An important myth about education that came up in Nancy Foner’s From Ellis Island to JFK: New York’s Two Great Waves of Immigration was the myth that immigrants stressed their children to do well in school. Because of the stress that their parents put on them, these children do better in school and become excellent students. Although this myth may sound reasonable, the reality as elucidated by Foner was very different. Most of the children of Jewish and Italian immigrants of the last great wave received little education and faced racial barriers. Many teachers were not happy to teach these children due to racial assumptions. As time went on and social perspectives change, the immigrant children were not so different from any of the other children. It is important to understand the severity of the immigrant struggle even with students.
Although this myth that immigrants have high academic expectations for their children may be far-fetched or even stereotypical, I believe that it has some backing. My family has a history of immigration, and I think that with immigration comes a chance for a new beginning and new opportunities. There are more opportunities open to the children of immigrants than the immigrants themselves. When my parents decided to move to the United States they found more opportunity here for work and a decent lifestyle, but they also sought an opportunity for my brother and me to go to good schools. I think the same thing happens in many other families. When the parents do not have many opportunities they may look to their children to excel in education in ways that they could not. This may just be a type of parenting but I believe that the immigration is also a factor in how one perceives and stresses the pursuit of opportunity for one’s children.
