By Jennifer Skuza Unless you have had a similar experience, it may be difficult to understand the everyday lives of immigrant youth . Imagine Ana for a moment. She is a 14-year old girl who moved to the US from Guatemala over a year ago. These days she feels exhausted by the amount of energy she pours into her daily life. Especially in school, she feels lonely because of seemingly insurmountable language barriers. Her experience is also mixed with feelings of accomplishment that come with living in a new culture. She finds relief in her relationships with people around her. Perhaps you can relate to Ana's experience of adjusting to life in a new country or place. This phenomenon is called acculturation. For immigrant youth, acculturation is a pervasive part of life and it is one experience almost all immigrant youth have in common. Watch this award-winning video entitled "Immersion" for another view into immigrant youth experiences. Educators and people working ...
Our youth development educators bridge research and practice. In this blog, they offer their views on what's happening in the field of youth development, with an eye to evidence-based research written by themselves and others in our field. We welcome your comments.