Refugee Resettlement in the United States

Language, Policy, Pedagogy

Edited by Emily M. Feuerherm, Prof. Vaidehi Ramanathan

Publication date:

03 December 2015

Publisher

Multilingual Matters

Dimensions:

234x156mm
6x9"

ISBN-13: 9781783094578

This edited volume brings together scholars from various disciplines to discuss how language is used by, for, and about refugees in the United States in order to deepen our understanding of what ‘refugee’ and ‘resettlement’ mean. The main themes of the chapters highlight:

the intersections of language education and refugee resettlement from community-based adult programs to elementary school classrooms;
the language (of) resettlement policies and politics in the United States at both the national level and at the local level focusing on the agencies and organizations that support refugees;
the discursive constructions of refugee-hood that are promulgated through the media, resettlement agencies, and even the refugees themselves.

This volume is highly relevant to current political debates of immigration, human rights, and education, and will be of interest to researchers of applied linguistics, sociolinguistics, anthropology, and cultural studies.

1. Emily Feuerherm: Introduction to Refugee Resettlement in the United States: Language, Policy, Pedagogy

Part I: Defining Refugees through Policy and Practice

2. Bernadette Ludwig: The Different Meanings of the Word “Refugee”

3. Ariel Loring: Positionings of Refugees, Aliens, and Immigrants in the Media

4. Diana Camps: Restraining English Instruction for Refugee Adults in the United States

Part II: Resettlement Practices and Effects on Education

5. Emily Feuerherm: Building a Participatory Program for Iraqi Refugee Women and Families: Negotiating Policies and Pedagogies

6. Tina Shrestha: Learning English, Speaking Hindi: The Paradox of (Language) Integration Among Nepalis in the United States

7. Shawna Shapiro: A “Slippery Slope” Toward “Too Much Support”? Ethical Quandaries Among College Faculty/Staff Working with Refugee-Background Students

8. Daisy Fredricks and Doris Warriner: “Talk English!” Refugee Youth and Policy Shaping in Restrictive Language Contexts

9. Nora Tyeklar: The U.S. Refugee Resettlement Process: A Path to Self-Sufficiency or Marginalization?

10. Cassie Leymarie: Language as a Fund of Knowledge: The Case of Mama Rita and Implications for Refugee Policy

In an era of unprecedented forced migration, this book provides valuable and timely insights into how refugees in the US are impacted by the discourses, policy and education practices they encounter. The research-based chapters offer ways to rethink assumptions and ideologies surrounding refugees, so often positioned as victims and a burden on institutions. A readable and important book.