by Monica Lakhwani

Created on: June 13, 2009   Last Updated: June 14, 2009

When it comes to being an adolescent in middle school, it's no easy task. Students face many social, developmental, and emotional challenges while learning about themselves and adjusting to daily pressures of school and/or home. In the school environment alone, our students deal with many conflicts both interpersonal and intrapersonal ones such as peer pressure, drugs, alcoholism, dating, sexual identity, alienation, bullying, personal awareness and growth, and the list goes on. Today's middle school student doesn't have it easy and we as teachers, counselors, parents, administrators, etc., are learning about them on a daily basis. Imagine how difficult life is today for your average teen in middle school. Now, imagine how difficult life would be for the student in middle school who faces all these conflicts and more: the student who has recently immigrated to the United States and has to overcome language, cultural, educational, and social barriers as well. What happens to the middle school student who is new in a country where he/she doesn't know the language? What happens to this same student who learns about his own sexual identity through the course of the school year? How does that student deal with it among his own cultural group and assimilate into the new culture? Additionally, how does he/she feel comfortable and gain a sense of positive self-concept when dealing with issues of bullying?

As teachers we often have the opportunities to work with many delightful faces. However, this past year I had a student in my class who was dealing with issues concerning bullying as a result of his sexual identity. For most of the year, it impaired his social, emotional, academic, and cultural outlook. It was especially difficult for him as he came from an embedded machismo culture. Where most students initially find support, identify, and group with other students from the same country, this one particular student came from a single parent home (living with his father no presence of other family members in USA), faced academic and social issues, had a language barrier, and was placed in an academically higher cohort of students where he was extremely challenged. I watched as he struggled - as his self-esteem decreased and he would withdraw from class - as he was estranged by many students from his own country both in the class and in the school. I collaborated with other teachers, contacted the resource teacher and counselor, worked with the student, had numerous conversations/emails with his case worker and discussed mutual concerns with his volunteer tutor. Even now, I stay in touch with this student encouraging him to stay positive but I can't help but wonder how his experiences will shape his life in the coming school year and years further down the road. Academically, his pronunciation and reading need a lot of work. Emotionally, I wonder what he has really gone through. What thoughts have gone through the minds of students in similar situations? What can educators do to create a safe, non-threatening, and positive environment? These and other questions are often forgotten when the school year ends. Nevertheless, we need to remember that unless some form of character education is taught or a drastic change in the mind set of adults and educators takes place, questions will arise once again!

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