Between 1975 and 1987, 140,000 Cambodians arrived in the United States; most have settled in California. This handbook for teachers and administrators who work with Khmer students and their parents begins with an overview of Cambodian history, and pays special attention to events since the Communist takeover in 1975. The second chapter,…

The early 1980s saw an influx of Southeast Asian refugees from various demographic groups and backgrounds to Minnesota. As teachers, the author and her colleagues regularly added children from these groups to their classrooms, receiving little explanation of a student's history or language proficiency. To counteract increasing teacher resentment…

Asian Americans encounter barriers to mental health care, some of which are structural, whereas others may be cultural. Using data from a probability sample (N = 490) drawn from the largest Cambodian refugee community in the United States, the authors assessed the extent to which structural and cultural barriers were experienced. Surprisingly, a…

Project Technological Enrichment and Achievement for Cambodians and Hispanics (TEACH) served limited-English-proficient (LEP) students from several Caribbean and Central American countries and Cambodia at Theodore Roosevelt High School (Bronx, New York). The goals of the program were to help LEP students adjust academically and culturally to life…

The "No Child Left Behind Act" establishes federal education policy for the United States, with a heavy focus on accountability through high-stakes testing. Provisions specific to English language learners (ELLs) include the mandate for their inclusion in state math tests, even for newcomer students enrolled for less than one year. Most…

This bilingual guide for Khmer-speaking parents presents parenting information to supplement a course in English as a Second Language. It focuses on topics parents must deal with in meeting the needs of their children. Vocabulary and practice drills are presented for activities in the following areas: (1) education and dealing with the school…

This booklet of individual handouts was prepared to assist Minneapolis mainstream school teachers to work with limited-English-proficient (LEP) students. Topics discussed include current research on how LEP students best learn in mainstream classes, social versus academic English, and adapting instructional procedures for and integrating LEP…

This report presents the results of two years (1988-1990) of the Success for All elementary school restructuring program in grades K-3 at the Francis Scott Key Elementary School (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania). The program was designed to ensure basic skills education for the majority Asian population of the school. The program uses innovative…

Because of the lack of research on the Khmer people in the United States, and because the Khmer have arrived here so recently, this paper describes itself as "less a state of the art analysis of Khmer resettlement and more of a speculation on their condition calling for more research." After an introductory section, the paper describes the two…

In 1985-86, Project CLIMB was in its first year of funding at two high schools in the Bronx, New York. The program provided instructional and supportive services to 188 students of limited English proficiency (LEP) in grades 9-12. The students were recent immigrants from Cambodia and Vietnam, and all spoke their native language at home. The goal…

Project TEACH completed the first year of a three-year program serving 190 newly arrived limited English proficient (LEP) students from the Caribbean, Central America and Cambodia. Virtually all students belonged to low-income families and many had received little formal education in their native countries. The primary goal was to facilitate…

In 1982-83, Project CHASP offered bilingual instruction and support services to 100 Cambodian and 75 Hispanic limited-English-speaking students in the 9th and 10th grades at Theodore Roosevelt High School, Bronx, New York. The goal of the program was to develop student proficiency in the English language skills necessary for full mainstreaming…

In 1984-85, the final year of a two-year funding cycle, Project CHASP (Cambodian and Hispanic Achievement for Students and Parents) at Theodore Roosevelt High School in the Bronx, New York, served 75 Hispanic and 71 Cambodian students in Grades 9 and 10. Instruction was provided in English as a second language (E.S.L.) and native language…

While it is important to improve the outcomes of bilingual and English-only reading instruction for English language learners at all grade levels, there is a particular need to see that students are successful in beginning to read in the early elementary grades. One program that has achieved a great deal of success in meeting this goal is called…

Teachers must be sensitive to the diverse cultures and the sometimes difficult personal experiences of Southeast Asian immigrant students. Varied conditions of arrival have a significant impact on their adaption to life in the United States. Earlier Vietnamese immigrants were more educated and Westernized compared to later Vietnamese, Cambodian,…