Reframing studies of female marriage migrants’ educational involvement: A study of Chinese and Southeast Asian female marriage migrants in Taiwan

This study looks at female marriage migrants’ involvement in their children’s education in Taiwan. This phenomenon must however be seen within the context of international hypergamy which has become an increasingly notable trend in many countries especially those of East Asia. Female marriage migrants coming to Taiwan chiefly from Southeast Asian countries and from China, often are depicted by the mainstream discourse of media, government, and school, and even in academic studies as being incapable mothers, based on their cultural-linguistic difference and arguably low socio-economic status. This paper cautions against this viewpoint for it often ignores the agency of the female marriage migrant by looking upon her degree of involvement in her children’s education as a direct result of her linguistic capital or her family’s socioeconomic status. The author seeks to reframe such studies by taking into account the female marriage migrant’s active role in shaping her own unique adaptation strategy.