Conference Agenda

Introduction and research interest

In the course of global migration, the group of minors is a large and often inadequately considered group. The estimated number of people aged 19 or younger living in a country other than the one where they were born increased to 40.9 million in 2020 (IOM, 2021, 48). In 2019 children and adolescents under the age of 18 make up 12 percent of all international migrants (2020: 14,6 percent, UN DESA, 2020), but account for 50 per cent of refugees and 42 per cent of internally displaced persons in 2019 (IDAC, 2020).

The conditions of youth migration differ widely in terms of the reason for migration, the legal conditions, the economic circumstances, the educational qualifications, the time periods as well as the place of origin and destination of migration. In the symposium, the educational trajectories of young people will be examined with special focus on the intersections between (forced) migration and further social group categorisation in the context of school. The three contributions chose a critical perspective on the multidimensional social inequality arising from this.

The symposium on youth and (forced) migration brings together research from the three Western European countries England (Julie Wharton), Germany (Henrike Terhart) and Austria (Seyda Subasi Singh et al.) as central destinations of migration towards Europe. The contributions are discussed by Anke Wischmann, Germany. The symposium is chaired by Rory Mc Daid, Ireland.

Theoretical framework

The term "youth" as an independent phase of life is closely linked to the emergence of modernity (Roth 1983). Over time and depending on the geographical context, the understanding of youth is subject to processes of social change. Political developments, social systems and their institutions shape the lives of young people over time as well as young people's voices and action influence society (Clarke et al., 1979). In this context, the phase of youth defined along the social category of age cannot be considered separately from other relevant social categories: Gender, socio-economic status, disabilities, nationality, migration religious affiliation etc. have an influence on the socially unequal experience of youth (Center of Intersectional Justice, n.d.).

Therefore, in the symposium the contributions focus on the intersection of youth and (forced) migration also taking further socially relevant categories into account. In order to use the potential of an intersectional approach (Crenshaw, 1989), the interconnection of youth, migration, disability, socio-economic status as well as nationality and the respective migration regime is taken into account. In doing so transnational inequality relations, postcolonial structures and dependencies between countries and regions must be taken into account in order to be able to grasp in the lifes of many young people in Europe (Wimmer & Glick Schiller, 2002). The contributions critically examine the asymmetries of the power interests involved and question a Eurocentric understanding of the migration of youth (Hummrich, 2020).

Methodologies

Based on the respective research interest presented in the contributions, different methodological approaches of qualitative interview research are used. These range from visual mapping and interview techniques, to a dialogue orientated interview setting to cross-border interview case studies.

Outcomes

The outcome of the symposiums on youth and (forced) migration in an intersectional perspective are to

1. broaden the perspective on youth migration in its variety and reveal the similarities and differences in the experiences of migrated youth under the conditions of social inequality.
2. use the approach of intersectionality as a sensitising concept to examine and theorise the conditions of educational trajectories of young migrated people.
3. provide a space for discussing different methodological approaches of interview analysis to analyse the migration paths regarding education of young people migrating to Europe.

Welcoming a young person who is seeking sanctuary into an educational setting requires teachers to consider how they might remove barriers to learning and participation, where labels such as ‘asylum seeker’ or ‘refugee’ may ‘form markers of separation, markers of not belonging’ (Slee, 2019, 910). If a young person seeking sanctuary also has an impairment or other additional need, teachers are also required to consider how include this young person under the requirements of United Kingdom’s The Equality Act 2010, in which ‘disability’, another label, is a protected characteristic. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (2019) warns that attitudes and beliefs about disability can lead to social exclusion for people seeking asylum and offers guidance as to how to overcome this. In a series of dialogic interviews with teachers based on the work of Buber (1999), this research explores the way in which teachers endeavour to provide a welcoming and supportive environment for new arrivals who are seeking sanctuary and also have an impairment or additional need. There is an exploration of the reasonable adjustments that are needed to create an inclusive environment for young people with intersecting needs. The themes of emotional wellbeing, language needs and the attitudes of the young people, their families and the teachers are explored. There is also a consideration of the ‘SENitizing’ (Migliarini, Stinson and D’Alessio, 2019) of young people by their teachers. A discussion about the categorisation of young people as having ‘Social, Emotional and Mental Health’ needs (DfE and DoH, 2015) as a result of their experiences as a young person who has been forced to migrate is advanced. This research proposes that educators should be supported to understand ways in which the intersectionality of disability and being a refugee might have on a young person’s sense of identity and inclusion or exclusion in their educational community (Bešić, Paleczek and Gasteiger-Klicpera, 2020). This research has implications for policy makers and teacher educators.

Bešić, E., Paleczek, L. and Gasteiger-Klicpera, B. (2020). Don’t forget about us: attitudes towards the inclusion of refugee children with(out) disabilities, International Journal of Inclusive Education, 24:2, 202-217. Buber, M (1999 [1923]). I and Thou. Translated by Ronald Gregor Smith. Edinburgh: T.& T. Clark. Department of Education (DfE) and Department of Health (DoH) (2015). The Special Educational Needs and Disability Code of Practice: 0-25. Available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/send-code-of-practice-0-to-25 [accessed 28.01.23]. Migliarini, V., Stinson, C, and D’Alessio, S. (2019). ‘SENitizing’ migrant children in inclusive settings: exploring the impact of the Salamanca Statement thinking in Italy and the United States, International Journal of Inclusive Education, 23 (7-8), 754-767. Slee, R. (2019). Belonging in an age of exclusion, International Journal of Inclusive Education, 23(9), 909-922. The Equality Act (2010). Available at https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2010/15/contents [accessed 28.01.23]. United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) (2019). Working with Persons with Disabilities in Forced Displacement: Need to Know Guidance. Available at https://www.unhcr.org/publications/manuals/4ec3c81c9/working-persons-disabilities-forced-displacement.html [accessed 28.01.23].

Transnational references in the lives of young migrated people are (made) relevant in educational institutions in different ways (Fürstenau & Niedrig, 2007). The appreciation of cross-border mobility by young people varies greatly and often depends on whether the respective migration is seen as a (economical) burden or a gain. With a special focus on the intersection of youth, migration and socio-economic status the contribution focusses on youth from abroad who attend private boarding high schools in Germany for several years with the aim of completing the Geman university entrance examination (Abitur) (Terhart, 2022). This international students mobility is regarded as a phenomenon of the increasingly global school choice of internationally oriented families (Ball & Nikita, 2014), and at the same time private boarding schools benefit from a wealthy client group (Kenway & Fahey, 2014; Brooks & Waters, 2015). But how do the young people themselves experience the change to another national school system, everyday life at a German boarding school and contact with their family, which usually lives far away? As part of a Grounded Theory-Interview study including case studies of students, parents and school representatives’ perspectives (Strauss/Corbin, 1996; Stake, 2003, S. 136ff.; Fatke, 2013) the contribution focusses on the young migrated students experiences attending private boarding schools in Germany. As a phenomenon of privileged educational migration the growing up in transnational contexts against the background of family expectations of an internationally prestigious school education in Germany is examined. In the analysis of ten interviews with students, it becomes clear that the young people have to get used to the new conditions during the transition to the German school system. In most cases, reference is made to the advantages of attending school in German boarding schools with regard to the resulting further educational and professional opportunities in the global startification structure of the global educational market. The (social) price paid by the students and their families for this option is estimated differently. As they navigate their transnational educational experiences, gendered arguments become just as apparent as the othering process they are subjected to as migrants.

Ball, S. J., & Nikita, D. P. (2014). The global middle class and school choice: A cosmopolitan sociology. Zeitschrift für Erziehungswissenschaft, 17(3), 81-93. Fatke, R. (2013). Fallstudien in der Erziehungswissenschaft [Case studies in educational science]. In B. Friebertshäuser, A. Langer, & A. Prengel (Hrsg.), Handbuch Qualitative Forschungsmethoden in der Erziehungswissenschaft (4. rev. Ed., p. 159-172). Beltz Juventa. Fürstenau, S., & Niedrig, H. (2007). Jugend in transnationalen Räumen. Bildungslaufbahnen von Migrantenjugendlichen mit unterschiedlichem Rechtsstatus [Youth in transnational spaces. Educational trajectories of migrated youth with different legal status]. In T. Geisen & C. Riegel (Hrsg.), Jugend, Partizipation und Migration [Youth, partizipation and migration] (p. 239–259). Wiesbaden: VS. Kenway, J., & Fahey, J. (2014). Staying ahead of the game: The globalizing practices of elite schools. Globalisation, Societies and Education, 12(2), 177-195. Strauss, Anselm L., & Juliet Corbin (1996). Grounded Theory: Grundlagen qualitativer Sozialforschung [Basics of Qualitative Research: Grounded Theory procedures and techniques] Beltz. Stake, R. E. (2003). Qualitative case studies. In N. K. Denzin, & Y. S. Lincoln (Eds.), Strategies of qualitative inquiry (p. 134-164). Sage. Terhart, H. (2022). Transnationale Bildungsverläufe zwischen globaler Bildungsorientierung und nationalem Schulsystem [Transnational trajectories between global educational orientation ans national school system]. Zeitschrift für Pädagogik 66/3, 401-420.

Refugee youth’s access to formal and non-formal education provisions in times of crisis plays an important role in achieving normality and a feeling of safety for all but especially young children. In 2022, in a very short period of time, millions of people needed to move out from Ukraine and crossed the border to EU countries. In this paper, we rely on data collected through mapping and accompanying interviews with youth residing in Austria. By using the Journey Maps method (Howard, 2014), the aim is to compare the response given to the acute need for education of refugees who arrived from Middle Eastern or African countries in 2015 and experiences of those arriving during the Ukraine conflict. At least two maps from the two periods will be initially analyzed using thematic analyses. Thus four participants have been invited to map their educational journeys and comment on these in the course of accompanying interviews, either in a current or retrospect perspective. How EU- level and national Austrian policy responded to accommodate students affected by the biggest conflicts in the last decade is analyzed by relying on refugee students’ visualisation of their journey to school after arriving in Austria. Language-related barriers, public acceptance, recognition of previous education, involvement of parents as well as non-formal education provisions are the experiences to be compared. The preliminary results show that the educational response was in line with the solidarity and quick response given to the Ukrainian crisis in Europe. However, this approach illustrates a politicized humanitarian approach that perpetuates the historically-rooted oppression against marginalized groups in Europe (Esposito, 2022). The continuation of national education in Ukraine remotely, the quick recruitment of Ukrainian teachers and the lack of identification of Ukrainian children who are school age were some of the challenging areas identified. On the other hand, the interviews revealed that the inclusion of Ukrainian children in the Austrian school system has been more smoothly compared to that of peers from Syria, Afghanistan or other Middle Eastern or African countries. The high level of othering, racial prejudice, and negative media coverage against refugees who arrived in Austria upon conflict in the Middle East starting in 2015 have not been experienced in the context of Ukrainian children.

Esposito, A. (2022). The limitations of humanity: differential refugee treatment in the EU. Retrieved from https://hir.harvard.edu/the-limitations-of-humanity-differential-refugee-treatment-in-the-eu/ [accessed 28.01.23]. Howard, T. (2014). Journey mapping: A brief overview. Communication Design Quarterly Review, 2(3), 10-13. UNHCR. (2022). Education in emergencies. Retrieved from https://www.unicef.org/education/emergencies [accessed 28.01.23].