Holding Space for Change: Educational Systems Responding to Transnational Mobility

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Sunday 11:45 am - Gold 3
  In Roundtable Session: Learning from International Context: Promoting Home-School Engagement

Abstract

This paper explores how educational systems can act as civic spaces that hold space for change in response to transnational mobility. Drawing on Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory, it conceptualizes inclusion as a relational and institutional process shaped by interactions between schools, families, communities, and policy environments across diverse contexts. Using Ireland as an illustrative case, the paper draws from quantitative and qualitative data collected from educators to examine how inclusive practices emerge under shifting demographic and political conditions, and how institutional logics respond. The study offers a framework for understanding systemic responsiveness in schools, contributing to international conversations on education, belonging, and institutional transformation. It aims to inform inclusive educational policies and practices in increasingly mobile and culturally pluralistic societies.

Author

• Borui Zheng, Trinity College Dublin