Sri Lanka Condolence

Peace has been a tantalizing mirage nowadays in the scorching deserts of ignorance and hatred. Peace has been an elusive dream word in the world of words. Peace is a coy and delicate rose in the immense savannas of violence and intolerance. Looking afar with squinting and misty eyes to Sri Lanka reminds us of a green hub of interwoven religions and cultures. This lovely piece of has been a profound sorrow for us with the heinous and ferocious onslaughts. The number of casualties is a very tricky one to talk about while killing one soul is like slaying entire humanity in our world. We are utterly tired of jotting words of condolences on a `wrinkled` paper in the far-flung threads of hope not to ever mention condolences again.

Yet, one more time, we are against all these inhumane and indescribable atrocity to the highest of our grief-struck voices. We the People will be always looking for the islets of serenity in our hopes, dreams, conversations, gathering, and actions. We do not surrender, and we are determined to raise the glittering flag of humanity in peace. We will not curse, yet rather work to light one more candle to rip the thick fabric of darkness. We are with the people of Sri Lanka, we do want to eradicate all hatred, defamation, discrimination, extremism, violence, and ignorance rooted words from our dictionaries. We wish patience for the people of sadness behind, Mercy from God to the deceased souls of innocence and leave the innermost prayers for such horrendous moments of time not to happen anymore.

EDUCATORS WHO MIGRATE

-MIGRATING EDUCATORS-

The hopes and fears of an immigrant are unparalleled. Thinking beyond all the political repercussions, she/he puts all the loads on the journey and sees the shining rays of a new life on the horizon. Despite the looming glooms of worries, uncertainties, and strains of adaptation, the immense hope cultivated by years is central and molds his/her life. Moving to a new country, different neighborhood, being exposed to unfamiliar looks, and different cultural codes all create a desire to `fit in` and anxiety of social accommodation. If I quote from Jimmy Carter referring to the life in the US “We have become not a melting pot but a beautiful mosaic. Different people, different beliefs, different yearnings, different hopes, different dreams.” An immigrant comes to melt her/his past first, blend different flavors in the pot, bake it with the heat of worries and present it in the trays of hope and energy. An immigrant`s heart is the hub of complex feelings, tearing memories and expanding borders. Moreover, If the immigrant is a teacher, then the excited and stimulated “immigrant feelings” multiply. You are in front of a group of high-energy youth, inextricably present in social life and are expected to showcase your differences. Firstly, you have to decipher the built-in dynamics behavioral codes, cultural reflexes, and step beyond the threshold level of compatibility and acceptability. In this piece of essay, as an immigrant physics teacher myself, my emotions and feelings can be traced by the receptive readers, yet I have always felt obliged to address the situation of teachers like me. Of course, this is emanating from my own experiences, yet these observations can be extrapolated to different people and situations. Of course, being a physics teacher and relying on the universality of physical laws is a stronghold to flow in the veins of classroom culture.
Firstly, I want to mention the arduous journey of a teacher in a little bit more details. These can be inspired or distilled from my own experience, yet I believe educators who read this article will definitely be able to detect and filter the subjective connotations and extract general points from there. First and foremost, what does research say about the situation of immigrant teachers in the U.S to be more objective? “Minority students need to have teachers that look like them, who they can identify with, and who can understand them.”(Dilworth, & Coleman, 2014). Based on this, in the current school where I have been teaching as the sole immigrant teacher, for a perpetuated behavioral problem of a foreign-country-born student, my mentor, and department lead suggested me to address him from the cultural backgrounds he came from, using the terms and values she/he believes in equally myself. I tried that relying on my familiarity with the `culture` and I realized that this helped me to connect more with the mentioned student in the short run rather than resolving the disciplinary issues right away. In the long run, yet, I believe this alleviated the adverse situations we face with that student in the classroom. As another fact, realistically, the U.S has been continuously growing in student diversity but “the U.S. education system has a lack of teacher diversity to meet the needs of our diverse student demographics” according to the U.S. Department of Education (2016). In a similar manner, the percentage of teachers who are immigrants is also increasing as can be seen from the graph given below. ‘Given the growing shortage of teachers in the U.S., the trend of international recruitment looks set to continue. Despite this, little is known about how the presence of immigrant educators has affected American students’ academic achievements and learning experiences.’ according to a study conducted by Kelvin KC Seah called ``Labour Economics``. The same study also suggests that “immigrant teachers are also less likely to possess a standard teaching certification and are more likely instead to hold a temporary teaching certification.”  In this context, I strongly believe that immigrant teachers need more support and guidance in trodding through educational credentialing and certification process as these can get really painstakingly hard for immigrant teachers compared to their native colleagues. I met several immigrant teachers and almost all of them had quite difficult times to be credentialed therefore I appreciate their help to me in going through the necessary steps.Source: Dick Startz/IPUMS USA, University of Minnesota
Being an `alien` teacher with an undefined accent, way of speaking and behaving I was feeling stressed, ``inferior`` at times and tense to fit in. Being hired by the school was really appreciable for me and contributing the diverse and inclusive social texture of the school although “the U.S. educational system was built from a foundation of Eurocentric attitudes and cultural value images, and still is.” (Kankava, 2013) I was among the lucky folks as I have been continuously moralized, supported and ``fed`` by positive feedback. I think, as a general approach, immigrant teachers should be honored, made feel ``welcome`` and truly, regarded as people whose outside-of-the-borders experience enriches the culture at school. Naturally, there are so many qualities to be fine-tuned and ``adjusted`` but the administrators, counselors, coaches or mentors whatever it may be, should consider the sensitivity and emotionally-receptive status of the immigrant colleague. Prioritizing the positive and infusing the feedback among the lines of conversation succinctly and tacitly would help a lot. As an example, all teachers (we call them “facilitators” rather) have websites to-be-updated weekly or more frequently. I had to develop myself in that matter, and I have never been reminded about that directly. After general announcements, department lead gathered us 15 minutes to do the updates. Just once, she showed me some of the amazing contents about geometry and intimated that I might put them on my website for our learners and parents. I got the ‘message’ without being aimed at. To set another shiny incidence, I was monitoring a testing session and my principal came into my room. We have realized after fifteen minutes that, to my forgetfulness and being `noob`, I gave them the wrong one. She saw the scene and told the students that ``I gave the wrong test to Mr.Bilal, log out now and restart.``. Among the ripples of grumble, she told that “this was a very good warm-up for you, here is your new test, be quiet and start” and they launched their tests right after the muffled noises. These two examples are coded, embedded in the deep corners of my head and heart not only as a way of professional support but also as a sign of courtesy and moral value to share. These sorts of professional and kind acts will contribute a lot to the adaptation of immigrant teachers and teacher retention. As for the quick reminder on the offices of education as the point of setting out for teaching journey, I believe the attitude, approach, and helpfulness in the officials there constitute an important portion of teacher motivation and retention. The offices of education are like the front office or reception where the first impressions are formed and can extend to the rest of teaching careers of new immigrant teachers just as like the first days of the school shape the rest of the year for a teacher. The new immigrant teacher has documents, transcripts, certificates, test results as embodiments of hopes to be a part of the teaching community. Getting the necessary credentials is not a piece of cake even if one has immense experience overseas. When I first went to the SanDiego County Office of Education, the official over there was showing a motherly concern and care. The words elegantly spilled from her mouth still reverberate in the corridors of my mind. “We need science teachers, physics teachers, and math teachers. Welcome in. You will stay in San Diego, right? Our students need science teachers.” Genuine smiles, appreciative words, and facilitative approach were there for my comfort. I still feel the warmth and courtesy on the tips of my fingers when giving the fingerprints with her, not because of long vigils of typing this article I reckon. That is, the support and “mobilization” of sources should set out from the offices of education. In this path, the study of Kelvin KC Seah about ‘Labor Economy’ reveals that “Immigrant teachers are also less likely to possess a standard teaching certification and are more likely instead to hold a temporary teaching certification.” Based on the study, the success of an immigrant teacher and therefore her/his students depend genuinely on the warm and soft strength of the `shoulders` he/she leans on.
Another important and easily achievable ``intervention`` for a newcomer, a struggling teacher can be daily informal check-ins with another teacher. As per my observations, this should be growing intrinsically in a spontaneous and natural way.  You can refer to “https://www.tolerance.org/magazine/teachers-supporting-teachers” if you want to get some insights about ‘teachers supporting teachers’. I think this is one of the most important support tools for an immigrant teacher to mitigate the severity of the cultural shocks, challenges of classroom management and adaptation process. In my personal experience, these sincere and mutual check-ins helped a lot to soothe the “pangs” of tackling with classroom management and cultural adaptation period. This support is crucial as is the fact that “teachers who have migrated to the U.S. are a vital source of teachers.” according to Dick Startz who is a professor of economics at UC Santa Barbara.
Another study by Mirjam Biegen (Educating invisibly: immigrant teachers of color and their sense of belonging in New Jersey public schools, 2018) uncovers five themes of challenges for immigrant teachers with which I am in accordance through my own experience. Their data analysis revealed these: (1) fitting in to belong, (2) discrimination and stereotyping, (3) proving oneself, (4) shoulder to lean on, and (5) resilience. I basically stressed on number 1 and 4, and all should be addressed separately in the scope of another article. Besides these, it is needless to say that usual challenges such as financial constraints, workload, safety and attrition, etc that inflict tough experiences on native teachers count for immigrants as well. All in all, considering the data and relevant research, the percentage of teachers who migrated to the US is showing a rising trend. The diversity in our schools is cherished and this tradition of empowering inclusion and equitable education opportunities for everyone is a must for all in this era. Immigrant teachers with their different background can be a huge source of richness and contribution to our education system. Their needs should be handled with sensitive educators, mentors, and officials for us all to be able to benefit from their experiences.