Legislating What Matters: How Policy Designs Shape Two New Immigrant Destinations - Schools’ Responses to Immigrant Students

Oct 15, 2026

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This comparative case study examines policies in two new immigrant destinations in the United States and Canada that experienced rapid immigrant inflows within the past 20 years. Using an integrated framework of policy design theory and the context of reception, the paper analyzes how immigrant students are framed in state, district, and school-level policies. Interviews with immigrant students show how these policies shaped schooling experiences and communicated messages that influenced students’ political identities, highlighting interplays among policymakers and concluding with implications for educators.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages35

Reading Time1 h 28 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Keywords

Policy Design and Context of Reception

Framing immigrant students across policy levels

Immigrant student interviews and political identities

Conclusion and educator implications

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Arizona State University | | --- | --- | | Volume 30 Number 4 January 25 , 2022 ISSN 1068-2341 | | Legislating What Matters: How Policy Designs Shape Two New Immigrant Destinations Schools’ Responses to Immigrant Students Kristina F. Brezicha Georgia State University United States Citation: Brezicha, K. F. (2022). Legislating what matters: How policy designs shape two new immigrant destinations schools’ responses to immigrant students. Education Policy Analysis Archives, 30(4). [https://doi.org/10.14507/epaa.30.5089](https://doi.org/10.14507/epaa.30.5089) Abstract: This comparative case study examines the policies of two new immigrant destinations in the United States and Canada that in the past 20 years experienced a rapid influx of immigrants. Using an integrated framework of policy design theory and the context of reception, this paper analyzes the framing of immigrant students in the state, district, and school-level policies. Interviews with immigrant students in these communities show how these policies shaped their schooling experiences and communicated important messages to them about their role in their new communities, thus shaping their political identities. The findings highlight the important interplay of these different policymakers in shaping the contexts of receptions students encountered. The paper concludes by discussing educators’ role in working to craft more equitable policies. Keywords: policy design; new immigrant destinations; immigrant students; immigration policy; Canada; United States Legislar lo que importa: Cómo los diseños de políticas dan forma a las respuestas de las escuelas de dos nuevos destinos para inmigrantes a los estudiantes inmigrantes Resumen: Este estudio de caso comparativo examina las políticas de dos nuevos destinos de inmigrantes en los Estados Unidos y Canadá que en los últimos 20 años experimentaron una rápida afluencia de inmigrantes. Utilizando un marco integrado de lateoría del diseño de políticas y el contexto de la recepción, este documento analiza elencuadre de los estudiantes inmigrantes en las políticas estatales, distritales y escolares. Las entrevistas con estudiantes inmigrantes en estas comunidades muestran cómo estas políticas moldearon sus experiencias escolares y les comunicaron mensajes importantes sobre su papel en sus nuevas comunidades, dando forma a sus identidades políticas. Los hallazgos destacan la importante interacción de estos diferentes formuladores de políticasen la configuración de los contextos de las recepciones que encontraron los estudiantes. El documento concluye discutiendo el papel de los educadores en el trabajo para diseñar políticas más equitativas. Palabras-clave: diseño de políticas; nuevos destinos de inmigrantes; estudiantes inmigrantes; política de inmigración; Canadá; Estados Unidos Legislar o que importa: Como os projetos de políticas moldam as respostas de duas novas escolas de destinos de imigrantes aos alunos imigrantes Resumo: Este estudo de caso comparativo examina as políticas de dois novos destinos deimigrantes nos Estados Unidos e Canadá que nos últimos 20 anos experimentaram umrápido influxo de imigrantes. Usando uma estrutura integrada da teoria do desenho de políticas e do contexto de recepção, este artigo analisa a estrutura dos estudantesimigrantes nas políticas estaduais, distritais e escolares. Entrevistas com estudantesimigrantes nessas comunidades mostram como essas políticas moldaram suas experiências escolares e comunicaram-lhes mensagens importantes sobre seu papel em suas novas comunidades, moldando assim suas identidades políticas. As descobertas destacam aimportante interação desses diferentes formuladores de políticas na definiç ão dos contextos de recepções que os alunos encontraram. O artigo conclui discutindo o papel dos educadores no trabalho para elaborar políticas mais e

FAQs

What is the main focus of the comparative case study?

It compares policies in two new immigrant destinations in the United States and Canada and analyzes how policy designs shape schools’ responses to immigrant students.

Which framework does the paper use to analyze the policies?

It uses an integrated framework combining policy design theory with the context of reception.

How do the findings describe the effect of policies on immigrant students?

Interviews show that the policies shaped students’ schooling experiences and communicated important messages about their role in their new communities, influencing students’ political identities.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by acoobca