An ethnographic study of adult Ukrainian immigrants' English language learning experiences: examining the Relation between English language proficiency and Economic success in Canada

This thesis examines the ways in which the informal and formal English language learning experiences impact the economic performance and integration into Canadian society of post former Soviet Union (FSU) Ukrainian immigrants. This ethnographic study explores and compares the language learning experiences of six adult Ukrainian immigrants in the large urban centre, Toronto, Ontario and the smaller urban cities of Saskatoon and Yorkton, Saskatchewan. Michael Halliday's (1976) and Roman Jakobson's (1990) systemic and structural functional theories of linguistics frame this study and offer the idea that language is used with specific purpose. Through a questionnaire and in-depth interviews, results show that host-country language proficiency is deemed important and essential, although not the sole indicator of economic success or self-sufficiency. Factors such as family support and ethnic networks also have positive effects on the economic outcomes of recent immigrants from Ukraine.