Immigrant Students Navigating Canadian Schools: A Longitudinal View

Abstract

Findings are presented from studies of the academic and language achievement of 1,307 young immigrant students whose educational history was traced from their arrival in Canada and entry into primary education in the early 1990s until their graduation from secondary schools. Five major findings are reported: school mobility, disappearance and dropout rates, success in provincial examinations, eligibility for postsecondary education, and ethnolinguistic differences in academic success. Findings reveal distinct differences in academic success related to immigrant class, gender, and first language (L1), whereas differences related to age on arrival (AOA) are less apparent. These and other findings are reported and described, and implications for pedagogical policy are presented.