Haitian and Spanish-speaking Caribbean Migrants: Implications

for Florida Educators

María D. Alvarez, Ph.D.School Psychologist

alvaremd@gm.sbac.edu

Center for Latin American Studies and Clay County Schools

6 February 2010

Workshop Objectives

• Background Information on the Caribbean• Overview of Caribbean migration to the U.S.

and inter-island migration• Overview of Haitian migration to the U.S.• From Haiti to Florida– Family Transformations – Schooling Issues

Workshop Objectives (cont)

• Overview of Puerto Rican migration to Central Florida

• Caribbean family systems• Framework for analyzing family stresses and

support systems

Florida and the Caribbean

Haiti: A Mountainous Country

Comparative Population Statistics

Territory sq.miles pop pop/sq.mi

Haiti 10,714 9,035,536 843Florida 58,560 18,300,000 313Puerto Rico 3,435 3,971,020 1,156 Dom. Rep 18,816 9,650,054 513Cuba 42,827 11,451,652 267

Foreign-born Haitians in the U.S. Area Number Percent United States 419,317 100.0 Florida 182,224 43.5 New York 125,475 29.9 Massachusetts 33,862 8.1 New Jersey 31,963 7.6Rest of U.S. 45,793 10.9 Source: U.S. Census 2000

Total Population of Haitians in the U.S.

• Total population of Haitians in the U.S. (foreign-born and U.S. born) is 735,233, +/- 29,491 (USCB, 2006 Community Survey).

• Total estimated by community leaders comes closer to 1 million.

Haitian immigrants over time by type of immigrant

Migration Stages

• 1960s & early 1970s: – Mostly middle class Haitians, escaping Duvalier

(Papa & Baby Doc) regimes. – Focused on northeastern hubs.

• Late 1970s/early 1980s: – Boat people. – Substantial migration to South Florida begins. – FL Haitians cluster in Dade, Broward, Palm Beach

Counties.

Haitian Age Structure in South Florida

• Haitian pop in South FL is young: –20% < 14 –42% between 30 and 44 –<6% >55

• Population grows more from immigration than from new births.

Top 5 Languages Spoken by ELLs in Florida

• Spanish (76%)• Haitian Creole (12%)• Portuguese (2%)• French (1%)• Vietnamese (1%)• All others languages (8%)

Facts about ELLs in Florida

• ELLs constituted 9.9% of public school enrollment in 2000 (Kindler, 2002)

• Growth of ELL student population from 93-94 to 03-04 = 94.9%

• Decrease of general student population from 93-94 to 03-04 = -10.3%

• 50.9% of Florida public school teachers instructed ELL students in 1999-2000.

Family: Overview of Issues

• Conjugal union types• Household composition• Child care arrangements• Family support systems• Economic contributions of family members• Discipline and parental authority• Health-seeking behaviors• Relation to schools

Conjugal Union Types

Rural Haiti• Common law unions (plasaj)

are the statistical norm

• Legal marriage (civil or religious) often come later in life

• Polygamy socially acceptable

Florida• Legal marriage the norm

– Immigration requirements

• New variants of marriage– Mariaj rezidans – Mariaj bay bous– Mariaj biznis– Mariaj de gaudin

• Polygamy unacceptable

Household Composition

Haiti• Mostly nuclear family kin• “gran moun pa ret ak gran

moun.”• May live in same compound

(lakou) next door to extended kin.

• Missing members who have emigrated.

• In urban areas, many servant children “restavek”

Florida• Extended kin under the

same roof. • Young children may be

absent.• Children may not be living

with their parents.• Family members at various

stages of adaptation – to U.S.– to the family unit

Child Care Arrangements

Haiti• Child care a family affair

– Older children care for younger children

– Elderly kin serve as caretakers

• Non-kin assigned child care duties– Paid: maid (bonn)– Unpaid: child servant

(restavek)

Florida• Child care a major dilemma

for parents that may have two jobs

• Child care options– Leave/send back child to Haiti– Bring kin to live w. the family– Family, church, school, or

commercial day care– Latch-key child– Leave child at sitter’s home

• Overnight or M-F

Family Support Systems

Haiti• Reliance on personal-level

and family-level resources

• Low availability of community-level resources

Florida• Increased importance of

personal and family-level resources – Finding a place to stay– Finding a job– “Learning the ropes”

• Increased reliance on community-level resources– Churches– Schools/After-school – Community agencies

Economic Contributions of Family Members

Haiti• Active contributions

expected of all family members– Income-generating work by

parents• Females play active role in

income-generating activities– In-kind contributions by

children and teens• Cooking/doing dishes• Cleaning, fetching water• Child care

Florida• Most jobs secondary and

informal sector• Active contributions by

parents and teens– Income –generating work by

parents– Income-generating work by

teens– In –kind contributions by

children

• Remittances sent back to Haiti

Discipline and Parental Authority

Haiti• Discipline measures and

lines of authority clearly delimited.

• Commands stated in no uncertain terms.

• Corporal punishment used widely.

• Corporal punishment also used by teachers in schools.

Florida• Harsh talk and discipline

incompatible with U.S. child-rearing and school practices.

• Intergenerational clashes re. parental authority

• Corporal punishment banned from schools

• Legal action against harsh punishment.

Health-Seeking Behaviors

Haiti• Heavy reliance on home

remedies.• Reliance on endogenous

healers.• Modern care sought for

accident/injuries or persistent illness.

Florida• Reliance on home and

purchased remedies. • Less use of endogenous

healers.• Curative services sought

late in illness or at ER

Schooling: Overview of Issues

• Language of instruction• Instructional strategies• Structural characteristics of schools• Age/grade compatibilities• Discipline and authority• Expectations re. parental involvement

Language of Instruction

Haiti• Instruction may be in

French (urban)

• Instruction may be in Creole (rural)

• Instruction may be in both French and Creole

Florida• Instruction in English

– “sink or swim” approach

• Various levels of support for English acquisition– ESOL pullout programs– ESOL push-in programs– Bilingual/trilingual

monoliterate programs in other parts of U.S.

Instructional Strategies

Haiti• Verbatim memorization

expected• Convergent thinking

encouraged• Learning centralized on the

teacher• Few classroom resources

• Much homework expected

Florida• Discovery learning

emphasized• Divergent thinking

encouraged• Visuals, audials, computers,

decentralize instruction away from the teacher

• Little homework in primary grades

Characteristics

Haiti• School size is small, children

known by name• Class size is large• Open-air and makeshift

schools• Uniforms required in most

schools• Books/school supplies

provided by students

Florida• School size is large,

especially high schools• Class size is small• Formal, large buildings• Uniforms only required in

parochial schools• Books/supplies provided by

public schools

Age/grade Compatibilities

Haiti• Age/grade correspondence

fluid

• Grade repetition widespread

• Multi-age classrooms

Florida• Age/grade correspondence

rigid

• Grade repetition discouraged

• Multi-age restricted

Discipline and Authority

Haiti• Teachers expected to

require, impose, enforce discipline

• Corporal punishment allowed

• Lack of academic preparation considered infraction

Florida• Multiple authority figures

besides teacher– Deans, BRT, AP

• Corporal punishment banned • Variety of disciplinary actions

– Classroom discipline systems– Time-out, office referrals– ISS, OSS, work-detail– Tiers 1, 2, 3 measures

Parental Involvement

Haiti

• Teaching is left to educators

• Involvement not expected and considered interference

Florida• Parents are viewed as

partners in education.• Involvement expected; lack

of it perceived as indifference

• Work schedules, hourly wages, language barriers militate against involvement

Challenges Faced by Haitians in Florida

• Bad press (boat people, TB, AIDS, voodoo), though earthquake has elicited an outpouring of good will towards Haiti and Haitians

• Prejudice and discrimination, even by other Haitians

• Attain job mobility: Secondary & Informal sector to more skilled, stable, higher-paying jobs. Gradually being recognized as reliable, eager workers.

Hispanics in Florida (arranged by order of prominence)

• Cubans (ca. 1 million)• Puerto Ricans (ca. 600,000) • Colombians• Nicaraguans• Mexicans• Venezuelans• Dominicans

Patterns of Puerto Rican Migration to Florida

• 1940s: Small number of agricultural business owners

• 1950s: Migration shifts to working class and seasonal workers for vegetable harvests

• 1960s: Puerto Ricans respond to real estate promotions and begin settling into Central Florida from island and mainland (NY, NJ, IL)

• 1970s: Sugar cane workers, plus white collar workers.

Patterns of PR migration to Florida (cont.)

• 1980 and 1990s: Disney World and expansion of Orlando area attracts steady influx from both island and mainland Puerto Rican hubs.

• 2000s: Orlando becomes 4th U.S. city in terms of numbers of Puerto Ricans, after NY, Philadelphia, and Chicago, followed by Miami and Tampa/St Pete. Census reports 482,027 Puerto Ricans in Florida.

• 2003: Census reports 571,755 Puerto Ricans in Florida, largest Hispanic group in Central Florida.

Largest clusters of Puerto Ricans in Florida (2003)

• Orlando area 206,000• Miami-Dade & Broward 155,000• Tampa Bay/Hillsborough 68,000

Percentage over 5-y-o who Speak a Language other than English at Home• Miami-Dade 70%• Osceola 42.2%• Orange 31.4%• Hillsborough 24.4%• Alachua 12.0%• Clay 8.9%

• Better educated (74% had completed H.S.; median school years = 13 vs. 12 for island)

• Show higher English proficiency (63% speak English well vs. 28% in island)

• Predominantly white-collar workers (53% employed in administrative support, technical, service, managerial, real-estate, trade, )

When Compared to Island or Mainland Puerto Ricans, Central

Florida Puerto Ricans are:

Challenges Faced by Puerto Ricans in Central Florida

• Despite achievements, lower income, lower ed levels, lower representation in upper economic echelons than other Hispanics.

• Most children not fluent in English when they arrive from PR. In 2000-01, 21% of children receiving language enrichment services in Orange County were Puerto Rican.

• High school dropout rates• More reported illnesses than other Hispanics

Caribbean Family Systems

• Nuclear Family• Three-generation (g’parents, aunts/uncles)• Extended Family (a variety of kin)• Salad-bowl family (usually mother w. children of

several unions)• Blended family (parents & their children plus

children of previous unions) • One-parent family (mother, aunt, or older sister

with children)

Caribbean Family Systems (cont)

• Accordion families (mom or dad absent for long periods of time due to seasonal work; family has two modalities)

• Two-person families (adult/child)• Families with ghosts (parent lost to death,

divorce, separation but still present)• Host families (families that incorporate an

unrelated child, given or informally “adopted.” In Haiti this may be a restavek child)

Structure & Process of Family Functioning

Support Systems of Family Functioning

Bibliography• Carrasquillo, A.L. (1991). Hispanic children and youth

in the United States: A resource guide. New York: Garland Publishing, Inc.

• Duany, J. & Matos-Rodriguez. (2006). Puerto Ricans in Orlando and Central Florida. Available at http://www.centropr.org.

• Stepick, A. (1998). Pride against prejudice: Haitians in the United States. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

• Suarez-Orozco, C. & Suarez-Orozco, M. M. (2001) Children of immigration. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.