In the early years of the twentieth century, the great structural, social and cultural changes in American society included a growing number of immigrants arriving from the poorest regions of Europe. For the first time, the issues of immigration, assimilation and social integration became the most important problems facing American society. In the…

In this paper I closely examine spontaneous interactions between members of a tri-generation Italian American family. I argue that members show different language preferences and differing attitudes towards the family's multilingual identity but that they all demonstrate a degree of "engagement" with the heritage language. Phenomena that…

This article reports the authors' collaborative research on teacher identity as revealed by examining paths to teaching. When individuals enter the teaching profession, they appear to be making a personal career choice. Beginning educators look ahead, envisioning the teachers they hope to become. At this time it is rare to look backward, to…

Compares the fertility levels between first and second generation Italian immigrants and suggests that the pattern of change found indicates their integration into the mainstream of American life and value systems. (Author/SF)

This book is a study of the assimilation process as it applies to Italian Americans. Chapters One and Two provide a contextual framework for the study by discussing the theoretical paradigms that have been advanced to describe ethnic behaviors or the assimilation experience and by reviewing pre-immigration and early immigration experiences of…

This is a brief extract from a complete Bibliography of United States and Canadian Doctoral Dissertations on Italian subjects, comprising more than 3000 items and covering the 110-year period from 1863 through 1974. (Author)

Much Italian-American culture and writing, beginning with the Italians' migration and settlement in the United States from 1880 to 1920, is forgotten today. Italians traditionally did not value literacy and education. Italian-Americans, for economical reasons that they share with other ethnic and racial minorities as well as cultural…

The American school system precariously bridged the two separate worlds in which the Italian immigrant child existed, that of his ethnic community and of the dominant society. The failure of Italian Americans to participate fully in all levels of academia will diminish expectations in higher education and in the society as a whole. (CJ)

White ethnic Americans have not achieved status commensurate with their economic and educational achievements because of bigotry. Bias against these ethnic groups permeates all levels and places in American society. (Author/EB)

The events of the 1960's served as a catalyst in bringing about the resurgence of "white ethnic groups." The dynamics of an increasing ethnic consciousness and militancy among Italian Americans are, however, found in the cultural and demographic changes currently taking place within the ethnic group. (Author/AM)

When analyzing the question of ehtnic identity, it is crucial to pay attention to oral history and biographical material: ethnicity is not so much a collective phenomenon as an individual one. For example, much has been written about Italian migration to the United States, but the lives of the ordinary immigrants and the rich detail of their…

Many credible sources refer to the various immigrant groups in a derogatory manner. Negative citations can be categorized in numerous ways. They might arise as a result of the geographic origin of the ethnic group; attraction to a particular occupation class; peculiarity of custom; religious or political affiliation; rate of delinquency, crime, or…

This dissertation compares the relative effects of two contrasting approaches to bilingual instruction and of bilingual education as compared to traditional English monolingual education upon the dual language development and use of a group of first and second grade Italian dominant students. The sample of the study consisted of 106 Italian…

Notes that Rizzo's memoirs constitute an historical document which intersects the immigrant experience of the era of mass Italian immigration. (Author/AM)

Notes that a sizable cluster of volumes dealing with the Italian American experience has appeared in the last decade and reviews four books and one bibliography dealing with this ethnic group. (Author/AM)