I Think Immigrants "Kind of Fall Into Two Camps": Boundary Work by U.S.-Born Community Members in St. Louis, Missouri. (September 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Dorner, Lisa M.; Crawford, Emily R.; Jennings, Joel; Sandoval, J. S. Onésimo; Hager, Emily
• Other Names: Quinn Rand guest-editor.; Hopkins Megan guest-editor.; García Bedolla Lisa guest-editor.
• Is Part Of: Educational policy. Volume 31:Number 6(2017:Sep.)
• Page Start: 921
• Page End: 947
• Publication Date: 2017-09
• Subjects: contested spaces -- boundary work -- educational policy -- immigrants -- immigration -- integration -- public opinion; Education and state -- United States -- Periodicals; Education -- Periodicals; 379.2
• DOI: 10.1177/0895904817719529
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0895-9048

Abstract

To understand how educational policies are created and supported for immigrants and their children, we must explore how community members make sense of broader immigrant/immigration discourses. Guided by theories of "boundary work, " grounded analyses of 27 interviews with U.S.-born residents in metropolitan St. Louis (a community with diverse and increasing immigration) revealed conflicting and ambivalent discourses. Respondents' opinions shifted as they conceptualized affiliations and borders—real and symbolic—between themselves and foreign-born individuals. The discussion will address how the "hardening" or "blurring" of such boundaries can affect the development and support of educational policies for immigrants and refugees.