By learning to identify feelings and express emotions, children can better cope with the difficulties they face, as well as increase their personal resilience. As the Syrian crisis has entered its seventh year, it has had a negative effect on vulnerable populations, especially children. It should be noted that while not all children have been traumatised, many have experienced conflict…

After a migration process, people begin to yearn for the settledness of their previous lives; this includes those in the education process. After the crisis in Syria, millions of refugees came to Turkey, in that, many of whom were students. The students started to enrol and although the schools' curricula are in Arabic, students of these schools must pass a…

The main contention of this paper is that the interrelationship between ideology and policy shapes both the overall organisation of refugee education and the operational practices and procedures of staff working to provide education for refugees. Accordingly, this paper tries to answer how the education dimension of the Syrian refugee crisis is managed by the central education authorities in Turkey…

The article analyses the findings of a small-scale qualitative study in Ireland that examines interactions between asylum-seeking mothers and primary school teachers, and highlights the significance of teachers’ understandings of asylum in shaping home-school communications. Mothers and children in this study were living in Direct Provision, collective accommodation for asylum seekers in Ireland. The research identifies a number of concerns…

This article explores discriminatory discourses articulated by Italian professionals operating in educational, health and social services for refugees in Rome, in relation to the educational and social inclusion of unaccompanied asylum-seeking and refugee children. It locates such narratives within the historical ‘concealment and invisibilisation of race and racism’ that have characterised Italy particularly since the end of the Second World…

This chapter discusses the concept of linguistic capabilities as an analytical tool to examine the inclusion processes for participants. The linguistic capabilities concept has been used to address barriers to the wellbeing of marginalised communities. Using the lived experiences of Syrian refugee primary school children, their families, school teachers and other key informants, the chapter explores the critical role of…

Public schools represent places in which overall societal exchange occurs and plays out. Austria looks back on more than 30 years' experience of including different religions beyond Christianity in the public educational system. Democratic countries are well advised to embed religious education into the educational system at large. Doing so, it is easier to implement a rational and deliberating agenda…

Record numbers of unaccompanied refugee minors have been arriving in high-income countries since 2015. Child welfare agencies and non-governmental organisations tasked with providing services have struggled to cope with demands on their services as a result. Despite this, there is little research on how best to meet their needs and in particular what services can mitigate the psychological difficulties they…

Despite high educational aspirations amongst asylum seekers and refugees (ASRs), scholarship on international student migration and mobility commonly lacks insight deriving from forced migration research. Drawing on qualitative research concerned with Syrian ASRs’ educational aspirations and lived experiences regarding higher education access in Germany, this article speaks to the intersection of refugee and education politics. German Higher Education Institutions commonly…

This article reports on the initial findings from an ethnographic study conducted in a preparatory class for young refugees in Cologne, Germany. Focusing on the current language policy which aims to integrate newly arrived children into the German society through language assimilation in schools, this study examines how such policies (re)produce the monoglossic hegemony. We hold that language policies at…

[No abstract available]

Immigration to Germany peaked in 2016. More than 105,000 refugees below the age of 7 years arrived within 12 months. Since then, Germany and other host nations have been in need of strategies to cover the emerging demand for childcare services. The German federal state North-Rhine Westphalia has funded a specialized early childhood education and care (ECEC) program for recently…

The article argues that the applicability and value of “skills” depend to a considerable degree on the way in which a person enters a country. Based on a study on potential university students with refugee backgrounds, it shows how difficult it can be to transfer skills through the migration channel of asylum in Switzerland and how social and cultural capital…

This paper uses a dialogic framework to analyse how teachers of Swedish as a second language to adult refugee learners in Sweden position themselves in terms of both planned and contingent approaches in the classroom in relation to values teaching and controversial topics. The paper draws on a narrative study which explored the stances of five Swedish for Immigrants teachers…

Based on an ethnographic fieldwork in Greece, this study focuses on the government's attempt to provide education for children living in Athens's refugee camps, as well as the actors involved in this effort, interrogating the problematic phenomena and interconnectedness of crisis, hospitality, and solidarity. During the past decade, Greece has become the center of international attention in connection with the…

This paper presents new insights into the relationship between inequality in access to higher education and social stratification through the analytical lens of refugees' access to high participation systems of higher education (HPS). Taking stock of the growing numbers of refugees and their increasing-yet still marginal-demand for accessing higher education, the paper analyses the specific statuses and rights they are…

Cultural work with refugees has a long history. It is a contentious area. Instrumental approaches to cultural work with refugees raise significant issues. This briefing outlines the contentions, provides a theoretical basis for the work, gives leading examples of cultural work with refugees, including work that promotes intercultural understanding and work that promotes fear. It outlines key findings and recommendations,…

Already for decades, European countries have ample experience receiving refugee children. The last peak was in the 1990s due to the civil war in former Yugoslavia, the war in Iraq and the political situation in Iran. Because of the most recent conflicts in the Middle East and Africa, between 2013 and 2015 no less than 613.395 youngsters under the age…

Are the aims of competence in Social Studies, LK06 applicable to adult refugee learners? This thesis aims to answer this research problem by investigating how different discourse perspectives interfere in the production of text in the classroom, and how connotations to topic relevant words affect academic achievement. Basil Bernstein’s theory on agent and structure offers the main theoretical framework of…

This is the final report of MOOCs4inclusion project, which was designed and financed by the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission. The report summarises the research conducted between July-December 2016 on the efficiency and efficacy of free digital learning (FDL) for the integration, inclusion and further learning of migrants and refugees in Europe and in neighbouring regions in conflict.…

The Government is committed to widening access to higher education (HE) for students who have left care. However, for unaccompanied children claiming asylum in the UK (over 3,000 in 2015) who fall under the care of local authorities, there is very little research on their progression rates to HE nor about the challenges they face. This report draws on the…

Recent migration flows – including those resulting from conflict, persecution and natural disaster – place a responsibility on nations to honour international and humanitarian commitments with respect to refugees. A central part of these commitments is to make provision for the educational needs of asylum-seeking and refugee children, including those whom are unaccompanied. Indeed, education and schooling play a crucial…

This report addresses how government legislation in the Nordic countries of Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden ensure the right to primary and lower secondary education for immigrant students and how this legislation has developed since the 1980s. The focus of this report rests on the governmental obligation to ensure the right to education, based on the framework developed by Tomaševski…

In this report the author updates the information on integration of newly arrived students in the education system. The focus is on students / pupils both in school education (compulsory and upper secondary) and higher education. It elaborates on main policy challenges (access, treatment, school outcomes, linguistic support to migrants, features of the education system, including governance, funding dimension); main…

Spanish legislation provides for the right of refugees to education and international protection. In practice, however, the absence of a legal framework and institutional infrastructure specifically designed to identify the needs of this target group and provide an appropriate response runs counter to this formal recognition. There are no mechanisms to guarantee the fulfilment and respect of these rights. This…

The Italian legal framework provides a high level of protection for asylum-seeking and unaccompanied minors and a noticeably inclusive approach concerning the integration of these children into the education system. That said, recent developments of the immigration legal framework concerning unaccompanied minors and its impact on the fulfilment of their rights, and in particular the right to education, should be…

In a context of mass displacement and flows of asylum-seeking and refugee peoples across national borders, the need to respond and attend to the education of asylum-seeking and refugee children is urgent and pressing, though it is not without its challenges. This literature review focuses on the educational experiences of asylum seeking and refugee children, including those who are unaccompanied,…

This report provides essential data and information on educational challenges faced by nearly 50 million uprooted children around the world. It notes that some of these children and their families migrate in pursuit of better education or job opportunities, while others are forced from their homes because of conflicts or natural disasters. Whether they are refugees, internally displaced people or…

Notwithstanding the efforts made by EU Member States in recent years, third-country nationals continue to be placed at a disadvantage regarding employment, education and social inclusion compared to EU citizens (OECD/European Union, 2015). For refugees, and people with a migration background at large, education is key for socio-economic success and for overcoming disadvantages in European societies. Education fosters social inclusion,…

Background and objectives: This study set out to explore identities among university students from forced migrant backgrounds. Issues related to identity have been found to contribute to the specific and significant challenges this student group can face in higher education. The research question was: how do students from forced migrant backgrounds understand their identities. Focusing on identities, through a dialogical…

The flow of migration recently in Europe with high numbers of asylum-seekers influenced not only the demographic scale of the European countries, but also the governmental instrumentality through which the crisis can be tackled. In regards to higher education sector, the social dimension of higher educational institutions has consequential responsibility in response to the refugee crisis in Europe. In this…

As high levels of forced migration continue to challenge Europe, countries like Sweden are attempting to incorporate asylum-seekers into its education system. Over the past 50 years Sweden’s education system has undergone a unique shift from a centralized to a decentralized parental-choice model of schools. An approach called plural education promotes equity through shared experience and support for equity creating…

More than 14.000 children who are refugees or asylum seeking are attending compulsory schools in Austria. The refugee crisis is a current topic, which is influencing the everyday school-life in many Austrian schools. Not all schools are prepared for this challenge. In order to point out possibilities for improving the refugee situation in Austrian schools, the aim of this study…

Strategy Development in the context of Quality Frameworks for Education in Emergencies can be a great tool for education providers for supporting refugee children’s integration to formal education and society in Europe. In this MA thesis, the aim was to identify existing quality assurance frameworks, evaluate them and apply the most relevant one to a case study; the British Council…

The number of refugees arriving to Iceland over the past years has increased a lot, which has led to increased discussion in Iceland on how the country is managing to include refugee students in the school. The school can play an important role in helping the children to deal with their emotions and to establish meaningful connections in the new…

This study aims at to address the problem of understanding how the University of Oslo (UiO) and the Kings College of London (KCL) support refugees through their respective programs: the Academic Dugnad and Sanctuary. To do so, the first step was to structure a conceptual framework based on the idea that university civic engagement (UCE) can be conceptualized as a…

Teachers worldwide are adapting to meet educational needs caused by increased immigration. Germany has many immigrant students and ranks high in international education. This case study investigated experiences of English-speaking native-born German educators in Germany’s public primary schools when responding to refugee and immigrant students. Experiences when responding means how educators interact with immigrant students in school settings and perceive…

Education is a human right to which any child should have access; yet, the provision of education in emergency situations is particularly difficult and education is often left behind. This holds true when dealing with refugee children´s education as well: for those children, education is a key element that enables their protection and development. Education goes beyond formal and institutionalized…

In Sweden, tutoring in the mother tongue is a special support measure primarily intended for newly arrived students to facilitate their transition into the Swedish school system. Tutoring is premised on the collaboration between the class teacher, responsible for subject-related expertise, and the tutor, who contributes with knowledge of the student’s mother tongue and previous context of studies. In this…

This article addresses unaccompanied minor asylum seekers’ (UAMs) educational experiences in Switzerland. Drawing on ethnographic research we explore what it means for UAMs to get an education and how having access or not having access to particular forms and spaces of education plays a part in the process of their subject formations. We get insights into such processes in diverse…

The aim of this study is to obtain information about the awareness of social studies teacher candidates about the refugee problem in Turkey. In this regard, a group of teacher candidates are asked their opinion on the subject of refugees in Turkey and as to how they perceive the problem. Interview method is used in the study for data collection.…

Drawing on discursive psychology this article examines the understandings teachers and principals in Danish Public Schools have regarding Somali diaspora parenting practices. Furthermore, the article investigates what these understandings mean in interaction with children in the classrooms and with parents in home–school communication. It is argued that in a society with increased focus on parental responsibility the teachers and principals…

A large proportion of the children and young people in residential child care in Spain are there as a consequence of abuse and neglect in their birth families. Research has shown that these types of adverse circumstances in childhood are risk factors for emotional and behavioral problems, as well as difficulties in adapting to different contexts. School achievement is related…

This article presents findings from a qualitative study with Unaccompanied Young People (UYP) who have sought asylum alone in the UK without a parent or guardian. The findings explore how UYP create biographical narratives of their past, present, and future as they prepare to leave care, suggesting that UYP who have settled immigration status create coherent biographical narratives that reconcile…

This special issue brings to the forefront the complex educational challenges faced by migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers. It focuses on different ways of understanding equity in relation to education for/with refugees and migrants. The core articles gathered for the special issue originate from the Comparative Education Society in Europe (CESE) conference on the theme of “Equity in and Through…

This article draws on research with a group of refugee women who attend English for speakers of other languages (ESOL) classes at a community center in London. It considers the role education can play in their social integration processes, employing an approach that has been developed from feminist notions of empowerment and social practice theories of literacy and language use.…

The purpose of this study is to explore the educational status of Syrian refugees in Turkish schools, and the perspectives of teachers and school principals regarding the needs of Syrian refugee students in two inner-city elementary schools in Istanbul, Turkey. A qualitative interpretive case study method was employed. Eight participants (seven teachers and one school principal), who had Syrian refugee…

Educational e-services in schools help to bridge the gap between parents and teachers by sharing information about the children's school activities in a collaborative way. However, there is a lack of research explaining how effectively this collaboration takes place and the challenges that inhibit as well as promote such collaboration in a multicultural context. This paper investigates the factors which…

This paper draws on qualitative interviews to explore the educational experiences amongst the UK-born adult children of refugees from Vietnam, Sri Lanka (Tamils) and Turkey (Kurdish). Second generation from refugee backgrounds are characterised by diversity and as a group are increasing numerically. However, little is known about the specificity of their experiences as they have been either subsumed within or…

This paper presents and discusses an arts-based project, carried out by the first-year students in the classroom, at the Department of Social Work, in Athens, Greece. The project was designed for raising ethical awareness and knowledge of the 2015 Europe’s refugee crisis among social work students. The purpose of this project was three-fold: (1) to help students to better understand…