The Importance Of Language Barriers In The United States

The first challenge for immigrants is the language barrier. Since English is the second or third language for most immigrants, they face a lot of problems to communicate. Although, immigrants have some knowledge of English, the pronunciation of most words is different. So they can’t understand and

Non-English speaking citizens and immigrants are receiving improper medical care because of the miscommunication. The people who cannot speak English well are misunderstood, when they go to free clinics or hospital emergency rooms and attempt to explain their symptoms and illness or cannot understand the doctors or medical profession that are trying to help them. ” Interpreters are omitting questions about drug allergies. Patients are not telling nurses the correct symptoms. A mother misunderstood by putting oral antibiotic into the ears of the child instead of the mouth. The Puerto Rican word for mumps is not the same in Central America, so a child was mistreated. A doctor mistakenly told a parent to put a steroid crème on entire child instead of just the face” (Yolanda Prtida, 2005). Language barriers in the medical field are dangerous and some times even fatal. There is definitely a need for more translators in hospitals and doctors office. Clear communication is essential for safe quality healthcare. Poor communication can lead to disastrous outcomes, especially for patients with limited or no English ability.

To begin with, in many cases, one of the biggest hurdles for an immigrant to overcome is the language barrier. Imagine the fear an immigrant must feel, being immersed in a society whose language and culture is entirely different from their own. The bravery and diligence displayed by such foreigners to overcome this fear is admirable to

In recent studies, the United States has seen an increase in numbers in immigration and has affected both adolescent education and the work environment. These families are forced to learn a new language and blend into a new society. In the article Obstacles to Getting Ahead by Martica L. Bacallao and Paul R. Smokowski “Monolingualism and discrimination in interpersonal interactions and social policies directed Mexican adolescents and their parents to learn English and to conform to host culture norms, appearance, and behaviors to advance in school and in their work.” (1). Lately, education has been a struggle for immigrants due to the language barrier and the effects that it has on them such as depression, anxiety, and even feel abandonment.

Furthermore, language poses a big barrier for immigrants’ employability. Most of the immigrants are coming from non-English speaking countries (Biles et al., 269). So, although before immigration they pass IELTS or similar English testing examinations (Six selection factors, 2017, para 2), are not familiar with actual English vocabulary, accent and intonations. Language inefficiency creates a huge barrier for them to connect properly with employers, which is the main reason for

The culture of the United States of America is chiefly of European culture, but it is influenced by many other cultures as well. In addition to Native Americans who were already living on the continent, the population of the United States was built on immigration from other countries. Since so many different kinds of people immigrated to the United States, America is one of the most culturally diverse countries in the world. Practically every region of the world has influenced American culture in some way. The region that has influenced the United States the most is the English, who colonized America in the early 1600s. America is sometimes called the “melting pot”. This term is used as a metaphor describing a fusion of nationalities, cultures and

After reading your post, I went ahead to find out the definition for Latina and Hispanic. It seems like they both have the same definition with the only difference of Hispanic being Spanish-speaking. I never thought about those terms before either, so thank you for sharing your experience.

Lyndon B. Johnson once said “The land flourished because it was fed from so many sources--because it was nourished by so many cultures and traditions and peoples.” President Johnson was referring to the rich cultural history that America is privileged to have as a result of immigration. America is a country of immigrants. A stroll in any major city will quickly reveal the multifaceted culture that is America. While historically the United States has been labeled a “melting pot” where all cultures have come together to create one, a more popular, and in my opinion, more fitting term is “salad bowl.” This idea demonstrates that immigrants bring different cultures; each of these cultures is kept intact and serves as an essential part to make up the whole. The trend in America is toward multiculturalism, not assimilation. The metaphor "melting pot" is conceding to new metaphors such as "salad bowl", reflecting the mixture of multiple immigrants that are American, but maintain their native culture. As more immigrants are finding their way to the United States the fabric of America becomes more diverse and colorful every day.

Nowadays, there is no any education for the local language. So, many immigrants live hard, having the problems. Until the government start the local language education, it’s so hard for them to adopt the new

Historically, the United States began as a nation that valued language diversity due to the fact that in the 1789 Constitution, no official language was designated. As the years progressed, English became the popular language and was a way to keep power in the dominant English speaking white population, while keeping power away from the non-English speaking minority groups. However, now that times are changing and the Spanish population is rising, Spanish and being bilingual are becoming more valued.

America is a nation where people of many backgrounds interact and enhance the country as a whole. America is best portrayed as a salad bowl because immigrants are able to keep their culture and traditions, yet still be American. According to the salad bowl theory, various cultures are associated yet distinct. America could is a salad bowl because culture is contained in a single mass and somehow stay diverse and separate. The experiences of four different immigrants demonstrate how America is a salad bowl through their contributions to society.

‘Salad bowl’ is another name of America. It is the connotative meaning of diverse culture in America. Each of them has their own color and they are in harmony as they coexist together. The beginning of ‘salad bowl’ is the time that Columbus found the

Although it may not be recognized as such, the US faces a refugee crisis that warrants serious attention; asylum applications to the countries surrounding Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala increased 712% between 2008 and 2013. Many of the asylum-seekers entering the US speak only indigenous languages and face great difficulty in demonstrating “credible fear” or finding legal representation, making them 14 times more likely to be deported into the countries where they face persecution. There is currently no practical tool allowing for staff to identify indigenous languages, and as such, staff are not sufficiently trained to identify primary languages at the point of first contact or in detention centers. Additionally, although the “I Speak” outreach makes the effort to acknowledge various languages, writing systems for many indigenous languages are relatively recent, meaning that written tools are not enough. Because language assessments are not carried out individually, asylum-seekers are often determined to have been communicated their rights when they have not been and become unable to communicate meaningfully in

Many of the refugees have a tough time paying rent, their internet bill, utilities, and a car payment. Additionally, low income leads many people to live in cheaper and more dangerous neighborhoods, where a high crime rate already exists, and this puts them in danger. This causes them tremendous stress and, in some cases, depression. Often, refugee immigrants cannot find decent jobs, and they lack the skills to compete with the local labor forces. Instead, immigrants usually tend to start with low or semi-qualified jobs, but the language barrier is not the only problem in this regard. It is necessary to understand that such a lower position of immigrants is basically predetermined by their low educational level. This means that immigrants simply

Society has a stigma of having to put things into categories in order to have a better understanding and approach to life. Due to this need to categorize, the concept of the“salad bowl” and the “melting pot” emerged. These theories are approaches of how cultures are represented within a nation. The United States is a nation made up of immigrants. Over generations these immigrants have decided to either abandon their culture and assimilate to the “American” society or wear their heritage with pride and embrace their values, therefore brings up the infamous debate whether the United States is a “salad bowl” or a “melting pot”