Children of Immigrants: Identity and Acculturation

3 units

This seminar takes an interdisciplinary approach to children of immigrants as an analytical subject. Our case studies span from 1.5- and second-generation Americans to those who grew up in immigrant families in Canada, Australia, Europe, and Japan. We will ground the experience of these young people in the large context of the immigration history and policies of the country to which their family migrated and explore different sorts of narratives about their identities and belonging. Our discussions shed light on the extent to which the young people share common experiences such as strategies of identity negotiation, as well as the ways in which their experiences differ and for what reasons. Students are required to conduct an individual research project among a selected group of children of immigrants.