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The role of cultural factors affecting the academic achievement of Vietnamese/refugee students: A case study Item Type text; Dissertation-Reproduction (electronic) Authors Nguyen, Sang Ngoc Publisher The University of Arizona. Rights Copyright © is held by the author. Digital access to this material is made possible by the University Libraries, University of Arizona. Further transmission, reproduction or presentation (such as public display or performance) of protected items is prohibited except with permission of the author. Download date 27/09/2021 13:51:31 Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/10150/282908 THE ROLE OF CULTURAL FACTORS AFFECTING THE ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT OF VIETNAMESE/REFUGEE STUDENTS: A CASE STUDY by Sang Ngoc Nguyen Copyright @ Sang Ngoc Nguyen 2004 A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of the DEPARTMENT OF LANGUAGE, READING AND CULTURE In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY In the Graduate College The University of Arizona 2 00 5 UMI Number: 3205466 Copyright 2004 by Nguyen, Sang Ngoc All rights reserved. INFORMATION TO USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleed-through, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. UMI UMI Microform 3205466 Copyright 2006 by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest Information and Learning Company 300 North Zeeb Road P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 2 The University of Arizona ® Graduate College As members of the Final Examination Committee, we certify that we have read the dissertation prepared by Sang Ngoc Nguyen entitled Role of Cultural Factors Affecting The Academic Achievement of Vietnamese/Refugee Students: A Case Study and recommend that it be accepted as fulfilling the dissertation requirement for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Luis MolMolL.-—" ^, date Mafy~Wjp<^'Cbmbs" date l I Iy /o-'^ ~ OY Richard Ruiz / date date date Final approval and acceptance of this dissertation is contingent upon the candidate's submission of the final copies of the dissertation to the Graduate College. I hereby certify that I have read this dissertation prepared under my direction and recommend that it be accepted as fulfilling the dissertation requirement. i Dissertation Director: Luis ioll date 3 STATEMENT BY AUTHOR This dissertation has been submitted in partial fulfillment of requirements for an advanced degree at The University of Arizona and is deposited in the University Library to be made available to borrowers under rules of the library. Brief quotations from this dissertation are allowable without special permission, provided that accurate acknowledgment of source is made. Requests for permission for extended quotation from or reproduction of this manuscript in whole or in part may be granted by the copyright holder. Signed: 4 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Finally, I finished my Ph. D. degree! I would like to express my gratefulness to my committee members, Dr. Richard Ruiz and Dr. Mary Carol Combs, who spent lots of time and scholarship to get my dissertation done. Special thanks go to Dr. Luis C. Moll, who is my advisor, dissertation director, and the one who brought me back into the educational field when I first came to America. You put your hand on my shoulder to guide me to the LRC office for registering me to the program. An ocean of thanks to you all. 5 TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES 8 LIST OF TABLES 9 ABSTRACT 10 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION 11 Statement of the Objectives of the Study 27 CHAPTER 2 REVIEW OF LITERATURE 31 The Vietnamese Come to America 31 Immigrant Stock 31 Historical Review of Vietnamese Immigration 32 A Brief History 33 Three Waves of Immigration 34 Cultural Values 44 Education and Achievement 44 Cohesive Family 45 Lifestyle 47 Equality in Decision Making 48 Parental Involvement in Their Children's Learning 50 Efficacy 53 Respect the Elders 54 Harmony 55 Learning Style 55 Hard Work 56 The Myth of the Model Minority 58 Resettlement 67 Refugee Admission Policies 67 Nostalgia or Continuing the Unfinished Battle 74 Prices of Success 77 Summary 78 CHAPTER 3 METHODOLOGY 80 A Case Study 80 Sample Selection 82 6 TABLE OF CONTENTS - Continued The Tran Family 84 The Nguyen Family 85 The Mai Family 87 Data Collection 89 Interviews 90 Observations 90 Teachers' Assessments 90 CHAPTER 4 FINDINGS 91 The Dynamics of Segmented Assimilation 93 Dissonant Acculturation 93 Selective Acculturation 94 Consonant Acculturation 96 Context of Reception 97 Role Reversal 99 CHAPTER 5 DISCUSSION 107 The Role of Cultural Factors 107 Family Structure and Family Size in Educational Achievement 111 Opportunity 115 Employment Opportunity 115 Educational Opportunity 118 High Parental Expectation 124 Success and Failure 125 Motivation 127 Limitations 130 Future Research 132 CHAPTER 6 CONCLUSION 134 Ethnic Enclave Model 134 The Role of Family and Culture in Promoting and Producing Educational Achievement 136 APPENDIX A BASIC VIETNAMESE CUSTOMS 141 APPENDIX B ASIAN AMERICAN CULTURAL DIFFERENCES IN GENERAL.. 144 APPENDIX C VIETNAMESE POPULATION IN AMERICA 148 7 TABLE OF CONTENTS - Continued APPENDIX D MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING BETWEEN THE GOVERNMENT OF THE SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIET NAM AND THE OFFICE OF THE UNITED NATIONS HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR REFUGEES (UNHCR) CONCERNING THE DEPARTURE OF PERSONS FROM THE SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIET NAM 151 APPENDIX E CONTRIBUTIONS TO UNHCR PROGRAMS FOR INDOCHINESE REFUGEES 153 APPENDIX F ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS 154 APPENDIX G ORGANIZATIONS IN THE UNITED STATES WHICH WILL ACCEPT CONTRIBUTIONS FOR ASSISTANCE TO INDOCHINESE REFUGEES 157 REFERENCES 158 8 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1. Average ACT scores by race/ethnic group 24 Figure 2. The map of Southeast Asia countries 36 Figure 3. Vietnamese refugees walked to the neighboring countries 37 Figure 4. Vietnamese refugees used boats to travel to the neighboring countries 39 Figure 5. Asian-American education level and median family income as compared to other ethnic groups 60 9 LIST OF TABLES Table 1. 2003-04 Stanford 9 NCES (with Gender & Ethnic Breakdowns) 25 Table 2. Summary from Three Families with Whom I Conducted the Research 92 10 ABSTRACT This dissertation reports the findings of a case study on the role of cultural factors affecting the academic achievement of Vietnamese immigrant students. The study involves six adolescents from three recent Vietnamese immigrant families; the students' school performance is mixed; some do well in school, others do not do as well. The study focuses on how cultural values or factors, especially a strong and unrelenting Vietnamese emphasis on education, combine with opportunities and restrictions in the local envirormient, the context of reception, to affect the students' achievement. The findings indicate that the Vietnamese immigrant success is not dependent on the parents' human capital, their socioeconomic standing, or their level of education in Vietnam, the usual predictors of school achievement. Instead, the main factors are the clear and unambiguous influence of family life and basic cultural values emphasizing school achievement, although these factors always interact with particular family and community conditions. Educators need to recognize the potential of the family and culture in promoting and producing educational achievement in Vietnamese children. 11 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION The goal of this study is to investigate the role of cultural factors affecting the academic achievement of Vietnamese immigrant students. I seek to understand how culture intervenes in learning, including how family lifestyle and the values and expectations the Vietnamese brought with them to the U.S. affect their learning, and in which ways the opportunities and restrictions encountered in this country affect their achievement. In general, I define those who leave their countries voluntarily because of social and economic reasons as "immigrants," and those who flee to another country for safety as "refugees." These two groups differ in significantly important ways. Vietnamese refiigees tend to be older, have higher levels of education and more job-related skills than Vietnamese immigrants, who are younger, healthier, and have more flexibility to adapt to the new society. In addition, children of Vietnamese refugees are generally older than immigrant children, and are thus more likely to be tied to their culture than those of immigrants. Immigrants and refugees, however, also share a number of common characteristics. Immigrants are motivated by the opportunity for social mobility, by dreams for a better future for their children, and by the spirit of adventure; whereas, refugees escape political, religious, and ethnic persecution. However, both these groups have a highly fractured journey and a "phase-specific process that results in psychosocially complex patterns of family fragmentation and reunification" (Suarez- 12 Orozco & Suarez-Orozco, 2001, p. 6). Their children may be sent ahead to the United States while the rest of the family prepares for leaving, or left behind in the home country in the care of grandparents or relatives. Large-scale immigration is one of the most important social developments of our time. Immigrant children, who make up 20% of all youth in the United States (Suarez- Orozco & Suarez-Orozco, 2001), have become an integral part of the American fabric. Some do extremely well in their new country. According to Suarez-Orozco and Suarez- Orozco (2001), immigrant children are healthier, work harder in school, and have more positive social attitudes than their nonimmigrant peers. Every year, the children of immigrants are overrepresented as high school valedictorians and receive prestigious science awards. There are increasingly high numbers admitted to the most competitive elite universities.