Chapter 2 - Who is the Foreign Service Child?
In order to make the best educational choices for our children, it is important to understand the effects of a mobile lifestyle on them. David Pollock, a leading expert on the effects of international mobility on adolescents, notes that young people who spend a significant length of time out of their own culture develop a culture of their own. The new culture is made up of what they bring from their home (or their parents' home) culture intermingled with those cultural cues and experiences from the other cultures in which they have lived. Sociologist Ruth Hill Useem uses the term Third Culture Kid (TCK) to describe these young people. All who live abroad are changed by the experience. However, the impact on young people is longer-lasting. As child psychiatrist Jack Smith said, "The Foreign Service is what adults do. It is what our children are."
THE THIRD CULTURE KID
Growing up outside the United States, a Foreign Service child can develop both positive and negative characteristics which can influence his/her their education. Positive characteristics include linguistic ability, cross-cultural skills, a three-dimensional world view, and increased maturity. Unfortunately, TCKs also may experience rootlessness, insecurity, and unresolved grief or sadness caused by the frequent breaking off of relationships. While education may be enhanced by international experiences, its continuity is often interrupted as students move from one school system to another, sometimes several times in their pre-college years. TCKs may not be in the same developmental stage as their peers in the United States; delayed adolescence during their early twenties is a common phenomenon. They may feel more camaraderie and comfort with each other or with other foreign nationals who have also grown up in a cross-cultural environment than they do with their American peers. Perhaps there is no time that they feel it more strongly than when they return to the United States after an overseas posting. Claiming identity as Americans overseas, they can feel confused or challenged by the actual America they return to with their parents.
ADJUSTMENT TO OVERSEAS
The adjustment to life overseas is not without difficulties for young people. The Foreign Service family needs to plan carefully, set realistic expectations for all family members, and be ready to identify and handle problems as they happen. Keeping that in mind, children and adolescents often adjust quickly and easily to life overseas. This varies from post to post, but often the overseas community is smaller and more welcoming. Even at large posts, other children have been "the new kid" themselves, so go out of their way to help newcomers. The school may be smaller and the student-teacher ratio better than in the school back home, allowing for more individual attention. Parents may be happier in their work and have more flexibility to schedule time with the family.
The new culture itself may offer a challenge that is filled with exciting opportunities to explore and learn. Preparing for the move by talking to other people who have lived at the post and reading as much as possible about the culture will help the whole family adjust better. Once at post, discussing feelings and reactions with family members and with other people at post helps facilitate the adjustment. Whether they admit it to their parents or not, Foreign Service children often feel that they are able to experience firsthand what many Americans only read about or see on a special television program.
REENTRY ISSUES FOR CHILDREN AND TEENS
Foreign Service families find reentry to American culture to be the most difficult move of all. Major changes occur while one is living abroad, and the more a returnee is aware of those changes, the greater the chance for a smooth transition to life in the United States. The impact on the family may include changes in their financial status and a loss of the Embassy support system. A heavy work schedule and a long commute for the parents may mean less time to spend together as a family.
Many returnees also experience major role changes. Changing roles from official representatives of the U.S. Government to that of ordinary citizens can be unsettling for a family. Many Foreign Service children have not attended large schools or followed an American curriculum. In some cases, a beloved foreign care-giver has been left behind. The "teen scene" may be very different from what the teen experienced overseas. Foreign Service children, with their unique experiences, may find it difficult to fit into groups where "sameness" is valued and there is a lack of curiosity about life overseas. All of these things may impact on a student's performance at school during the first few months. Many parents look for a school that has a faculty that understands these differences, a diverse student body, and a program of studies featuring foreign languages or international subjects.
FLOW OF CARE FOR THIRD CULTURE KIDS
Parents and community members should work to develop a caring, nurturing environment overseas as a basis for helping TCKs recognize the positive aspects of their lives. Parents can help their children keep in touch with life in the United States by subscribing to magazines and by joining book, record, and video clubs. Students should be encouraged to participate in reentry programs scheduled by Community Liaison Office Coordinators or the school.
When returning to the United States, parents may need to contact teachers and administrators in the new school to help them understand the transition the children will be going through in the first few months, especially if students are coming from a non-American school system. If possible, money should be budgeted for new school clothing so that the student will "fit in." Returning children should be encouraged to keep in touch with friends at post. Letters, telephone calls, even planned visits will help maintain these friendships. It may be possible to help a child rediscover an old friend from a former post who has also returned to the United States. These renewals are reassuring and provide a form of continuity.
To assist children returning to Washington, the Department of State offers a number of programs and supports Around the World in a Lifetime (AWAL), a group for Foreign Service teens. The Overseas Briefing Center (OBC) and the Family Liaison Office sponsor AWAL activities including the Away Day, an exciting outdoor experiential learning course for children 10 to 17 years old, and the Getaway, a weekend retreat that examines moving, cross-cultural adaptation, and growing up in the Foreign Service for children 12 to 17 years old. Each fall, the Overseas Briefing Center offers Transition to Washington for Families, a series of workshops that include special sessions for teens and younger children. The workshops are led by Foreign Service teenagers and adults who have experienced reentry to Washington.
The Foreign Service Youth Foundation (FSYF) and the Family Liaison Office have developed the Flow of Care which defines the support available for Foreign Service teens in Washington and overseas. A monthly newsletter published by AWAL members publicizes teen activities in the United States and assists overseas members in keeping in touch with the U.S. scene. Because other AWAL members have had similar experiences, the returning teens feel less alone and they can work through the transition process and come to see the possibilities in the present situation. AWAL programs give recently returned teenagers a chance to talk to each other and to teens who have been living in the United States longer about their feelings and concerns. More information about AWAL and its programs is available at the Family Liaison Office, the Overseas Briefing Center, and the Office of Overseas Schools.
RESOURCES
For the following resources, contact the Community Liaison Office at post or the Family Liaison Office in Washington.
Family Liaison Office (M/DGHR/FLO)
Room 1239
Department of State
Washington, DC 20520-7512
Tel: 202-647-1076, 1-800-440-0397
Fax: 202-647-1670
Email: flo@state.gov
Web site: http://www.state.gov/m/dghr/flo
America: A Different World - This is a videotape of 20 Foreign Service teenagers discussing their experiences returning to live in the United States. It is an honest look at the difficulties of reentry, plus practical suggestions for making it better.
According to My Passport, I'm Coming Home, by Kay Branaman Eakin - This booklet presents the special issues of reentry for teenagers, offers suggestions for what parents can do to facilitate teen reentry, and contains worksheets to help families do short-term and long-term planning with their teenagers. It was originally written as part of the Overseas Briefing Center's Teen Project in 1988.
Notes from a Traveling Childhood, edited by Karen Curnow McCluskey - This anthology of writings by parents, children, educators, researchers, and mental health professionals is about the effects of international mobility on children and families. It was published in 1994 by the Foreign Service Youth Foundation.
Wings of AWAL - This is a monthly newsletter produced by Foreign Service teenagers who are members of Around the World in a Lifetime (AWAL). It contains original art and articles by the teens, plus information on life in Washington, including AWAL activities.
FLOW OF CARE FOR FOREIGN SERVICE YOUTH
The following organizations, working in collaboration, have developed a flow of care to help Foreign Service teenagers meet the challenge of a mobile life style: the Family Liaison Office (FLO), the Foreign Service Youth Foundation (FSYF), Around the World in a Lifetime (AWAL), the Overseas Briefing Center (OBC), the Office of Overseas Schools (A/OS), the Employee Consultation Service (ECS), and the Associates of the American Foreign Service Worldwide (AAFSW). Overseas, programs are developed by the Community Liaison Office (CLO) at post.
Preparation for Going Overseas
- AWAL Away Day - outdoor obstacle course promotes leadership and team building skills.
- Going Overseas Workshop - strategies for saying goodbye and reconnecting at new post. Hosted by FSI's Transition Center.
- Security Overseas Seminar - for ages six to 18. Hosted by FSI's Transition Center.
Programs at Post
- FLO Teen Teleconferences - U.S. panels and overseas groups discuss reentry.
- CLO College panel - CLO connects visiting college students to teens at post.
- CLO Teen reentry tapes - CLO makes available to community.
- CLO Reentry workshops - CLO begins preparation for teens returning to the U.S.
On Returning to Washington
- AWAL Welcome folders - provides useful information for teens on living in Washington area.
- AWAL Foreign Service Family Picnic - summer event offers families networking opportunities.
- AWAL Summer fun event - strengthens ties made at picnic.
- OBC Reentry workshop - gives local equivalent of post orientation for teenagers.
- AWAL Reentry Away Day - promotes leadership and team building skills.
- AWAL Getaway-weekend retreat focuses on transition to Washington and American schools.
Washington Activities
- AWAL Getaway reunion - social activity to begin AWAL winter calendar of events.
- AWAL Social activities and adventure outings - events between January and June.
- Wings of AWAL - teen newsletter produced at monthly meetings.
- Teen Month
- FLO Lectures and workshops - experts advise parents on teen relocation and other parenting issues.
- Foreign Service Youth Foundation Awards - recognize outstanding volunteer leadership and service to peers.
- Family Liaison Office education advising - provides information to students and parents on Washington area, A/OS overseas, and boarding schools, as well as on colleges and correspondence courses.
- Employee Consulation Service (ECS) evaluation and referral services - for young people experiencing unusual difficulties.
For further information, contact:
Associates of the American Foreign Service Worldwide (AAFSW)
5125 MacArthur Boulevard NW
Suite 36
Washington, DC 20016
Telephone: 202-362-6514
Fax: 202-362-6589
Email: office@aafsw.org
Web site: http://www.aafsw.org
Office of Overseas Schools (A/OS)
Room H-328, SA-1
Department of State
Washington, DC 20522-2902
Telephone: 202-261-8200
Fax: 202-261-8224
Email: OverseasSchools@state.gov
Web site: http://www.state.gov/m/a/os
Around the World in a Lifetime (AWAL) and the Foreign Service Youth Foundation (FSYF)
P.O. Box 39185
Washington, DC 20016
Email: fsyf@fsyf.org
Web site: http://www.fsyf.org
Community Liaison Office (CLO)
Available at over 150 posts. Contact flo@state.gov for the name of the CLO at post.
Employee Consultation Service (ECS)
Main Office
Columbia Plaza - Room H246
Washington, DC 20520-2256
Tele: (202) 663-1815
FAX: (202) 663-1613
Email: MEDECS@state.gov
Family Liaison Office (M/DGHR/FLO)
Room 1239
Department of State
Washington, DC 20520-7512
Telephone: 202-647-1076, 1-800-440-0397
Fax: 202-647-1670
Email: flo@state.gov
Web site: http://www.state.gov/m/dghr/flo
Transition Center, Overseas Briefing Center (OBC)
E2126, SA-42
National Foreign Affairs Training Center
4000 Arlington Boulevard
Arlington, VA 22204-1500
Telephone: 703-302-7277
Fax: 703-302-7452
Email: FSIOBCInfoCenter@state.gov
Web site: http://www.state.gov/m/fsi/tc/
Information provided by the Family Liaison Office.
Contact the Family Liaison Office
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