Teaching refugee students: An EFL teacher’s perception of his pre-service education

Year 2024, Volume: 6 Issue: 11, 383 - 406, 09.10.2024

Vedat Kızıl

Abstract

Global göç hareketleri hız kazanmakta ve dünyanın birçok noktasındaki dersliklerde mülteci öğrencilerin sayısı artmaktadır. Bu öğrencilerin karşılaştığı zorluklara ilişkin önemli miktarda araştırma bulunurken, öğretmenlerinin karşılaştığı zorluklara ilişkin literatürde dikkate değer bir boşluk bulunmaktadır. Bu araştırmada anlatı araştırma yaklaşımı kullanılarak bir ortaokul İngilizce öğretmeninin deneyimleri incelenip mesleğine yeni başlayan bir öğretmen olarak karşılaştığı zorluklar ve bu zoluklar karşısında hizmet öncesi eğitiminin kendisine ne kadar faydalı olduğuna dair fikirleri ortaya konmaktadır. Görüşmeler ve gözlemler yoluyla toplanan veriler, katılımcı öğretmenin mülteci öğrencilerin ihtiyaçlarını karşılayacak gerekli bilgi ve becerilere sahip olmadığını ve hizmet öncesi eğitiminin kendisini kültürel açıdan farklı öğrencilere eğitim verecek şekilde donatma konusunda yetersiz olduğuna inandığını göstermektedir.

Keywords

Öğretmen algısı, hizmet öncesi öğretmen eğitimi, kültürel açıdan farklı öğrenciler, mülteci öğrenciler

Teaching refugee students: An EFL teacher’s perception of his pre-service education

Abstract

Migratory movements worldwide are accelerating, resulting in an increasing presence of refugee students in classrooms globally. While a considerable body of research addresses the challenges faced by these students, there is a notable gap in the literature regarding the difficulties encountered by their teachers. In this study, I employ a narrative inquiry approach to explore the experiences of a middle school EFL teacher, casting light on his concerns and conflicts as a novice teacher, as well as his perception of the adequacy of their pre-service teacher education in preparing them to teach refugee students. Data collected through interviews and observations indicate that the participating teacher lacks the necessary knowledge and skills to meet the needs of refugee students, and he believes his pre-service education was insufficient in equipping him to teach culturally diverse students.

Keywords

Teacher perception, pre-service teacher education, culturally diverse students, refugee students

References

• Arthur, G. M. (2005). Six key factors for changing preservice teachers’ attitudes/beliefs about diversity. Educational Studies, 38(3), 275-286.
• Aydın, H., & Kaya, Y. (2017). The educational needs of and barriers faced by Syrian refugee students in Turkey: A qualitative case study. Intercultural Education, 28(5), 456-473.
• Banks, J. A. (2002). An introduction to multicultural education: Issues and perspectives. Allyn & Bacon.
• Banks, J. A., & Mcgee, B. C. A. (2007). Multicultural education: Issues and Perspectives. Wiley.
• Bircan, T., & Sunata, U. (2015). Educational assessment of Syrian refugees in Turkey. Migration Letters, 12(3), 226 – 237.
• Blackwell, D., & Melzak, S. (2000). Far from the battle but still at war: Troubled refugee children in school. Child Psychotherapy Trust.
• Brunzell, T., Stokes, H., & Waters, L. (2016). Trauma-informed positive education: using positive psychology to strengthen vulnerable students. Contemporary School Psychology, 20(1), 63–83.
• Cholewa, B., Goodman, R. D., West-Olatunji, C., & Amatea, E. (2014). A qualitative examination of the impact of culturally responsive educational practices on the psychological well-being of students of color. The Urban Review, 46(4), 574–596.
• Clandinin, D. J., & Connelly, F. M. (2000). Narrative inquiry: Experience and story in qualitative research. Jossey-Bass.
• Coburn, C. E., & Stein, M. K. (2006). Communities of practice theory and the role of teacher professional community in policy implementation. In M. I. Honig (Ed.), New directions in education policy implementation: Confronting complexity (pp. 25–46). State University of New York Press.
• Coelho, E. (1998). Teaching and learning in multicultural schools. Multilingual Matters.
• Cook, B. G. (2002). Inclusive attitudes, strengths, and weaknesses of pre-service general educators enrolled in a curriculum infusion teacher preparation program. Teacher Education and Special Education: The Journal of the Teacher Education Division of the Council for Exceptional Children, 25(3), 262–277.
• Creswell, J. W. (2007). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five traditions. SAGE.
• Çelik, M. (2008). Pre-Service EFL teachers' reported concerns and stress for practicum in Turkey. Eğitim ve Bilim. 33, 97-109.
• Çelik, S., Kardaş İşler, N., & Saka, D. (2021). Refugee education in Turkey: barriers and suggested solutions. Pedagogy, Culture & Society, 31(4), 687–705.
• Czarniawska, B. (2004). Narratives in social science research. SAGE.
• Damaschke-Deitrick, L., & Wiseman, A. W. (2021). Migration, refugees, and public education. In S. Jornitz & A. Wilmers (Eds.), Transatlantic perspectives on education research (95-109). Barbara Budrich Publishers.
• Dee, T. S., & Penner, E.K. (2017). The causal effects of cultural relevance: Evidence from an ethnic studies curriculum. American Educational Research Journal, 54(1), 127–166.
• Delpit, L. (2006). Other people’s children: Cultural conflict in the classroom. New Press.
• Ereş, F. (2016). Problems of the immigrant students’ teachers: Are they ready to teach? International Education Studies, 9(7), 64.
• Farrell, T. S. (2012). Novice‐service language teacher development: Bridging the gap between preservice and in‐service education and development. Tesol Quarterly, 46(3), 435-449.
• Ferfolja, T. (2009). The refugee action support program: Developing understandings of diversity. Teaching Education, 20(4), 395-407.
• Feuerverger, G. (2011). Re-bordering spaces of trauma: Auto-ethnographic reflections on the immigrant and refugee experience in an inner-city high school in Toronto. International Review of Education, 57(3), 357-375.
• Frater-Mathieson, K. (2004). Refugee trauma, loss and grief: Implications for interventions. In R. Hamilton & D. Moore (Eds.), Educational interventions for refugee children: Theoretical perspectives and implementing best practice, (pp. 12–34). Routledge Falmer.
• Freeman, D. (1996). Redefining the relationship between research and what teachers know. In K. M. Bailey & D. Nunan (Eds.), Voices from the language classroom (pp. 88–122). Cambridge University Press.
• Giani, L. (2006). Migration and education: Child migrants in Bangladesh. Sussex Migration Working Paper, No. 33.
• Gömleksiz, M. N., & Aslan, S. (2018). Refugee students’ views about the problems they face at schools in Turkey. Education Reform Journal, 3(1), 45-58.
• Horn, I., & Little, J. W. (2010). Attending to problems of practice: Routines and resources for professional learning in teachers’ workplace interactions. American Educational Research Journal, 47(1), 181–217.
• Jefferies, J., & Dabach, D. B. (2014). Breaking the silence: Facing undocumented issues in teacher education. Association of Mexican American Educators Journal, 8(1), 83–93.
• Kajee, L. (2011). Literacy journeys: Home and family literacy practices in immigrant households and their congruence with schooled literacy. South African Journal of Education, 31(3), 434-446.
• Kasap, S. (2020). Sosyodilbilim ve dil eğitimi. In F. Tanhan, & H.İ. Özok (Eds.), Eğitim Ortamlarında Nitelik. Anı Yayıncılık
• Kasap, S., Demir, M. Ş., & Ünsal, F. (2022). İngilizce öğretmen adaylarının öğretmenlik uygulama sürecine ilişkin düşünceleri. Journal of Computer and Education Research, 10(20), 656-671.
• Keddie, A. (2012). Pursuing justice for refugee students: addressing issues of cultural (mis)recognition. International Journal of Inclusive Education,16(12), 1295-1310.
• Khalifa, M. A., Gooden, M. A., & Davis, J. E. (2016). Culturally responsive school leadership. Review of Educational Research, 86(4), 1272–1311.
• Kılıç, V. A., & Gökçe, A. T. (2018). The problems of Syrian students in the basic education in Turkey. European Journal of Social Sciences Education and Research, 5(1), 199–211.
• Kovinthan, T. (2016). Learning and teaching with loss: Meeting the needs of refugee children through narrative inquiry. Diaspora, Indigenous, and Minority Education, 10(3), 141–155.
• Leavy, A. (2005). "When I meet them I talk to them": The challenges of diversity for preservice teacher education. Irish Educational Studies, 24, (2-3), 159-177.
• Loewen, S. (2004). Second language concerns for refugee children. In Hamilton R. & Moore, D. (Eds.), Educational Interventions for Refugee Children (pp. 35-52). Routledge Falmer.
• MacNevin, J. (2012). Learning the way: Teaching and learning with and for youth from refugee backgrounds on Prince Edward Island. Canadian Journal of Education, 35(3), 48-63.
• Martin, F., Pirbhai-Illich, F., & Pete, S. (2017). Beyond culturally responsive pedagogy: Decolonizing teacher education. In F. Pirbhai-Illich, S. Pete, & F. Martin (Eds.), Culturally responsive pedagogy: Working towards decolonization, indigeneity and interculturalism (pp. 235–255). Palgrave Macmillan.
• Marx. H., & Moss, D. M. (2011). Please mind the cultural gap: Intercultural development during a teacher education study abroad program. Journal of Teacher Education, 62(1), 35–47.
• Mason, K. O. (2013). Teacher involvement in pre-service teacher education. Teachers and Teaching, 19(5), 559-574.
• McAllister, G., & J. J. Irvine. (2000). Cross cultural competency and multicultural teacher education. Review of Educational Research, 70(1), 3–24.
• Milner, H. R., & Laughter, J. C. (2015). But good intentions are not enough: Preparing teachers to center race and poverty. The Urban Review, 47(2), 341–363.
• Naidoo, L. (2010). Engaging the refugee community of Greater Western Sydney. Issues in Educational Research, 20(1), 47-56.
• Nathan, M. (2008). Your place or mine? The local economics of migration. Institute of Public Policy Research.
• Neugebauer, R. (2013). Bleak outlook for children who are refugees. Report on Children Who Are Refugees.
• Noguera, P. A. (2013). The achievement gap and the schools we need: Creating the conditions where race and class no longer predict student achievement. In M. B. Katz & M. Rose (Eds.), Public education under siege. University of Pennsylvania Press.
• Ooka Pang, V. (1995). Why do we need this class? Multicultural education for teachers. Phi Delta Kappan, 76, 289–292.
• Pinnegar, S., & Daynes, J. G. (2007). Locating narrative inquiry historically: Thematics in the turn to narrative. In D. J. Clandinin (Ed.), Handbook of nar¬rative inquiry: Mapping a methodology (pp. 3–34). SAGE.
• Presidency of Migration Management. (2024). Distribution of Syrians under temporary protection by year. Retrieved June 05, 2024, from https://en.goc.gov.tr/temporary-protection27
• Qin, D. (2009). Being ‘good’ or being ‘popular’: Gender and ethnic identity negotiations of Chinese immigrant adolescents. Journal of Adolescent Research, 24(1), 37-66.
• Roy, L. A., & Roxas, K. C. (2011). Whose deficit is this anyhow? Exploring counter-stories of Somali Bantu refugees' experiences in "Doing School." Harvard Educational Review, 81(3), 521-542.
• Sirin, S. R., & Rogers-Sirin, L. (2015) The educational and mental health needs of Syrian refugee children. Migration Policy Institute.
• Sleeter, C. E., & Owuor, J. (2011). Research on the impact of teacher preparation to teach diverse students: The research we have and the research we need. Action in Teacher Education, 33(5–6), 524–537.
• Strekalova, E., & Hoot, J. L. (2008). What is special about special needs of refugee children? Guidelines for teachers. Multicultural Education, 16(1), p. 21-24.
• Taşkın, P., & Erdemli, O. (2018). Education for Syrian refugees: Problems faced by teachers in Turkey. Eurasian Journal of Educational Research, 18(75), 155-178.
• Taştan, C., & Çelik, Z. (2017). The education of Syrian children in Turkey: Challenges and recommendations. Eğitim-Bir-Sen Publications.
• Thorpe, H. (2011). Just like us: The true story of four Mexican girls coming of age in America. Scribner. Tienda, M., & Haskins, R. (2011). Immigrant children: Introducing the issue. The Future of Children, 21(1), 3–18.
• Ukpokodu, N. (1999). Multiculturalism vs. globalism. Social Education, 63(5), 298–300.
• UNESCO. (2011). The hidden crisis: Armed conflict and education. No lost generation: Protecting the future of children affected by the crises in Syria.
• Ünsal, Y., & Başkan, G. (2021). The problems of teachers who have immigrant students in their classes and solutions. Journal of Computer and Education Research, 9(17), 199–224.
• Warren, A. C. (2013). The utility of empathy for white female teachers’ culturally responsive interactions with black male students. Interdisciplinary Journal of Teaching and Learning, 3(3), 175–200.
• Wasonga, C. O., Wanzare, Z. O., & Dawo, J. I. (2015). Mentoring beginning teachers: Bridging the gap between pre-service training and in-practice realities. Journal of International Education and Leadership, 5(2), 4-11.