ABSTRACT
Data from the 2001 Census show that the foreign-born population of Canada is at its highest level in 70 years (Statistics Canada, 2003a). The Conference Board of Canada projected that by 2025 immigration will account for all population growth in the country. Because of greater diversity of ancestry and countries of origins among immigrant families, the number of visible minorities has tripled since 1981. In the large city in western Canada where our study took place, the most common 10 source countries were Philippines, India, China, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Poland, United Kingdom, United States, Bosnia or Herzegovina, and Lebanon. According to the 2001 Census, 17% of the 1.8 million immigrants who arrived in Canada during the 1990s were children aged 5 and 16 years. Currently in urban centers, nearly one of every five children has immigrated within the past 10 years (Statistics Canada, 2003b).
