Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
2.6
1.7
Journals
Social Sciences
Special Issues
Teaching and Learning in Refugee/(Im)Migrant Communities Around the World
share announcement

Teaching and Learning in Refugee/(Im)Migrant Communities Around the World

A special issue of Social Sciences (ISSN 2076-0760). This special issue belongs to the section "International Migration".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 September 2024) | Viewed by 15975

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Jill Koyama

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Division of Educational Leadership & Innovation, Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College, Farmer Education Bldg. #402N, Arizona State University, 1050 S Forest Mall, Tempe, AZ 85281, USA
Interests: refugee/(im)migrant education; ethnography; anthropology of education; critical education policy; Actor-Network Theory

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Worldwide, there exists an estimated 103 million forcibly displaced people, who are part of a broader grouping of “refugees/(im)migrants”, a term that indicates the complex social construction of migrants. Of those forcibly displaced, 41% are children and nearly 27.1 million are formally recognized as refugees under the UNHCR definition: People who are “unable or unwilling to return to their country of origin owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion”. Nearly half of these refugees are under the age of 18. Despite significant gains in recent years, access to education within host countries can be challenging, and UNHCR estimates that at least 3.7 million refugee children were out of school prior to COVID-19 related school closures; refugee children are five times more likely than their non-refugee peers to be out of school. In host countries around the world, refugee students attend schools, and both adult and youth refugees engage in learning and teaching outside of schools—in job training centers, at community organizations, through resettlement agencies, and informally across refugee networks. Some create their own learning and teaching spaces.

This Special Issue will bring together different empirical research, conceptualizations, and expertise in multiple and varied forms of learning and teaching in refugee/(im)migrant communities. It will situate refugees to include those legally designated as refugees by the UNHCR, asylum seekers, internally displaced persons, and migrants who self-identify as refugees to show the complexities and multiplicities of migrant categorizations and experiences. Furthermore, while there is a small, but growing body of research on refugees/(im)migrants’ experiences in formal schooling and schooling in refugee camps, this issue will bring much needed attention to educational contexts outside of schooling. While potentially illuminating the challenges of refugee/(im)migrant education, individual pieces will focus on the ways in which these challenges are met, negotiated, resisted, and undone. In the aggregate, and in conversation with one another, the papers will push back against deficit framing of refugee/(im)migrant educational needs to demonstrate the ways in which refugee/(im)migrants learn, share knowledge, and educate themselves and others. The Special Issue will address the broad question: In what ways, with whom, and where do refugee/(im)migrants teach and learn?

Possible topics include, but are in no way limited to:

  • Activism and advocacy as learning and teaching with/by refugees/(im)migrants;
  • Critical refugee studies in education;
  • Education in refugee/(im)migrant organizations;
  • Experiential learning as refugees/(im)migrants negotiate new institutions, policies, and norms;
  • Heritage language education;
  • Intersections of adult and youth refugee/(immigrant) education;
  • Limited/lack of access to formal schooling;
  • Organizing and knowledge sharing in refugee/(im)migrant communities;
  • Racializing refugees/(im)migrants in education;
  • Refusing to learn in formal schooling contexts and the creation of new learning spaces.

Prof. Dr. Jill Koyama
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Social Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • refugees
  • immigrants
  • education
  • community
  • critical refugee studies

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • e-Book format: Special Issues with more than 10 articles can be published as dedicated e-books, ensuring wide and rapid dissemination.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue polices can be found here.

Published Papers (11 papers)

Download All Papers
Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

20 pages, 329 KiB  
Article
Language Policies and Ideologies for Socialization and Identity-Building in U.S. Schools: The Case of Newcomer and Refugee Students in Arizona and New York
by S. Garnett Russell, Camille Fabo, Victoria Jones and Arnela Colic
Soc. Sci. 2024, 13(11), 601; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci13110601 - 5 Nov 2024
Viewed by 576
Abstract
Although multilingualism is a major issue in educational policies, especially in states hosting a high number of newcomer immigrant students, there is limited research exploring the experiences of a multilingual group of newcomer students and how they use language in schools. This article [...] Read more.
Although multilingualism is a major issue in educational policies, especially in states hosting a high number of newcomer immigrant students, there is limited research exploring the experiences of a multilingual group of newcomer students and how they use language in schools. This article draws on 112 interviews with students from an immigrant background across four high schools in Arizona and New York. We illuminate the role of language in shaping identity and inclusion. Through conceptualizing power and language ideology, we find that language ideologies and practices shape the perception of students’ social interactions in school settings. Our findings also indicate that teachers’ practices and school policies surrounding language(s) have the potential to affect how students view language in relation to their own identity and via social interactions. We contribute to an understanding of how language policies and ideologies shape the experiences and power dynamics of diverse, multilingual, immigrant-origin students. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Teaching and Learning in Refugee/(Im)Migrant Communities Around the World)
22 pages, 313 KiB  
Article
Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Aspirations Among Refugee Families: A Comparative, Multiethnic, Qualitative Analysis
by Meseret F. Hailu, Setrag Hovsepian, Mohammed Ibrahim, Bruno Atieh, Saida Mohamed, Nalini Chhetri and Eugene Judson
Soc. Sci. 2024, 13(11), 593; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci13110593 - 1 Nov 2024
Viewed by 881
Abstract
In this original research manuscript, we examined how gender, race, and ethnic heritage shape the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM)-related and higher education aspirations of different communities of refugee youth and families participating in university–community organization partnerships. Families from various ethnic-based community [...] Read more.
In this original research manuscript, we examined how gender, race, and ethnic heritage shape the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM)-related and higher education aspirations of different communities of refugee youth and families participating in university–community organization partnerships. Families from various ethnic-based community organizations in Arizona (serving Bhutanese, Burundian, Congolese, Somali, and Syrian people) participated in this study. Using social cognitive career theory as our conceptual framework and a qualitative research approach, we conducted interviews and focus groups with 27 families over two years to better understand their experiences. We found that the youth and families in our study experienced the following: (1) a recognition of the value of STEM education; (2) the value of consistent support from parents and community members; and (3) appreciation for the practical interventions provided by the university–community partnership. Additionally, families communicated conflicting perceptions of the salience of race and gender. We concluded by discussing the implications of the study findings for higher education scholarship and practice. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Teaching and Learning in Refugee/(Im)Migrant Communities Around the World)
15 pages, 516 KiB  
Article
Concerted Community Engagement: Refugee Education and Parents’ Daily Acts of Resistance
by Celia Reddick
Soc. Sci. 2024, 13(9), 440; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci13090440 - 23 Aug 2024
Viewed by 831
Abstract
Around the world, millions of young people and their families navigate education in settings of conflict and displacement. Despite the growing number of refugee families seeking educational opportunities outside their countries of origin, there is scant research on the efforts families undertake to [...] Read more.
Around the world, millions of young people and their families navigate education in settings of conflict and displacement. Despite the growing number of refugee families seeking educational opportunities outside their countries of origin, there is scant research on the efforts families undertake to ensure and improve this education. In this study, I seek to understand how families participate in refugee children’s education in displacement. Drawing on interviews with 16 refugee parents and caregivers living in Kakuma Refugee Camp, Kenya, I find that caregivers actively engage in their children’s schooling. Through what I am calling concerted community engagement, families choose, monitor, and supplement schools, working to ensure that refugee children benefit from the education they receive in exile as they build lives in the present and for the future. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Teaching and Learning in Refugee/(Im)Migrant Communities Around the World)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

25 pages, 1778 KiB  
Article
Visibility for Indigenous Students and Their Languages: Analysis of Home Language Data in Federal Reports across Seven U.S. States
by Karen Zyskind, Meagan Dorman, Yessenia Medina and Gabriela Pérez Báez
Soc. Sci. 2024, 13(8), 427; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci13080427 - 16 Aug 2024
Viewed by 1551
Abstract
There is an increasing number of children in the U.S. classified as English Learners (ELs). Accurately identifying and supporting ELs in their academic settings entails understanding their non-English language experiences. This study presents findings from language reporting practices from seven U.S. states by [...] Read more.
There is an increasing number of children in the U.S. classified as English Learners (ELs). Accurately identifying and supporting ELs in their academic settings entails understanding their non-English language experiences. This study presents findings from language reporting practices from seven U.S. states by examining how states account for the linguistic diversity of Indigenous Mesoamerican languages. Our findings reveal varied state approaches and underscore the limitations of current federal guidance, which limits the recognition of students’ non-English language experiences. We advocate for updating language identification practices and policies and propose a new framework for accurate language identification and continuous monitoring of student linguistic diversity. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Teaching and Learning in Refugee/(Im)Migrant Communities Around the World)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

26 pages, 405 KiB  
Article
Co-Constructing Knowledge and Space with Refugee Communities: Lessons from the Western New York Refugee Health Summit
by Alexandra Judelsohn, Melinda Lemke, Ngo Hna, Samina Raja, Jessica Scates and Kafuli Agbemenu
Soc. Sci. 2024, 13(8), 390; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci13080390 - 25 Jul 2024
Viewed by 889
Abstract
Displaced peoples are often excluded from institutional, community, and public processes in the United States, including in knowledge production spaces where researchers and educators may discuss problems and devise solutions. In this article, we explore the benefits and challenges inherent in the co-construction [...] Read more.
Displaced peoples are often excluded from institutional, community, and public processes in the United States, including in knowledge production spaces where researchers and educators may discuss problems and devise solutions. In this article, we explore the benefits and challenges inherent in the co-construction of knowledge spaces designed with the intent of serving refugee communities. To do so, we examined the Western New York Refugee Health Summit, an event held for eight years where actors convened from three spaces, i.e., institutional, community, and public. Findings are derived from the situated knowledge of the authors (actors embedded in the conception and execution of the Summit) and a qualitative descriptive analysis of eight Summit reports and event evaluation data. Findings illuminate how collaboration across these spaces is co-constructed, as well as challenges inherent in co-construction from an institutional perspective—including our attempts to contest institutional power dynamics. We conclude with a discussion of research and practice-based lessons for co-constructing spaces with and including the voices of refugee community partners. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Teaching and Learning in Refugee/(Im)Migrant Communities Around the World)
15 pages, 287 KiB  
Article
Credentials, Perpetual “Foreignness”, and Feeling out of Place: Three Stories of Resilience from Teachers of Refugee Background
by Shyla González-Doğan, Adnan Turan, Setrag Hovsepian and Dilraba Anayatova
Soc. Sci. 2024, 13(7), 363; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci13070363 - 9 Jul 2024
Viewed by 1092
Abstract
This qualitative research project seeks to examine the obstacles faced by educators who come to the U.S. as refugees. The three participants in this study are from Iraq, Sudan, and Turkey. While there are similarities between them, there are also differences in terms [...] Read more.
This qualitative research project seeks to examine the obstacles faced by educators who come to the U.S. as refugees. The three participants in this study are from Iraq, Sudan, and Turkey. While there are similarities between them, there are also differences in terms of race, sex, and religion. While this work examines practical barriers, such as those related to credentialing, it also considers how these educators negotiate their identity in the workplace. Using labeling theory, the impact of the category of refugee and how that label impacts work life is interrogated. Partially as a result of the labels associated with being a refugee, findings indicate that, for educators from refugee backgrounds, there are significant barriers to credentialing, their knowledge and experience from outside of the U.S. is rarely taken seriously in many workplace environments, and, consequently, a lack of confidence can easily develop. Despite all of this, educators from refugee backgrounds often have extensive experience in education and can more easily connect to diverse student populations and their families. Suggestions for how best to expand the hiring of educators from refugee backgrounds are provided, as well as implications for future research. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Teaching and Learning in Refugee/(Im)Migrant Communities Around the World)
16 pages, 266 KiB  
Article
Coloniality and Refugee Education in the United States
by Jill Koyama and Adnan Turan
Soc. Sci. 2024, 13(6), 314; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci13060314 - 13 Jun 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1026
Abstract
In this paper, we demonstrate the ways in which the schooling of refugee youth in the United States reflects ongoing coloniality in education. Drawing on data collected in a case study, conducted between 2013 and 2016, as part of a larger ongoing ethnography [...] Read more.
In this paper, we demonstrate the ways in which the schooling of refugee youth in the United States reflects ongoing coloniality in education. Drawing on data collected in a case study, conducted between 2013 and 2016, as part of a larger ongoing ethnography of a Southwest United States District school’s response to refugee students, we show how the enactment of policies, pedagogies, and practices within schools reinforce the government’s control over refugee students and their families. In schools, the students are kept out of certain school spaces, marginalized in remedial courses, and denied academic opportunities and integrated support services. Using empirical data, we demonstrate how the restriction of the students’ movement in and around schools is embedded within the larger limitations embedded in coloniality and assimilation. We situate our analysis within the tensions and interactions between coloniality, assimilation, and neoliberalism as articulated in studies within anthropology and sociology, migration studies, critical refugee studies, and cultural studies. We conclude with a call for the decolonization of education and offer a practical starting point in refugee education. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Teaching and Learning in Refugee/(Im)Migrant Communities Around the World)
21 pages, 387 KiB  
Article
Reading Refugee/(Im)Migrant Education Diffractively: Transdisciplinary Exploration of Matters That Matter and Matter That Matters in Refugee/(Im)Migrant Education
by Julie Kasper
Soc. Sci. 2024, 13(6), 284; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci13060284 - 27 May 2024
Viewed by 845
Abstract
This paper is a conceptual exploration and diffractive reading of refugee/(im)migrant education through multiple lenses, including data-driven decision making, critical refugee studies, new materialism and critical feminist and posthumanist studies, and trans theorizations such as Black trans feminism. After a brief introduction to [...] Read more.
This paper is a conceptual exploration and diffractive reading of refugee/(im)migrant education through multiple lenses, including data-driven decision making, critical refugee studies, new materialism and critical feminist and posthumanist studies, and trans theorizations such as Black trans feminism. After a brief introduction to “the field” of refugee/(im)migrant education, the paper turns to diffractive readings of refugee/(im)migrant education as means of exploring what is the matter, as in the material and discursive substance, in refugee/(im)migrant education, and why and how (including when, where, and by whom) does that matter come to matter? The paper concludes with discoveries, or findings, from this diffractive, transdisciplinary exploration and considerations for educators, policymakers, researchers, activists, and other actors (co)constituting and “becoming with” refugee/(im)migrant education. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Teaching and Learning in Refugee/(Im)Migrant Communities Around the World)
19 pages, 339 KiB  
Article
Learning in Transit: Crossing Borders, Waiting, and Waiting to Cross
by Michelle J. Bellino and Maxie Gluckman
Soc. Sci. 2024, 13(2), 121; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci13020121 - 17 Feb 2024
Viewed by 1721
Abstract
Recent U.S. policy changes have contributed to longer waiting periods for migrant families in Mexican border cities. This study centers on four Honduran families enrolled in the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP) policy, also referred to as ‘Remain in Mexico,’ while undergoing prolonged waiting [...] Read more.
Recent U.S. policy changes have contributed to longer waiting periods for migrant families in Mexican border cities. This study centers on four Honduran families enrolled in the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP) policy, also referred to as ‘Remain in Mexico,’ while undergoing prolonged waiting periods in the Mexican border town of Monterrey, Nuevo Léon. Centering on young people’s voices, we ask what they learn during this prolonged period of transit. Through ethnographic and digital participatory storytelling interviews, we illustrate how children learned about the politics of border crossing through fraught interactions with im/migration officials, prolonged periods of immobility, and evolving understandings of legality. Building on theories of ‘border thinking’ and ‘politicized funds of knowledge,’ we highlight ways that young people employed their evolving understandings of national borders and the legal contours of their transborder asylum process, while protecting themselves and their families from danger and discrimination. We argue that transit is not simply time that young people are forced to endure; rather, the experience of forced transit is constitutive of young people’s learning about state power and their evolving understanding of borders, rights, and belonging. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Teaching and Learning in Refugee/(Im)Migrant Communities Around the World)
15 pages, 257 KiB  
Article
Transformational Leadership Qualities of Effective Grassroots Refugee-Led Organizations
by Eugene Judson, Meseret F. Hailu and Nalini Chhetri
Soc. Sci. 2024, 13(2), 103; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci13020103 - 8 Feb 2024
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2147
Abstract
This qualitative study investigates the behaviors and strategies of effective leadership teams within ethnic community-based organizations (ECBOs) operating in the United States that consist of leaders who are themselves former refugees. Through analysis of four focus group interviews, each with three to five [...] Read more.
This qualitative study investigates the behaviors and strategies of effective leadership teams within ethnic community-based organizations (ECBOs) operating in the United States that consist of leaders who are themselves former refugees. Through analysis of four focus group interviews, each with three to five leaders from local Bhutanese, Burundian, Congolese, and Syrian communities, we identified ways in which these leaders exhibit transformational leadership behaviors proposed by established frameworks. Results reveal that effective ECBO leaders exhibit strong transformational leadership qualities, such as empowering community members, modeling behavior, and projecting a community vision. The study emphasizes the unique context of ECBOs and their leaders, showcasing their thoughtfulness, competency, and profound awareness of community members’ backgrounds. The implications include recognizing and valuing the skills of ECBO leaders and considering formal support mechanisms. This study contributes insights into the leadership exhibited within local community organizations serving refugee populations—enhancing our understanding of quality leadership among grassroots refugee organizations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Teaching and Learning in Refugee/(Im)Migrant Communities Around the World)
16 pages, 565 KiB  
Article
Refugee and Immigrant Youth Leaders: Strengths, Futurity, and Commitment to Community
by Jane Pak, Jyoti Gurung and Amy Argenal
Soc. Sci. 2023, 12(11), 640; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci12110640 - 20 Nov 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2184
Abstract
This study explored the Youth Leadership/Peer Tutoring program at Refugee and Immigrant Transitions (RIT), a community-based non-profit organization in Northern California. It includes 12 semi-structured interviews with refugee and immigrant youth leaders. Bringing together works on Community Cultural Wealth (with the addition of [...] Read more.
This study explored the Youth Leadership/Peer Tutoring program at Refugee and Immigrant Transitions (RIT), a community-based non-profit organization in Northern California. It includes 12 semi-structured interviews with refugee and immigrant youth leaders. Bringing together works on Community Cultural Wealth (with the addition of Migration Capital) and Critical Refugee Studies collectively as a conceptual framework, this study highlights three themes: (a) commitment to community, family, and giving back; (b) encouraging communication and cultivating a pan-newcomer community; and (c) leadership as commitment to community and positive, collective futurities. Data support a strengths-based framework when working with refugee and immigrant youth as they transition and adjust to their new school environments and communities. All 12 participants were refugee and immigrant newcomer youth who participated as youth leaders/peer tutors in RIT’s Youth Leaders/Peer Tutoring program. Countries of origin included Burma (Karen), Bhutan, Nepal, China, and El Salvador. As scholars and practitioners in the field, we are seeing an increased need and demand for more scholarship in this area through a strengths-based lens, as evidenced by calls from educators and school/district administrators requesting support and resources. We submit this article at a time of growing numbers of immigrant and refugee youth in schools in the United States, including non-diverse school environments that are unprepared (and sometimes unwilling) to receive newcomer youth. Our hope is for this study to reveal possibilities for extending welcome and mutual support through a strengths-based lens within diverse newcomer peer learning environments. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Teaching and Learning in Refugee/(Im)Migrant Communities Around the World)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-11
Back to TopTop