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- Sarstrand Marekovic, Anna-Maria, 1976-, et al.
(författare)
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Integrating newly arrived students in upper secondary school : School staffs' perceptions and experiences
- 2018
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Ingår i: ECER 2018.
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- General description:Newly arrived immigrant children are entering European countries in unprecedented numbers, putting increasing demands on the educational systems. The challenges for the educational systems vary according to country and relate to the size and composition of the immigrant student population as well as to the countries’ respective history of migration (Levels & Dronkers 2008). In this paper we focus on the Swedish educational system and the recent changes in the curriculum for upper secondary school launched in 2011. The reform altered the preconditions for transition to upper secondary school by significantly tightening the qualification requirements for all students, including the newly arrived students. School reforms are consequential for the staff as well as the students. We are here exploring how such consequences are described by the school staff; teachers, school leaders and liaison teachers in relation to newly arrived students. Several researchers argue for the need of research on the interpretations of educational reforms and how the reforms are transformed in local contexts. According to Hemmings, the outcome of educational reforms depends on the dynamics in schools related to school structures, cultures, local visions and moral aspects (2012). Other scholars have emphasized the significance of teachers for the implementation of reforms and that teachers’ professional experiences influence educational practices and interpretations of institutional goals (i.e. curricula) (Everitt 2012). We address these issues in our first research question. There is a growing body of research on newly arrived children’s experiences of school introduction in Sweden. In line with international research, the Swedish research has explored the students’ experiences of schooling and highlighted the importance of supporting relationships in school for successful careers (Skowronski 2013, Marekovic 2016, Suarez-Orozco et al. 2010, Greenman 2013). Research on teachers’ perspectives, on the other hand, highlight the dilemmas involved in reconciling educational goals for these students with national immigration policy (Arnot et.al 2009, Svensson forthcoming) and how teachers’ influence students’ educational choices (Bonizzoni et al 2014). However, research on experiences of teaching newly arrived students also point to the enrichment that is associated with this work (Wigg 2008, Devine 2011). Although extant research is increasing there is a need for research on both the staffs’ meaning-making processes and concrete strategies in daily educational practices. These issues are addressed in our second research question. The aim of the paper is to describe school staffs’ interpretations of the latest curricular reform for upper secondary school and the consequences for the teachers’ daily educational practices. Our preliminary research questions are: 1) How does school staff describe opportunities and constraints of the new reform in relation to newly arrived students’ educational trajectories? 2) How does the staff manage the new requirements put forward by the latest reform in their daily educational practices? Theoretical framework Our point of departure is the emerging theoretical framework that emphasizes the importance of understanding interpretative processes and social interaction in research on institutions (Hallett 2010). Institutional logics, background knowledge and meaning structures of school as institution and its objectives are subject to interpretation, re-interpretations and negotiations between school staff as well as students in daily educational practices (Fine & Hallet 2014). Teachers and students engage in meaning-making processes on what is important, how goals are interpreted and put into practice, which norms and values that are considered valid. This actualizes issues of the staffs’ perceptions of what educational trajectories may be achievable for the students and the significance of such perceptions in educational and counseling situations. Theoretical concepts that are also of relevance for the analysis are, for example ‘trajectory’ (Elder 1985), and ‘imagined futures’ (Mische 2009). Methods As the aim of the project is to explore school staffs’ interpretations of the latest educational reform concerning newly arrived students, semi structured interviews were chosen (c.f Lamont & Swidler 2012). The study was conducted in one of the largest cities in Sweden and three schools were approached to be included. All three schools are public upper secondary schools. The first school is an upper secondary school offering vocational programmes such as Restaurant management and food, Business and administration, Hotel and tourism, Childcare and recreation etc. The second and third schools are both offering theoretical programmes such as the natural science programme and social science programme. In total 14 individual interviews with school staff were conducted between May 2012 and June 2014, i.e. 1-3 years after the reform came into force. 3 persons were working as liaison teachers, 5 as tutoring teachers in classes for newly arrived students, 5 were school leaders. Also a municipal coordinator for organizing school introduction for newly arrived students was included. In the interviews with the staff several themes were discussed, such as working life experiences, the main tasks in the school, co-operation with other teachers, consequences of the school reform and the new curriculum and how the students succeed with their studies. The interviews lasted between 1-2,5 hours. All interviews were digitally recorded and transcribed before analysis. We have chosen to present the analysis by concentrating on the common patterns rather than focusing on differences between the three schools. In other words, we have conducted an across-case analysis identifying commonalities across cases (cf. Ayres et al 2003). The analytical procedures embrace several steps commonly used in qualitative analysis in order to identify recurrent patterns and to successively elaborate and systematize the analysis to more specific and distinct categories. The procedures embrace reading and rereading the material at several occasions both individually and in co-operation between the researchers, discussing and sorting the material to different headings, and modifying categories successively. As our approach is inductive iterative, the starting point for our analysis was the empirical material, but theoretical ideas that were grounded in the material were also used to guide and systematize the analytical work. Expected outcomesOur initial analyses of the interviews so far reveal three common patterns that will be developed further in the paper: Interpretations of the students’ educational aspirations, opportunities and obstacles for achieving the goals. This pattern reveals how teachers assess students’ backgrounds, achievements and aspirations in light of obstacles such as language skills, educational requirements and time frames according to the curriculum. Teacher strategies for managing students’ aspirations and obstacles for achievement. This pattern is about various strategies employed by the staff in order to deal with, for example the gap between aspirations and opportunities when it comes to students’ achievements, the pace of studies and imagined future careers. ReferencesArnot, M., Pinson, H., & Candappa, M. (2009). Compassion, caring and justice: teachers’ strategies to maintain moral integrity in the face of national hostility to the “non‐citizen”. Educational Review, 61(3), 249-264. Ayres, l., Kavanaugh, K., & Knalf, K. A. (2003). Within- case and across case approaches to qualitative data analysis, Qual Health Res, 13, 871‒883. Bonizzoni, P., Romito, M., & Cavallo, C. (2016). Teachers’ guidance, family participation and track choice: the educational disadvantage of immigrant students in Italy. British Journal of Sociology of Education, 37(5), 702-720. Devine, D. (2011). Immigration and schooling in the republic of Ireland: Making a difference?. Manchester: Manchester University Press. Elder Jr, G. H. (1985). Life course dynamics: trajectories and transitions 1968-1980. Ithaca, ny: Cornell University press. Everitt, JG. (2012). Teacher Careers and Inhabited Institutions: Sense-Making and Arsenals of Teaching Practice in Educational Institutions. Symbolic Interaction, 35, 203-220. Fine, G. A. & Hallett, T. (2014). Group Cultures and the Everyday Life of Organizations: Interaction Orders and Meso-Analysis, Organization Studies, 35,1773-1798. Greenman, E. (2013). Educational attitudes, school peer context, and the “immigrant paradox” in education. Social science research, 42(3), 698-714. Hallet, T. (2010). The Myth Incarnate: recoupling processes, turmoil and inhabited institutions in an urban elementary school. American Sociological Review. 75: 52-74. Hemmings, A. (2012). Four Rs for urban high school reform: Re-envisioning, reculturation, restructuring and remoralization.Improving Schools. 15: 198-210. Jepson Wigg, U. (2008). Bryta upp och börja om: berättelser om flyktingskap, skolgång och identitet.Diss. Linköping : Linköpings universitet, 2009 Lamont, M., & Swidler, A. (2014). Methodological pluralism and the possibilities and limits of interviewing. Qualitative Sociology, 37(2), 153-171. Levels, M., & Dronkers, J. (2008). Educational performance of native and immigrant children from various countries of origin. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 31(8), 1404-1425.Marekovic, A-M. (2016). Mot alla odds, i Lund, A. & Lund, S. (red.) (2016). Skolframgång i det mångkulturella samhället. Studentlitteratur AB.Mische A. (2009): “Projects and Possibilities: Researching Futures in Action” Sociological Forum, 24: (3), 694-704.Skowronski, E. (2013). Skola med fördröjning:
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- Sarstrand Marekovic, Anna-Maria, 1976-, et al.
(författare)
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The meanings of age and time for newly arrived immigrant pupils’ educational trajectories
- 2016
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Konferensbidrag (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Newly arrived immigrant youth are entering Sweden in unprecedented numbers, putting increasing demands on the educational system. There is a growing body of research on newly arrived children’s experiences of school introduction. However, research on the experiences of students who arrive in Sweden during the latter school years (15-18 years of age), i.e. who are expected to transition into upper-secondary education, remain limited, particularly in relation to age and imagined futures. Our paper is a contribution to this emergent field of research. Preliminary analyses of interviews with ‘late arrived students’ and staff at three upper secondary high schools highlight the significance of age and time in this process. The results indicate a discrepancy between the students’ perceptions and expectations of this transition and that of the school staff. The staff, following the institutional logic and the curriculum, expects prescribed progression of knowledge. Consequentially they opt for a prolonged introductory period. The students, on the other hand, describe a sense of deceleration of the future, by being held back in introductory classes. As a result, they will be “off time” compared to peers. Also, the deceleration of the future is interpreted in terms of a delay in the imagined biography.
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- Hadziabdic, Emina, 1974-, et al.
(författare)
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Experiences of nurses educated outside the European Union of a Swedish bridging program and the program’s role in their integration into the nursing profession : a qualitative interview study
- 2021
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Ingår i: BMC Nursing. - : BioMed Central (BMC). - 1472-6955 .- 1472-6955. ; 20:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Countries all over the world are experiencing a shortage of registered nurses (RNs). Therefore, some countries, including Sweden, have tried to solve this by recruiting internationally educated nurses (IENs). Countries offer bridging programs as educational support to qualify IENs for nursing work in the destination country. However, there is little research on IENs’ experiences of bridging programs in European countries and how these programs facilitate their integration into the world of work and their new society. The aim of this study is to explore the experiences of nurses, originally educated outside the EU (European Union)/EES, of the Swedish bridging program and of the program’s role in facilitating their integration into the nursing profession in Sweden.Methods: A qualitative descriptive design was used to explore the topic based on 11 informants’ perspectives and experiences. Purposive sampling was used to recruit participants at one university in Sweden. Data were collected by individual interviews using a semi- structured interview guide during the year 2019 and were analysed using an interpretative thematic approach.Results: Two main themes emerged from the analysis: 1) Return to nursing, and 2) The bridging program as a tool for transition to nursing in Sweden. The first theme includes conditions and experiences such as personal motivation and determination, and support from others that the participants described as important in order to achieve the goal of re-establishing themselves as registered nurses in Sweden. Furthermore, the second theme describes the participants’ experiences of the bridging program as mostly positive because it led to new learning and achievements that were valuable for the transition to nursing in Sweden; however, the participants also emphasised the challenges of their transition into the nursing profession, which were related to instances of misrecognition of their professional competence and the uncertain outcome of the program.Conclusions: This study found that the bridging program facilitated integration into the nursing profession for nurses educated outside the EU/EES, especially knowledge gained in clinical-based training. Thus, it is important to recognise and value the IENs’ experience and previous knowledge and training when developing the bridging program’s curriculum.
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- Johansson, Jesper, 1979-, et al.
(författare)
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Mellan empowerment och disempowerment : - koordinerande arbete för nyanländas och utrikesföddas etablering på arbetsmarknaden inom lokal aktiveringspolitik
- 2023
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Ingår i: Socialvetenskaplig tidskrift. - Norrköping : Förbundet för forskning i socialt arbete. - 1104-1420 .- 2003-5624. ; 30:2, s. 583-603
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Increasing the employment rate and community establishment, as well as decreasing economic and social vulnerability, among newly-arrived migrants and foreign-born jobseekers are the objectives behind several local activation initiatives and projects around Sweden. This article is based on a study of a local activation project, primarily consisting of analyses of interviews with professional coordinators and other project actors. The aim of the article is to deepen the knowledge of the coordinated working method in local activation policy by critically analysing how different ideas about empowerment are part of the method and what significance this has in relation to newly-arrived migrants and foreign-born job seekers. The results show that the coordinating approach is based on principles that place the job-seeking individual's needs at the centre and that there is a tension in the working method between activation and labour market establishment, and social support and care. The studied activation project is based on both a liberal and radical ideology of empowerment. In practising the coordinating approach, however, a liberal ideology and understanding of empowerment dominate through its strong individual focus. The radical empowerment ideology with its structure-changing ambitions regarding the participants’ increased self-sufficiency, independence and empowerment are to a limited extent enforced within the project. The authors argue for the difficulties of using the concept of empowerment and its far-reaching liberation ambitions within the context of activation policy. Nevertheless, disciplining requirements and rules around self-sufficiency, individualised responsibility takeover and requirements for reciprocity within the activation of activities rather risk consolidating conditions of disempowerment for already vulnerable groups of job seekers.
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- Sarstrand, Anna-Maria, 1976-
(författare)
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De första invandrarbyråerna : Om invandrares inkorporering på kommunal nivå åren 1965-1984
- 2007
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Licentiatavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Immigration to Sweden increased during and after the Second World War. Initially the in-crease consisted of refugees, but after the war labour migration became the dominant form of migration to Sweden. The immigrants were expected to manage the adaptation to the Swedish society on their own, possibly with the help of voluntary organizations or the company they worked for. This situation began to change in the 1960s. The immigrants’ situation received public attention and different actions were taken to reduce the risk of marginalizing the immi-grants. Many of these actions started on a local level, in the municipalities, prior to the devel-opment of the first national immigrant policy in 1975. The first local public administrations for handling immigrant incorporation developed approximately ten years before. These or-ganizations, soon to be called Immigrant bureaus, were among the first public initiatives, on both state and local level, to actively take measures to incorporate the immigrants. The licen-tiate thesis is a comparative case study of five Swedish municipalities which started Immi-grant bureaus in the middle of the 1960s. The objective of the thesis is to study the creation and development of these organizations up until 1984. Thereby, the study gives an image of the creation and development of a specific local public administration for immigrant incorpo-ration. It describes and analyzes the common features of the bureaus as well as the unique character of each individual bureau. Accordingly, a theoretical perspective which stresses the early development in an organization’s history and accentuates the importance of specific contexts for understanding different organizational developments has been used. The result shows that the immigrant bureaus were initiated by different local actors, such as the public administration, labour unions and educational associations which meant that the purposes were somewhat divergent. Yet another consequence was not only variation in development between different bureaus, but also within each of them over time.
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- Sarstrand, Anna-Maria, 1976-
(författare)
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Svenska mot modersmål - utvecklingen av två olika lärargrupper
- 2006
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Ingår i: Flervetenskapliga perspektiv i migrationsforskning. Årsbok 2006 från forskningsprofilen Arbetsmarknad Migration och Etniska relationer (AMER) vid Växjö universitet. - Växjö : Växjö University Press. - 1404-4307. - 9176365204
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)
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- Sarstrand Marekovic, Anna-Maria, 1976-
(författare)
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Against All Odds – first generation immigrants in upper secondary education
- 2014
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- The paper focuses on first generation immigrants who arrive to Sweden in the later school years. This group of students is at a major disadvantage compared to native students as well as to second generation immigrants and even to first generation immigrants who arrive before school entry. Statistics imply that a low number of “late arrived students” enter upper secondary education, and of those who do the drop-out rate is high. The educational gap between young students in Sweden is thus increasing, creating larger social inequalities between natives and foreign-born residents. In this study, however, I am interested in those examples that are exceptions to the rule – first generation immigrant students who against all odds make it to the college preparatory track. The object of the paper is to investigate aspects that contribute to school achievement and success for this group of students. An initial survey study in Malmoe, Sweden’s third largest city, showed that a majority of late arrived students had entered the same upper secondary school. The additional material consists of interviews with school personnel as well as interviews with ten students at this school who arrived to Sweden between the ages 13-16 years old. The student group is heterogeneous, different nationalities, different reasons for immigrating to Sweden and different family contexts. The material reveals that in order to get a better understanding of the aspects contributing to school achievement, school culture as well as the individual migratory experiences and social capital need to be considered, and in particular how they interlink. The paper also discusses the obstacles met by the students, especially concerning language acquisition, and the strategies involved in overcoming them.
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