“It’s very hard, but I’ll manage.” Educational aspirations and educational resilience among recently resettled young refugees in Norwegian upper secondary schools

Abstract

Purpose: This article explores the question: what shapes young refugees’ often high educational aspirations ? A sense of mastery and future hope are among the numerous factors that can positively predict school achievements. High aspirations may thus contribute to both young refugees’ improved educational outcomes and wellbeing. Method: We discuss findings from semi-structured interviews in three Norwegian upper secondary schools in light of theories and research into the often high educational aspirations of immigrant youth. Results: Several of the study’s findings support the dual frame of reference theory which has been used in prior discussions of migrants’ aspirations. However, we argue that aspirations can be supported not only by comparisons with the country of origin, but also by comparisons with different stages of the refugee experience. Conclusions: The findings suggest that temporal aspects of high aspirations should be empirically and theoretically explored further. Moreover, this and other studies’ findings on young refugees suggest that research into the educational aspirations of young immigrants should address/control for migration category.

Migrant Students’ Sense of Belonging and the Covid‐19 Pandemic: Implications for Educational Inclusion

“…These findings might be explained by the fact that belonging specifically in school contexts is not only related to social relationships, but also to other learning-related identifications such as curricular learning, learning motivation, emotions, and efficacy (Allen et al, 2018;Fong Lam et al, 2015;Pendergast et al, 2018). Academic belonging is an important part of school belonging for migrant students, as they often have high aspirations and ambitions for learning and educational achievement (Devine, 2009;Lynnebakke & Pastoor, 2020;Van Caudenberg et al, 2020). For migrant students, there can be also other points of belonging to a school, such as a place that provides routines and care, stability, and safety, or that represents a new way of life and educational opportunities (De Jacolyn et al, 2021;Lynnebakke & Pastoor, 2020).…”

“…Academic belonging is an important part of school belonging for migrant students, as they often have high aspirations and ambitions for learning and educational achievement (Devine, 2009;Lynnebakke & Pastoor, 2020;Van Caudenberg et al, 2020). For migrant students, there can be also other points of belonging to a school, such as a place that provides routines and care, stability, and safety, or that represents a new way of life and educational opportunities (De Jacolyn et al, 2021;Lynnebakke & Pastoor, 2020). Further research is necessary to closely understand the specific types of social support that impact migrant students' sense of school belonging.…”

“…Furthermore, it is important to note that academic belonging (e.g., academic motivation, self-efficacy, performance) is also part of school belonging (Allen et al, 2018;Fong Lam et al, 2015;Pendergast et al, 2018). This is relevant for migrant students who often have high academic ambitions at the beginning of their schooling in a new country (Devine, 2009;Lynnebakke & Pastoor, 2020;Van Caudenberg et al, 2020). For migrant students, schools may represent hopes and opportunities for social connections, learning ambitions, safety, and educational and societal progress in a new country (De Jacolyn et al, 2021;Devine, 2009;Lynnebakke & Pastoor, 2020;Van Caudenberg et al, 2020).…”

“…This is relevant for migrant students who often have high academic ambitions at the beginning of their schooling in a new country (Devine, 2009;Lynnebakke & Pastoor, 2020;Van Caudenberg et al, 2020). For migrant students, schools may represent hopes and opportunities for social connections, learning ambitions, safety, and educational and societal progress in a new country (De Jacolyn et al, 2021;Devine, 2009;Lynnebakke & Pastoor, 2020;Van Caudenberg et al, 2020). In sum, belonging is a complex issue for migrant students and can be developed in multiple ways, especially in contemporary societies where digital forms of communication are prevalent (Halse, 2018).…”

Navigating Education in the Context of COVID-19 Lockdowns and School Closures: Challenges and Resilience Among Adolescent Girls and Young Women in South Africa

“…In this paper we use the concept of "educational resilience" to refer to resilience manifested in the educational domain, specifically the likelihood of succeeding in school despite adverse conditions and experiences (Waxman et al, 2003;Van Geel and Mazzucato, 2020). As a process, educational resilience can be understood as an on-going interaction between an individual and their environment (Lynnebakke and de Wal Pastoor, 2020). To the authors' knowledge, this is the first study to examine educational resilience among AGYW in the context of COVID-19 in South Africa.…”