Diversity and inclusion in the classroom: young immigrant’s perspectives in France and England

• In Event: Inclusion and diversity in global and local educational contexts

Proposal

This paper examines mechanisms of inclusion and exclusion in relation to language, religion and culture for young immigrants in France and England. Debates around diversity and immigration in the UK and France over the past few years have pointed to the challenges faced by Western democratic societies with regard to the inclusion of increasingly diverse populations. In a context of “multicultural backlash” both countries currently face a similar new set of challenges: an increase in anti-immigration attitudes and a marked shift towards more populist politics. These issues have been closely linked to questions about language and religion, often associated with rising fears of fragmented societies and the threat of the imagined “immigrant Other”. Within these debates, education has occupied a central, yet paradoxical, place. On the one hand, schools have been largely criticised for failing to promote successful inclusion of diverse immigrant populations. On the other hand, education is seen as a vector of socialisation, with the aim of providing young people with the adequate linguistic, cultural and social skills to successfully participate in society. This view is apparent in the reinforcement of national values in the curriculum in both England and France (Fundamental British Values in the UK in November 2014, Grande mobilisation de l’Ecole pour les valeurs de la République in France in January 2015). These policy initiatives are underpinned by the idea of education as a tool for inclusion, through the development of a unitary idea of belonging and identity. However, these policy responses for addressing diversity and inclusion remain inscribed in a set of unresolved tensions between an outdated unifying national project and new forms of mobility and diversity in each country.

This presentation will address these issues and tensions by examining the experiences of inclusion and exclusion of young people from immigrant backgrounds in France and England. Findings presented in draw on data from a cross-national ethnographic study, which examined the views of 10 and 11- year old children from immigrant backgrounds in two primary schools, one in France and one in England.

This paper shows the importance of critically reflecting on mechanisms of exclusion at play in educational systems that remain, by and large, monolingual and mono-cultural. It highlights the difficulties faced daily by young people from immigrant backgrounds and the challenges this presents for creating inclusive multicultural spaces in schools. It also shows young people’s agency in the process, and the creative ways in which they attempt to negotiate discrimination across different school spaces. Through a reflection on the role of current policy, media and statistical narratives about the “immigrant Other” in France and England, this presentation questions current models of multiculturalism in education. It calls for looking at both explicit and implicit attitudes towards linguistic, religious or cultural diversity. It argues that recognizing the role of discourses around immigration, institutional structures and young people’s agency can help fully embrace the affordances and possibilities diversity offers for education and create more inclusive multicultural environments that challenge implicit hierarchies and forms of discrimination.

Author

• Oakleigh Welply, Durham University