture

Students will use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of major ideas, eras, themes, developments, and turning points in the history of the United States and New York.