Asian Students in Home Stay
July 21, 2010 · Leave a Comment
According to several studies, Asian home stay students in B.C have a higher risk of using drugs, drinking, smoking, and even being sexually abused compared to students who are born in Canada or students who immigrated here with their parents. A recent publication from University of B.C states that almost a quarter of female home stay students from Asia say they have been sexually abused.
The results came from the responses of roughly 3000 East Asian (Chinese, Japanese, Korean, etc) students in BC who are in grades 7 to 12.
According to the study, when it comes to home stay students (compared other Asian students who are immigrants or Canadian-born students)…
They are 2 to 6 times more likely to use cocaine than others their age,
25% of them have had sexual intercourse compared to 9-12% of others their age.
23% of female students reported being sexually abused, compared to 8-9% of others.
20% are current smokers compared to 5-9% of others.
And more have participated in binge drinking than others.
According to the authorities, the lack of parental guidance is a large factor. There are undeniable risks associated with children living in an unmonitored environment (homestay families are only required to provide room and board). There appears to be some need for improvement in B.C’s home stay industry, such as programs to monitor homestay families.
Some tips for parents of potential homestay students include taking the time to look for reputable services that can answer questions, provide contact information and guidelines, talking to your child’s homestay family about your child’s behaviours and possibly creating rules, or communicate with your child regularly about their school life, home life, and social life in Canada. Keeping an open environment for conversations about your child’s behaviour, thoughts, and actities makes it easier for them to tell you when something’s wrong and easier for you to notice warning signs.
Source:
http://www.vancouversun.com/health/Foreign+students+greater+risk+abuse+study/3272216/story.html
