Learning From Diversity: Laying the Groundwork for a Transnational Case Study on Educational Inequity

• In Event: Crossing Borders to Connect Routes: Understanding Educational Inequities Affecting Immigrants, From a Transnational Perspective

Abstract

This paper focuses on the contextualization phase of the six case studies currently being developed in different educational contexts in five countries (Brazil, Malta, Spain, the United States of America and Uruguay). Case contextualization includes the analysis of migratory profiles, local legal and political frameworks and the identification of specific educational policies and practices in each country. The purpose of this paper is dual: a) to build a complex vision of how educational inequities intersect with race, gender, ethnicity, social class and legal status in each particular context, and b) to identify and organize a first round of relevant themes and sub-themes at a local level, which will later be triangulated to feed into a transnational thematic codification.
The study builds on the extensive research on inclusive education and immigration, focusing on how to fight inequity and racism through formal and non-formal educational programs. It also draws on community-engaged research approaches, by adding the transnational perspective as a powerful element for the empowerment of educational networks, beyond local communities.
Following Yin’s (2009) definition, by choosing a case study methodology, we seek a deep and enriched analysis of singular settings, looking inside their empirical context. The case study approach provides us with flexibility and precision to look at six different contexts, establishing relationships that do not aspire to make comparative generalizations, but instead, intend to understand a global phenomenon through exploring its various expressions and nuances.
The selection of cases covers different contexts and educational levels and has followed three main criteria: 1) places where immigration represents a relevant social issue, although with different characteristics, 2) groups or profiles of immigrants that are especially vulnerable and racially stigmatized in each context, and 3) institutions where policies and practices aimed at the inclusion of immigrants are currently being applied. The final selection includes three cases linked to higher education (two in the USA and one in Malta), two cases focused on educational programs aimed at young people and adults who did not have access to, or did not complete, basic schooling (in Spain and Brazil) and one case in primary and secondary education (Uruguay).
As mentioned, the case studies are now in the contextualization phase. In that regard, based on the evidence analyzed so far, the preliminary results to be shared in this symposium tackle the following aspects: a systematic mapping of structural and emergent educational inequities linked to immigrants’ education in each particular context, a critical view of how these inequities intersect with race, gender, ethnicity, social class and legal status at a global level; and a first approach to how these different educational contexts are confronting the impact of the pandemic on immigrants’ education, while identifying promising directions to foster resilience at the individual and institutional levels.
The main added value of this paper lies in mapping the best policies and practices of involving and empowering educational communities to fight social and educational inequities that particularly affect underrepresented and minoritized students, which can be transferred across educational settings.

Authors

• Lilian Ucker Perotto, Universidade Federal de Goiás
  Presenting Author

• Adriana Ornellas, Universitat Oberta de Catalunya
  Presenting Author