Iraqi Refugees Coming to America and the Educational Journey: From Powerless to Powerful Understandings

• In Event: Roundtable Session 53
  In Roundtable Session: Refugee Students in U.S. Schools: Challenges and Possibilities

Abstract

This paper concerns the lives of Iraqi refugees who have been recently resettled in the U.S. Drawing on data from semi-formal, audiorecorded interviews focused on the refugees’ journey to the U.S. and their educational experiences throughout life, the object of the paper is to 1) highlight the major themes that arise from these questions, and 2) discuss these in light of the institutional and educational processes that have formed the individual. I argue that the way refugees are understood—as passive and powerless or active and creative—has serious implications for the way they are treated in the U.S. This is important for educators and citizens working with Iraqis and other recent immigrants, a significant part of diverse American democracy.

Author

• Brian D Seilstad, The Ohio State University