An Overview of Immigrant and Refugee Realities in Canadian Education

• In Event: Teachers as change agents: Equitable education and practices

Proposal

Objectives
Canada has a long history welcoming immigrants and refugees from across the world. In 2019 Canada recorded the “highest annual number” of claims with 64 000 asylum seekers (Canadian Human Rights Commission, 2019). Statistic Canada’s 2021 review disclosed that “more than eight million immigrants liv[e] in Canada – roughly 21.5 percent of the total population”. This paper is a literature review of immigrant and refugee experiences in Canadian educational spaces. We argue that refugee and immigrant education is an international subject since all countries are dealing with refugees and immigrants be these internally or internationally displaced populations. It draws on previous studies to bring light to the realities of minority populations in Canada and seeks to inform future policies involving migrant education. To address the significant role that educators play in equitable learning opportunities for immigrant and refugee populations, we seek to answer: (RQ): What are the realities of immigrant-refugee students engaging in educational spaces in Canada?
Theoretical Framework
This in-depth-literature review touches broadly on Dewey’s (1938) concept of learning by doing, positing that development and integration are intertwined in institutions. This concept encourages an attentive look at the education spaces in Canada and further authorship surrounding the necessary differentiation of bodies present in these environments. To separate immigrant and refugee populations it is necessary to recognize their unique characteristics, connecting with Cole’s (1995) notion that one’s imagined future is informed and developed by the limitation of their world at present. By taking the time to differentiate between the populations in our classrooms, we are effectively removing some socially constructed barriers from our students. We contend that more attention is needed to investigate their realities in educational spaces in Canada (Hale et al., 2010).
Methodology
This paper uses in-depth literature review as its methodology. In doing so it understands that the term ‘review’ does not equate to an exhaustive compilation of resources, but rather draws on relevant studies pertaining to the topics surrounding immigrant and refugee population in Canadian education spaces. This study is informed through exploratory research, in which we sought to find data using keywords such as “immigrant”, “refugee”, “Canadian education” OR “Canadian schooling”, “language learners”, “teacher training” OR “refugee education”, “pedagogical approaches” and “andragogical approaches”. Limiting the resources to peer-reviewed academic publications we found ourselves frequenting databases of education journals: ERIC, Springer, EBSCO, LibKey and Sage to name a few. Occasionally, our research expanded citing migrant experiences in education settings in Canada for example, CTV News. Finally, to analyze the resources we grouped recurring topics that emerged from the studies, categorizing them thematically: (1) Immigrant vs refugee population, (2) Challenges encountered in education settings.
Findings
Immigrant and refugee population
Though Canadians are comfortable welcoming migrant populations, a gap remains in the support offered in educational settings (Brewer & McCabe, 2014, Ghosh et al., 2019). Brewer and McCabe (2014) emphasize the necessity of educator knowledge surrounding similarities and differences between immigrant and refugee populations given the significant role they play facilitating integration. Similarities are shared in the reconstruction of identities, while differences can be seen in the driving force for their migration; refugee populations forcibly escaping violence, while immigrant may be choosing a new life. These altered experiences are visible in classroom behavior and learning difficulties, as the baggage and trauma affects their academic integration (Sullivan and Simonson, 2016). To attend to the disparities that these populations experience in Canadian learning environments, more research must be completed regarding immigrant and refugee realities with the goal of informing educators and their practices (Boyd 2002; Gunderson 2002; Hou & Bonikowska 2016; Kanu 2008; MacKay & Tavares, 2005; MacNevin 2012; Wilkinson 2001).
Challenges Encountered in Education Setting
Educational sites are synonymously: (1) essential to learning, socializing, and integrating, as well as (2) spaces of contention for immigrant and refugee populations (Rousseau et al., 2008; Ghosh et al., 2019; Banks, 2015; Bakarian, 2022). It is visible in how obstacles are negotiated for these populations in educational spaces. For instance, in 2019 a nine-year-old refugee student in Calgary took her life after a classmate uttered “go kill yourself”. The province pushed for bullying regulations that had larger consideration for vulnerable populations, emphasizing the need for further attention to minority populations when creating education policies.
Furthermore, we noticed that obstacles emerged while learning the host community’s language. Language learners (LL) can hold previously undiagnosed learning difficulties from their language of origin further impeding their learning of new languages and academic studies (Trammel, 2016). The short-term memory and difficulty filing as a result of their learning disability (LD) can affect their ability to engage in a fast-paced academic environment in a new language (Olsen, 2014; Clark-Gareca et al., 2020). As a result, these students can experience: (a) a realm in which they are unable to develop literacy skills in their first language and subsequently any second languages as well, or (b) they may be unable to access their academic abilities in their first language (Trammell, 2016). Finally, challenges emerge through feelings of exclusion. Sullivan and Simonson (2016), highlight the strong connection between mental health, academic performance, and the well-being of these students. The authors raise these considerations about migrant realities to a public health concern calling for further investigation by researchers, educators, and policymakers.
Significance
This in-depth literature review highlights the need for equipping future educators to be aware of the immigrant and refugee populations in their classes (Lopour & Thompson 2016; Stewart 2011). Our findings have a significant contribution to equitable opportunities of future migrant students as we have identified a gap in the preparation of future educators when understanding the effect of trauma in their classrooms; “traumatized [students] require attention...to assist them in meeting the expectations of their various roles” (Crosby,2015, p.225; Kanu, 2008; Stewart, 2011). This paper acts as a foundation for policy makers as educative spaces are the forefront of immigrant and refugee integration. It calls attention to the need for more research to create teacher programs that inform about immigrant and refugee realities in the Canadian classroom.

Authors

• Meghri Bakarian, McGill University

• SARAH AMODEO, McGill University