VOYAGING TO NEW LIVESAND NEW SCHOOLS

Micronesians:

Micronesians have voyaged for millennia

(Photo owned by Rachel Miller, used with her permission.)

Reasons for voyaging: Adventure Resources:

**Food sources **Materials & supplies **New brides New land: **Ease over-population **Following typhoons

(Taken from Pacific Neighbors, page 34.)

Voyaging Eras:

Pre-contact

None following contact till WWII

Pre-Compact: **Palauans to Guam

**Pell Grants

Since COFA

Reasons for Compact of Free Association (COFA)

WWII was fought in their islands

UN entrusted TTPI to America for development

Period of benign neglect

Use of Marshall Islands for nuclear testing

Establishment of Peace Corps

Compacts went into effect:

1986 for FSM (Federated States of

Micronesia) includes: Yap, Chuuk, Kosrae &

Pohnpei

Compacts went into effect:

•1986 for RMI (Republic of Marshall Islands) includes 27 inhabited islands

Compacts went into effect:

1994 for ROP (Republic of Palau) Includes hundreds of “rock islands”

•These 3 island nations constitute the FAS (Freely Associated States)

•Through joint congressional-executive agreements between the USA and FSM, RMI and ROP

Compacts allow for citizens of FAS to enter the USA to engage in occupations andestablish residence asnon-immigrants

(from U.S. Department of Commerce, page 1)

And so they cameand continue to come

Dr. Hilda Heinetold me:

“It took about ten years before Micronesians realized that the Compact allowed them to migrate into the United States without a passport or visa. The migration started in the mid-1990’s and ispicking up speed.”

Why do Micronesians come to the US?

For opportunities: *Jobs *Health care *education With intention of returning home when need

fulfilledDanny Rescue, Senior Consul of FSM at the FSM Consulate

Is there a pattern to migration?

Migration pattern similar to pattern of Africans migrating into Europe Communal family decision Young single men go first *Educated *with job skills *with English proficiency Acquire entry-level position Establish a home base

Dr. Lola Quan Bautista

(Photo taken from CPIS web site)

Is there a pattern to migration?

Hopscotch pattern Other family members follow Obligation to assist them Immigrants might move on or

back Migration becomes circular Immigrants return for important family events (death of parents)

Where are these immigrants?

(Taken from Pacific Neighbors, page 25)

Where are these immigrants?

2008 Estimate of COFA Migrants:

Hawaii 12,215 Guam18,305 CNMI

2,100 American Samoa

15 (Taken from “Final Report: 2008 Estimates of Compact of Free Association Migrants” page 3)

How large is the Micronesian population?

Although the population doubled from1990 to 1997, it is still small in proportion to Hawaii’s total population

As of 2008, it was 1% of the state’s population

(Hammond & Filibert, page 23)

What are the employment prospects?

Use with permission by Crystal Shirai

Used by permission by Batson Sirasira

According to Mac Marshall:

Most jobs are of the “unheralded, largely forgotten variety”

Fast food industry Housekeepers Certified nursing assistants Security guards

From Namoluk Beyond the Reef, page 90)

What are the employment rates?

Micronesian Total

FSM RMI

Palau

Employed 2,190 1,501 518

171

Unemployed 258 181

71

6

Percent unemployed

10.5%

10.8%

12.1%

3.4%

Data from OIA (2003)Taken from Hammond & Filibert, page 29)

So what is the Micronesian unemployment rate now that Hawaii’s unemployment rate is 7.2% (as of May 2009)?

Where do the COFA immigrants live?

In 2004 when I first started studying Micronesian immigration, they were

living in areas with population concentration

such as:

Federal housing projects such as KPT

Therefore their children went to certain schools:

For middle school the children went to:

With students attending Farrington for high

school

Other schools with a high concentration of

Micronesian students include:

Where are these students now?

Fern 15%

Farrington 18%

Linapuni 30%

Palolo 32%

Jefferson 23%

Aiea El. 15%

Waipahu El. 20%

Na’alehu 17%

Statistics provided by Dr. Tom Saka, Information Specialist

What languages do they speak?

Some schools have tremendous proportion of ELL students

Cantonese 918 Lao 169Chinese 11 Mandarin 429 Chuukese 2,016 Marshallese 1,835English** 3,838 Pohnpeian 295Cebuano 456 Portuguese 58French 29 Russian 31German 38 Samoan 1,224Hawaiian 159 Spanish 1,462 Ilokano 5,317 Tagalog 2,238Japanese 1,321 Thai 84Korean 857 Tongan 607 Kosraean 203 Vietnamese 836

Total 25,813 

Figures are current as of June 2009Provided by Anreas WiegandEducational Specialist for DOE

How do Micronesian languages stack up against other common

ELL languages?Chuukese 2,016Kosraean 203Marshallese 1,835Pohnpeian 295

Total: 4,349 Cebuano456

Ilokano 5,317Tagalog 2,238

Total: 8,011

There is no such language as “Micronesian”

Chuukese NukuoroEnglish PááfangKapingamarangi PingelapeseKosraean PohnpeianMokilese PuluwateseMortlockese SatawaleseNomonuito UlithianNgalik Men’s Creole WoleaianNguluwan Yapese

(Taken from www.ethnologue.com/show_country )

What are the problems

(“challenges”) and solutions

when working with Micronesian

students in our schools?

Lack of prior schooling

“Students come into Hawaii’s schools with little or inconsistent prior schooling. You can have a 5th grader arrive and have to start him on learning the alphabet.” (Personal communication

May 19, 2009)

Challenges/Solutions

Those problems are characteristic of the differences between students entering from rural as opposed to urban schools. I have seen the same problem with students coming in from rural China.

Challenges/Solutions“Sometimes it is difficult

to sort out the problems associated with growing up in poverty from second language issues. If a student is coping with both problems, their difficulty in coping with academic demands is compounded.” (Personal communication

June 23, 2009)

Challenges/Solutions

Melody Lin, the ELL Chair for Farrington High School says: “It just seems as if I have a whole lot more challenges than I have solutions.”(Personal communication May 21, 2009)

Challenges/Solutions

Farrington High School held an evening open house for their ELL parents explaining different issues such as discipline and credits needed for graduation.

“Discipline is a real problem especially for those students who did not migrate with their parents but only their auntie. It is hard to locate an adult who is truly accountable for their behavior.”

Challenge:

Personal communication with Melody Lin on May 19, 2009

Challenges/Solutions

A map bulletin board in

Stephanie Yamamoto’s ELL class at Ka’ewai demonstrates interest and pride in her students’ homelands.

Challenges/Solutions

At Kalihi Waena, they have a Para-Professional Teacher who speaks Chuukese (Smileen Dobich) works with very small groups of ELL students pick up basic academic skills.

Challenges

One challenge Kalihi Waena has faced with Micronesian students and even previous PPT, was that the family was top priority in life for Micronesians. That means that family needs come before attendance at school.

(Personal communication with Jane Onishi, May 19, 2009)

Recommendation from Lauri Condo, Honolulu District ELL Resource

Teacher

“Even if you do not have the money for extra ELL PPT’s, you can raise the level of understanding of the teachers by bringing in MCAP presentations.”

(Personal communication on June 5, 2009)

MCAP (Micronesian Cultural Awareness Program)

Recommendations from Canisius Filibert

Display interest in their homeland & culture Allow students to stay in their peer group Speak slowly and softly Allow time for them to think & translate Show them an example of end project Understand that they hesitate to participate

until/unless they are sure of their abilities Understand that looking down is sign of respect

(Part of MCAP presentation on May 21, 2009)

Recommendations from Julie Walsh Kroeker:

Allow the students to do group activities

Allow the students to organize the responsibilities themselves

Understand that there are hidden rules of respect/status that the students are aware of but we are not (Taken from MCAP presentation of April

25, 2009)

(Photo taken from CPIS web site)

Dr. Hilda Heine recommends

Consider these Micronesian students to be as smart as every other student

Do not be too quick to allow them the easy way out of putting them into ELL and special education

Challenge our children (Personal communication on July 22, 2004)

Please break up into small groups for the next 15 minutes to reach your own conclusions on the best way to service our Micronesian immigrant students

What are your recommendations?

ReferencesBautista, Lola “Micronesian Migration: A Closer Look at FSM Migration to Guam.” UHM

Master’s Thesis. 1994.Dunford, Betty Pacific Neighbors: The Islands of Micronesia, Melanesia, and

Polynesia. Honolulu: Bess Press. 2006.

Hammond & Filibert “A Study of Individuals and Families in Hawai’i from the Federated States of Micronesia, The Republic of the Marshall Islands, and Other Northern Pacific Islands. McInerny Grant, 2007.

Heine, Hilda “Micronesian’s Contributions and Challenges in Hawai’i” Power Point slide show at “Micronesian Voices in Hawaii”. April 3, 2008.

Saka, Tom PhD Information Specialist for State of Hawai’i.U.S. Department of Commerce “Final Report: 2008 Estimates of Compact of Free Association

(COFA) Migrants.” U.S. Census Bureau. April 2009.

Wiegand, Andreas Educational Specialist for ELL for State of Hawaii.

www.hawaii.edu/cpis/peoplewww.ethnologue.com/show_country

Interviews

Condo, Lauri 5/16/09Filibert, Canisius 4/21/09Heine, Hilda PhD 7/22/04Lin, Melody 5/21/09Onishi, Jane 5/19/09Rescue, Danny 7/22/04Walsh-Kroeker, Julie 4/25/09Weigand, Andreas 6/23/09Yamamoto, Stephanie

5/20/09