Hanna Ragnarsdóttir, professor at the Faculty of Education Studies
Nordic research is currently underway seeking an understanding of why some children of foreign origin do better than others in their new homes, socially and in school. The research is focused on the wellbeing of these children at three levels of the education system, preschools, primary schools and upper secondary schools, in four countries: Iceland, Finland, Sweden and Norway.
"We want to learn from the children who have done well and also from their school environments, rather than simply concentrating on things that go less well," says Hanna Ragnarsdóttir, professor in multicultural studies, who is heading the Icelandic section of the research.
Hanna Ragnarsdóttir
"The results could be significant for discrimination-free education and social justice in the Nordic countries, as well as creating a broad base of knowledge and comparison in an international context."
Hanna has been fascinated by the circumstances of children and adults of foreign origin for many years and most of her research has focused on various groups of immigrants.
"My guiding principle in this has been to improve the learning environments of these groups, as well as their position in society. In a broader context, my research is about human rights and equality," says Hanna.
The inspiration for this new research came about through a discussion amongst a Nordic research team, who were interested in looking at wellbeing rather than marginalisation of students of foreign origin in the education systems in the Nordic countries and beyond.
According to Hanna, the research addresses four areas: the experience and aspiration of students of foreign origin; professional development of teachers and teaching methods; leadership, collaboration and school culture; and educational and school policy along with curricula.
"There are a lot of commonalities in the results from different countries, but it also becomes clear how different the education systems are," says Hanna, adding that the schools participating in the research have emphasised the creation of a welcoming learning environment for all students. "The environment is characterised by trust and in most schools there is an understanding that linguistic diversity amongst students is an asset that must be valued. However, teaching staff sometimes lack education in multiculturalism and multilingualism. Sometimes there is also a lack of understanding of the fact that all teachers are responsible for the education of immigrants."
Hanna says that the results of the research will be used to guide reforms in teaching and the work of schools in general and that they are an important contribution to education policy and teacher training.
"The results could be significant for discrimination-free education and social justice in the Nordic countries, as well as creating a broad base of knowledge and comparison in an international context."