Policies as Top-Down Structures versus Lived Realities: An Investigation of Literacy Policies in Greek Schools

Being Roma – being Greek: academically successful Greek Romas’ identity constructions

“…Greek Roma pupils' erratic attendance, their higher dropout rates (Kostouli and Mitakidou 2009;Mavrommatis 2008;Nikolaou 2009) and lower attainment as compared with non-Roma (Nikolaou 2009) are regularly documented, despite the implementation of programmes targeting Roma schooling over the last two decades. Although inclusive and intercultural discourses predominate in the rhetoric of policy texts and in legislative documentation, Gropas and Triandafyllidou (2011) argue that current educational policies appear assimilatory in practice.…”

“…The recognition of cultural diversity is not emphasised in the Greek educational system which mostly positions identity in terms of nationality (Gropas and Triandafyllidou 2011). For this reason, the Romani language is not used in Greece in any intervention addressing Roma pupils (Kostouli and Mitakidou 2009). The Romani language and Roma culture are often regarded as obstacles in promoting effective learning and are not recognised in the mainstream school system (Georgiadis and Zisimos 2012).…”