Living in Canada: Experiences of Newcomer Youth from the Former Yugoslavia
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Date
2004-04
Authors
Karlovic, Valerija
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Publisher
Mount Saint Vincent University
Abstract
An increasing number of studies and personalized accounts recognize significant
issues of Canadian immigrant children and youth as they and their newcomer families
adjust to living in Canada. Challenges involved in learning English as a second language,
adapting to the Canadian public education system, facing possible isolation and
loneliness, and experiencing difficulty building new friendships in Canada are some of
the impediments Canadian newcomer children and youth encounter following arrival,
regardless of their particular cultural background and affiliation. These and other
adjustment challenges are often compounded for immigrant and refugee children and
youth from countries tom by conflict, and who, understandably, bring with them the
impact of their extraordinary pre-immigration circumstances, their separation from, or
loss of, cherished familial and other relationships, and uncertainty about their lives in a
new country. The present research, utilizing qualitative inquiry, elicited the voices, attitudes,
perspectives, and opinions of newcomer youth from the Former Yugoslavia, for the
purpose of exploring, discovering, and understanding their earlier and current adjustment
experiences while living in Canada. Three focus groups (two with younger youth, 13-15
years old, and one with older youth, 16-18 years old) and four individual interviews were
conducted with 26 volunteer participants recruited from the Former-Yugoslavian
community in the greater Halifax Region Municipality. The interview sessions were
audio-taped and collected data were transcribed, translated (one individual interview was
conducted in Serbo-Croatian), and analyzed utilizing systematic cross-comparative
coding, by which the researcher eventually organized the findings for discussion within four major categories: Cultural Affiliation/ Retention, Pre-Immigration Experiences,
Newcomer Experiences, and Supports and Services. Recommendations, in accordance
with the research findings, are presented for the participant youth and various
significantly related/ impacted groups (parents, schools, media, community, educational
and government sectors).
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Keywords
Newcomers, Yugoslavia, Immigrants, Immigration, Canada, Youth