Session Information
07 SES 05 A, Student Voice and Belonging
Paper Session
Contribution
Empirical evidence indicates a growth in the number of adolescents with parents from different ethnic backgrounds in several western countries (e.g., the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau; Office for National Statistics (UK), 2011). As the number of bi-ethnic adolescents is increasing, schools will encounter an increase of bi-ethnic students. Bi-ethnic adolescents face challenges and strengths (socially, emotionally, behaviourally and academically) which may be different from those encountered by mono-ethnic adolescents. However, most teachers are unaware of the specific situation of bi-ethnic students (Wardle, 1999; Lin and Bates, 2010). With almost no literature on bi-ethnicity, teachers do not have access to relevant strategies for working with bi-ethnic families or adolescents. According to Brown (2009) this lack of knowledge could lead to a sense of conflict between parents and teachers and pose barriers to teachers’ involvement in the educational experiences of bi-ethnic students. It is important that teachers increase their knowledge, sensitivity, awareness, and understanding of bi-ethnic adolescents and their educational needs, because they interact with these students daily for a substantial period.
Research on bi-ethnic adolescents in Europe is scarce. To date, most studies in Europe have included adolescents whose parents have different ethnic backgrounds with adolescents whose parents have the same ethnic group (e.g. Crul, Schneider, and Lelie, 2013). In the US, bi-ethnicity is a well-researched topic. However, most studies in the US have focussed on the identity of bi-ethnic adolescents, whereas the educational experiences of bi-ethnic adolescents have been neglected.
The present study is aimed at examining the educational experiences of bi-ethnic students, aged 15-20, with regard to their bi-ethnic background. We used Bronfenbrenner's ecological development model for examining the educational experiences of bi-ethnic students. Bronfenbrenner's ecological development model emphasises the role of the environment in education and human development. The environment of the adolescent, such as the home environment, the school environment, the neighbourhood and the group of peers, directly and indirectly affect the development of the adolescent. The experiences within these environments and characteristics of the adolescent are crucial for understanding adolescent development. We focussed on three environments: the adolescent him/herself, the school environment and the home environment, and examined the factors influencing the students’ experiences. We performed an extensive literature study to identify relevant factors which can influence the educational experience of bi-ethnic students within the three environments. The identified factors concerning the bi-ethnic adolescent himself are: ethnic identity and strategies as a response to experiences at school with people questioning one’s ethnic background, comments on basis of phenotype, and stereotyping. For the school environment we identified the following factors: stereotypes towards bi-ethnic adolescents, relationships with peers, teachers’ expectations and the ethnic school composition. The relevant factors concerning the home environment are: resources, parental educational expectations and ethnic socialisation strategies (cultural socialisation, promotion for bias and egalitarian socialisation). Ethnic socialisation is the mechanisms through which parents transmit information, values and perspectives about their ethnic background to their children (Hughes et al., 2006). These factors within the three different environments provide a framework that we used as a conceptual lens for analysing to what extent and how the educational experiences of students are shaped their bi-ethnic background.
Method
Expected Outcomes
References
Bronfenbrenner, U. (1979). The Ecology of Human Development: Experiments by Nature and Design. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA. Brown, M. R. (2009). A New Multicultural Population Creating Effective Partnerships With Multiracial Families. Intervention in School and Clinic, 45(2), 124-131. Crul, M., Schneider, J., & Lelie, F. (2013). The European Second Generation Compared: Does the Integration Context Matter? Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press. Hughes, D., Rodriguez, J., Smith, E. P., Johnson, D. J., Stevenson, H. C., & Spicer, P. (2006). Parents’ Ethnic Socialization Practices: A Review of Research and Directions for Future Study. Developmental Psychology, 42(5), 747-770. Lin, M., & Bates, A. B. (2010). Home Visits: How Do They Affect Teachers’ Beliefs about Teaching and Diversity?. Early Childhood Education Journal,38(3), 179-185. Office for National Statistics. (2011). Patterns and Trends of People in an Inter-Ethnic Relationship in England and Wales, 2011. London: Office for National Statistics. Available from: http://www. statistics.gov.uk. U.S. Census Bureau (2010). Census Data, 2010. Available from: http://www.census.gov/2010census. Wardle, F. (1999) Children of Mixed Race—No Longer Invisible. Understanding Youth Culture, 57(4), 68–72.
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