Leaving home for the United States as a teenager The "1.5 generations" of Chinese are facing multiple dilemmas

According to the U.S. World Journal, 2012 statistics from the U.S. Census Bureau show that among the tens of thousands of immigrants who arrive in the United States, children and adolescents are brought to the country by their parents every year. For example, in 2001, about 310,000 (17 percent) of immigrants arriving in the U.S. were between the ages of 5 and 16. These young people are called the 1.5 generation because they are in the "middle" state, neither all American nor just new.

There are many conflicts between students and parents

Min, an English teacher at Lower East Side High School in Manhattan, New York City, primarily serves new immigrant students. Based on her 18 years of experience at the school, she found that the relationships and conflicts between these 1.5 generation students and their parents were "many", and their contradictions were "not quite the same" as those between American-born children and their parents. These 1.5 generations of middle and high school in the United States "have a lot of problems that need community attention."

The eldest son of Mr. Liu, a Chinese new Yorker, immigrated to the United States in his third year of junior high school, while the younger son was born in the United States. He said that although the two sons were born in the same family, their living habits and cultural concepts were completely different.

He said that the eldest son received a junior high school education in China and has the thinking concept of traditional Chinese culture. For example, he wrote the place of origin as China, and as a result, universities charged according to the standard standards for international students. The eldest son likes to eat Chinese food, especially hometown dishes. The eldest son's friends are mainly new immigrants and international students. "When he was studying for a master's degree in a foreign state, he lived with two Chinese students and became an iron brother."

The eldest son also knows some traditional Chinese etiquette, such as meeting elders, he also knows how to call people. He said that the eldest son can use Chinese to communicate with his parents, and the Chinese used is more authentic. He also watches Chinese TV series, especially likes Japanese and Korean girls, "The object he will come to look for should be Asian." ”

The younger son is a different story. At present, the younger son is studying at a special high school in New York City, and his friends are mostly foreign ethnicity, and few are Of Chinese descent. Although the younger son eats Chinese food at home, if asked what he likes to eat the most, he still says sandwiches, hamburgers and hot dogs. Although the younger son also attends Chinese school, he has very little vocabulary Chinese. When it comes to something a little more complicated, he uses English. He asked his younger son many times where he was going to go to college in the future, and the younger son always looked at him from the left and right, "I reckon he will go to study in a foreign state in the future in order to get away from his parents." ”

Parents expect more pressure from their children

Dennis, a Chinese new Yorker, whose sons and daughters are 20 and 18 years old, were born and raised in New York and are now in college. He had thought that his children should be easy to become friends with International Students from China, because they were all of Chinese descent. "But the kids say they can't play with international students because they have different ideas."

Min, an English teacher at Lower East Side High School, said she taught 1.5 generations of students. "Most of them are from Guangdong and Fujian, but also from other provinces in the north." Some children are 16, 17 or 18 years old when they immigrate to the United States. Children are under more pressure because parents expect more from them; and parents do not easily communicate with them, so there are more and more conflicts accumulated.

Most of the fathers of these children left China when they were young and went to the United States to work hard, and some mothers came to the United States first, she said. Many people obtain green cards in various ways before applying for spouses and children to reunite in the United States. At a critical stage of a child's development, the father or mother is not around and the feelings are unfamiliar.

At the same time, couples have long been separated from each other, and they are separated in two countries, and there is also a lack of communication. One spouse is carrying a child in his hometown and waiting for a green card, while the other is busy making a living in the United States. When they were finally reunited in the United States, "the child and his father or mother have not seen each other for more than ten years."

The parents of these families also have high expectations for their children, hoping that their children will study hard, achieve good results, and be admitted to a good university in the future, not to waste their families for so many years. However, these children are likely not to study well in their hometowns, and when they come to a new English environment, it is more difficult to learn.

In addition, when they are in their hometown, these teenagers have their own social circles. Now, they immigrate to the United States with their parents and break away from the original circle of friends, which is equivalent to uprooting. As a result, someone had a psychological problem, "The student is not coming to class, so I will call and find someone." At this time, the counselor told her that the child was suffering from depression.

Min said parents expect too much from their children, and the children don't speak English, coupled with the limited financial conditions of the new immigrant family, all of which put pressure on the children. At the same time, in order to make a living, parents leave early and return late, have little communication with their children, and are unwilling to participate in activities held by the school, so "parents need to change."

In March 2020, after the outbreak of COVID-19 in New York City, all schools in New York City were closed down and online classes were introduced. "I found that several children don't take online classes." She told the parents that their child may have psychological problems, but the parents did not realize it, and the result was a delay in the child's treatment.

She said that many children have psychological disorders that manifest as playing games, but they are actually avoiding, "they need to communicate with psychologists." The school has its own psychologist who can give the child a psychological assessment, but it requires the parent's signature. She called the parents to suggest that they agree to give their children an assessment, but most Chinese parents disagreed.

Financial problems are also one of the causes of mental problems in these children. The children immigrated to the United States with their parents, she said, first settling in relatives' homes. "Their living conditions are very poor, and the children's hearts are very painful." But because parents don't speak English, don't have skills, and don't find a job, they don't have the ability to improve family life.

In addition, many parents come to the United States and cannot find a job in New York, so they have to work in restaurants in other states. "Sometimes, parents also work in different states and actually continue to live apart." However, there are no bilingual classes in out-of-state schools like those offered in New York City public schools, so children stay in New York City to study. Many children work while reading. Coming to the United States is also separated from their parents, and their relationship with their parents is unlikely to be restored.

Parents, she said, think that as long as their children come to the United States, it is easy to sit in a classroom and learn English, but in fact these parents do not understand their children's needs. Many children have adapted to life in their hometowns and do not want to the United States; others think that they will always come to the United States in the future, so they do not study well in their hometowns.

However, there are also children who study well, but the number is not large, about 20-30% of them go to college and have a good development. For example, someone has found a stable job, started a family, or even become a professional, such as a doctor, pharmacist, nurse, teacher, etc. Other students start their own businesses and run restaurants. Of course, many people are still working.

Sandwich two cultures unique groups

Zhou Min, a professor of sociology at the University of California, Los Angeles, said that scholars have a broader definition of 1.5 generation. The general definition is that the age is under 13 years old at the time of birth and immigration, but some scholars define it as the age of 18 years old at the time of immigration. These 1.5 generation parents are "first-generation" immigrants, that is, they are already adults when they immigrate, and generation 1.5 is not a "second generation" born in the United States. The 1.5 generation of young people is separate from the first and second generations and does not belong to any generation in essence.

Although the definition of 1.5 generation is different, most researchers agree that 1.5 generation is a unique group. Some experts believe that they are neither first-generation immigrants nor second-generation immigrants, neither new immigrants nor Americans. A first-generation immigrant is an individual born in his or her country of origin and immigrating to a new host country as an adult.

Past studies have shown that first- and second-generation immigrants have significant differences in terms of stages of physical and mental development, the process of family socialization, school and social experience, and orientation towards their hometowns. The 1.5 generations live between two cultures: they participate in the mainstream culture at school and speak their native language at home, but only English is spoken at school.

Some scholars have pointed out that the term 1.5 generation is often negatively regarded as different and has unique needs, thus creating problems within educational institutions. They explain the 1.5 generation this way: They are partly foreign-educated, partly American-educated, and may form a strange pattern of language use, and they may identify with one language but are actually better at another. (Han Jie)

Source: China News Network