Portland State Magazine Fall 2016

FALL 2016 PORTLAND STATE MAGAZINE 13 The study revealed a number of findings. Despite high levels of education, Korean immigrants often are ill-equipped to navigate U.S. school systems because of deep cultural differences. Koreans, like other immigrant groups, need culturally appropriate assistance as they adjust their way of looking at schools and their own family dynamics. Special education resource rooms or English-as-a-second-language classes aren’t always best for new Korean students, even if they’re not yet fluent in English. Jenny Kim, past president and founder of the Korean American Coalition of Oregon, said Lee’s research not only confirms the experience of many in her organization, it also could go a long way to help others understand the challenges they sometimes face. KOREAN CULTURE , with its Confucian influence, more strictly defined gender roles and more structured school system, can make it difficult for new immigrants to adapt, Kim says. Korean schools, for example, sort students by aptitude—some are tracked into high-level math and sciences, while others go into more vocational studies. That doesn’t happen as much in U.S. schools, she says, “and that can cause some frustration” for Korean parents. “They don’t think the schools are pushing their kids enough.” The results from Lee’s focus groups, Kim says, could help open doors between school counselors and parents. Lee, who is Korean, says she wasn’t sure what to expect when she first advertised for focus group participants. As a culture, Koreans are known to be reserved about personal matters. Getting them to speak candidly, she worried, could prove problematic. It didn’t take long, however, for the mothers and fathers to open up. “They wanted me to hear their experience,” Lee says. “One by one, I would hear, ‘This is what is happening. You need to know.’” There were stories of mothers who wanted to explain to teachers that their children were working below their capacity but couldn’t make themselves understood. Stories of fathers who wanted their children to adapt to the more casual American school culture, but faced resistance from their wives. “They expressed a deep frustration with their inability to properly support their children’s educational achievement,” the research paper states, “which often resulted in feelings of helplessness, stress and depression.” Koreans like to present a calm exterior, Lee says. “But inside there is that stress, that trouble.” AN ESTIMATED 1.7 million Korean Americans reside in the United States, about 10 percent of the Asian American population, according to Lee’s research. Statistics show they are more likely to live in poverty than other Asian subgroups, and they are more likely to socialize primarily with other Koreans. Korean mothers, Lee’s article says, bear most of the responsibility for overseeing their children’s education, a role they take seriously. That can cause tensions within families, says William “Ted” Donlan, another social work faculty member who contributed to the study. “Children adapt more easily to a new environment,” Donlan says. “Mothers have really high expectations” and expect strict discipline and rigor at school. In Korea, children often attend school from early in the morning to late in the evening, he says. “But here, their children may be having a fun, engaging experience. Sometimes those two are at odds.” Over the course of five months, Lee and her four-member research team selected and interviewed 30 Korean-American parents, all but two of them first-generation immigrants. Using interpreters and modern data-analysis techniques, they identified a significant gap between what the parents need to navigate their new world and what kind of help they are receiving. Foremost among their conclusions: Social workers and other community service providers need to find culturally competent ways of delivering services to Korean parents. They need to understand that language barriers must be overcome, and Korean parents may not step forward to express concerns because of their need to “save face.” Lee and Donlan are working on a technology-based solution that would include a smart-phone app aimed at improving parenting skills and mental health care access. They have applied for funding through the National Institutes of Health, but so far have not been successful. They say the app would also help Vietnamese and other Asian-American immigrants. For Lee, a first-generation immigrant who raised two children attending public schools, the research is personal as well as academic. She had limited English when her children started in U.S. schools, and often felt powerless when problems arose. “I wasn’t able to step in when my son was misunderstood,” she says. “I am working through very first-hand experience.”  Harry Esteve is a staff member in the PSU Office of University Communications Korean mothers bear most of the responsibility for overseeing their children’s education, a role they take seriously.