This Immigrant’s Life:
An Investigation into the
Immigrant Experience
Ms. Lerman
Web Quest
Columbus Institute for Math and Science
INTRODUCTION:
Whether
immigrants were greeted by the Statue of Liberty as they sailed into Ellis
Island or by customs officials as they scoured suitcases at 
been the gateway
to a new life for centuries. While
people might romanticize the
After
reading Esmeralda Santiago’s memoir When I was Puerto Rican, the immigrant
experience and the prejudice inherent to that is made that much more real. For some of you the ideas of leaving behind a
life, family, culture, and homeland are things you can identify with on a
personal level. For others of you, the
experiences are imagined for you through
GOOD
LUCK……YOU HAVE A DAUNTING TASK !!!!!
TASK
Starting over is difficult at any age, but being
a teenage immigrant can be even more challenging. Imagine that Mayor Bloomberg is holding a
symposium to address these specific issues facing teenagers in
You will be working in pre-assigned groups of 4
or 5. In order to share your findings
and make your suggestions, you must complete the following:
1. Use
the Public Policy Analyst (PPA) method to investigate the problems faced by
immigrants by gathering evidence, identifying causes, and evaluating current
policies.
2. Develop
a presentation to share with Mayor
Bloomberg’s conference on teenage immigrants in public schools.
3. Your
presentation must contain, but is not limited to, the following:
a.
A non-linguistic
representation which visually demonstrates specific challenges faced by
immigrants in NYC
b. A personal
narrative from the point of view of a teenage immigrant reacting to the
experience of starting over. This
narrative can be real or imagined, but it must contain evidence that reflects
your research.
c. Proposed
solutions for the problems you have identified.
4.
For extra credit, you may
make your project in the form of a POWER
POINT PRESENTATION.
Process:
You will use the 6-step Public Policy format to
investigate the social problem of prejudice directed at immigrants. In your
groups, complete the handouts to collect information for each step.
You will use the “INTERNET RESOURCES” below to complete the worksheets. You should
also use outside sources.
These worksheets will then be used as resource material for you
to complete your assigned “TASK”.
YOU SHOULD ALSO USE EXCERPTS FROM ESMERALDA
SANTIAGA’S WORK “WHEN I WAS A PUERTO RICAN” AS EVIDENCE FOR YOUR TASK
AND FOR COMPLETION OF THE WORKSHEETS
What is the
problem? Worksheet
#1- Where is the
evidence? Worksheet
#2
- What are the
causes? Worksheet
#3
- Evaluate a policy Worksheet
#4
- What policies
can you make to help the problem? Worksheet
#5
6. What is the best
policy to correct the problem? Worksheet #6
RESOURCES:
Coalition
for the Human Rights of Immigrants
www.svcn.com/archives/saratoganews/04.15.98/CoverStory.html
A
story of teen immigrants in
http://www.girlhealth.org/new_american/facts.html
Being
a new teen in
http://theseoultimes.com/ST/db/read.php?idx=40&head=1
What
is it like for an immigrant to learn English?
http://depts.washington.edu/~uweek/archives/2002.02.FEB_07/news_e.html
Immigrant
teen drop out rate in schools
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/speakout/mystory/immigrant.html
The
Immigrant Experience
http://www.bergen.org/AAST/Projects/Immigration/index.html
The
contemporary immigrant life
Dealing
with the challenges of immigration
http://www.worldandi.com/newhome/public/2002/december/clpub.asp
Narratives
of the immigrant experience
http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/newamericans/index.html
Immigrants
from the
NY State Standards
|
|
Read twenty-five books of the
quality and complexity illustrated in the sample reading list. |
|
|
Read and comprehend
informational materials. |
Writing
|
|
Produce a report of information. |
|
|
Produce a persuasive essay. |
Speaking, Listening, and
Viewing
|
|
Participate in one-to-one
conferences with the teacher. |
|
|
Participate in group meetings. |
|
|
Prepare and deliver an
individual presentation. |
Conventions, Grammar, and
Usage of the English Language
|
|
Independently and habitually
demonstrate an understanding of the rules of the English |
|
b |
Analyze and subsequently revise
work to improve its clarity and effectiveness. |
Functional Documents
|
|
Critique functional documents
with an eye to strategies common to effective functional documents. |
|
|
Produce functional documents
appropriate to audience and purpose. |
Applied Learning Information
Tools, and Techniques
|
|
Gather information to assist in completing project work. |
|
|
Use on-line sources to
exchange information for specific purposes. |
|
|
Use word-processing software
to produce a multi-page document. |
|
|
Write, add content to, and
analyze a relational data base. |
Tools
and Techniques for Working With Others
|
|
Participate in
the establishment and operation of self-directed work
teams. |
SOCIAL
STUDIES STANDARDS ADDRESSED
STANDARD # 2: Themes
& ideas
Student will use a
variety of intellectual skills to show their understanding of major ideas,
themes and turning points (Immigration) in history and examine the broad sweep of
history in a variety of perspectives.
STANDARD
# 5: Civics,
Citizenship & Government
Students will
demonstrate their understanding of the working of the Constitution in a
democratic society and understand the necessity for establishing governments.
Student will use a variety of techniques to demonstrate their understanding of
the basic values of a democratic society. Students will demonstrate their
understanding of the roles, rights and responsibilities of citizenship and
avenues of participation under in a democratic society.
EVALUATION
Rubric for Presentation
|
|
3 |
2 |
1 |
|
Content |
Writing shows in-depth analysis of the issue of teenage criminals and offers insightful proposals according to the Public Policy Analysis methodology while making strong and clear connections to When I was Puerto Rican. Successful completion of both written and visual components. |
Writing shows basic understanding and analysis of the issue of teenage criminals and offers adequate solutions. It briefly addresses each of the steps of the PPA and makes tenuous connections to When I was Puerto Rican. Successful completion of either written and visual components. |
Writing shows
summarization of the research information.
It may contain vague references to the steps of Public Policy Analysis
and offers no connections to When I was Puerto Rican. Successful completion of neither
written nor visual components. |
|
Structure and Organization |
Writing is generally well organized according to definite plans. Topics or ideas generally clear. Typically clear beginnings and ends. Most transitions smooth and logical. Details generally
varied and vivid. |
Controlling topics, ideas, or overall plans always present but do not always focus the writing. Endings may sometimes be awkward or abrupt. Transitions are
typically logical but may on occasion lack depth and/or direct relevance. |
Topics or overall plans may not be clearly present. Possible digressions confusing to reader. Beginnings and endings may be awkward or abrupt. Key elements may be unevenly developed or omitted. Details are used
inconsistently. |
|
Style |
Your writing features sound reasoning, has a clear position and a strong overall persuasive tone. All of your opinions are thoughtfully supported with credible evidence. Facts/opinions are clearly separate and conclusions are well-grounded. |
Your writing is not imaginative – is has predictable, well-worn arguments. Your arguments are credible, but they are based on limited support. You have acceptable use of knowledge as Evidence, and
fact/opinion sometimes overlap. |
Your writing has
minimal content. And it is not supported.
Your evidence is weak and questionable. Your position is weak/unclear/shifting, and it is overly
reliant on repetition and exaggeration.
You do not distinguish between fact and opinion. |
GRADING
A=8-9 POINTS B=6-7 POINTS C=4-5 POINTS
F=BELOW 4 POINTS
Conclusion
In this Web
Quest, you have examined the social problem of prejudice directed at new
immigrants. This idea is connected with
the immigrant experience in
THANKS FOR YOUR PARTICIAPTION
