Moving to, living in, and working in a different country can be a profoundly transformative experience. The locus of motivation to move impacts an immigrant's intercultural adjustment, requirements by the receiving culture, loss or change in status, and resulting mental health challenges. Both migrants and refugees have unique societal, cultural, and psychological challenges that can be addressed in the language classroom that utilizes a transformative learning framework.

Transformative learning asks students to release fixed mindsets and presuppositions, and to risk change by considering new thoughts and ideas. This process is “threatening, emotionally charged and extremely difficult” (Mezirow, , p.48). A safe and nurturing language classroom for immigrants can build resiliency by addressing psychological needs while also developing empowerment and greater independence through improved language ability. This increases the possibility for positive intercultural adaptation. The author's extensive intercultural teaching experience, supported by current research, demonstrates that the language classroom can be a unique resource to address the salient challenges of immigrants.