It Takes Two To Seesaw: How Students Of Foreign Origin Experience Icelandic Primary School

In a multicultural society, families are as varied as they are many. This diversity cannot be traced to different cultural or religious backgrounds alone; family structures also vary. Borkur Hansen and Hanna Ragnarsdottir (2010) point out that not only immigrants bring diversity to communities, as no two individuals are the same and diversity lies in the very nature of human societies. Since the beginning of the 21st century, Icelandic society has changed rapidly, as the ratio of the country's inhabitants who are defined as immigrants has grown from 2.6% in the year 2000 to 15% in 2020 (Hagstofa Islands [Iceland Statistics], n.d.).The growing number of children of foreign origin in Icelandic schools has given wings to the ideology of a multicultural school and pedagogy. Those ideas have gained ground in step with theories relating to inclusive education and the importance of ensuring the equality of minority groups and marginalised individuals (Nieto, 2010). An education policy promoting the ideology of the inclusive school has its foundation in general human rights, focusing on the situation of marginalised groups within the schools. It is a fundamental concern that the schools be neither adapted to the needs of certain social classes, nor characterised by their dominant perceptions (Skola- og fristundasvio Reykjavi ' kurborgar [Reykjavik Municipality School and Recreation Department], 2012).The Icelandic national curriculum guide for compulsory schools (Mennta- og menningarmalaraouneytio [Ministry of Education, Science and Culture], 2013) expresses a similar understanding of the concept of the inclusive school:Inclusive school means a compulsory school in the pupils' municipality or local community where the educational and social requirements of each pupil are met with emphasis on respect for human values and social justice (p. 41)Icelandic research has shown that students of foreign origin are often socially isolated, they feel worse than their peers, have fewer friends, are more likely to be bullied and are less likely to participate in leisure and sports activities (Eyrun Maria Runarsdottir & Runar Vilhjalmsson, 2015; Hrefna Guomundsdottir & Hanna Ragnarsdottir, 2013; Ingibjorg Eva porisdottir, 2018; Ministry of Education, Science and Culture, 2020a). It is, therefore, of utmost importance that schools make an effort to improve the social situation of students of foreign origin to prevent their isolation, both in school and in the community.The main objective of the present study was to gain an understanding of the circumstances, challenges, experiences and support relating to students of foreign origin in Icelandic schools. For this purpose, interviews were conducted with eight primary school students of foreign origin in grades 6, 7, 9 and 10 in one provincial Icelandic school. The interviews focused on attempting to understand how the school meets their needs and how it supports students in their daily lives, as well as examining their connection with their peers of Icelandic origin.The conclusions of the research are analysed on the basis of four main themes: native language and its importance, feeling different, support in school, and social participation.It was clear that the students' native language was precious to them and that they felt its preservation was important, first and foremost to be able to communicate with family and friends in their home country. In the particular instance of those eight students, who all attend the same school in a small township, it was found that the school made little or no effort to become acquainted with, or use, their native language in study and teaching, although Article 16 of the Compulsory School Act (no. 91/2008) authorises schools to recognise students' knowledge in their native language as part of their core study programme, for example in another foreign language. The students explained, however, that their parents fulfilled their role regarding cultivation of the mother tongue and thus supported the students in achieving potential active multilingualism (Ministry of Education, Science and Culture, 2013). The students' attitude to school was generally rather positive; they spoke of a relaxed and positive atmosphere within the school, but nevertheless some of them hesitated to ask the teacher for help and sometimes remained inactive when they failed to understand what was expected of them. They felt there was too little communication and conversation in the classroom and too much emphasis on problem-solving in exercise books. Thus, they would be grateful for more opportunities to use Icelandic to communicate with their peers. They found it problematic to have no one at home who could read through their work and assist them with spelling and other aspects where their peers could seek help from their parents. The students unanimously agreed that multiculturalism was not at all in evidence within the school and there was nothing to indicate the presence of students of foreign origin. Four out of the eight respondents sensed they were in some way different from other students in the school, especially because of their different background and language problems. The students did not feel they had been victims of prejudice in the school, but said they had been subjected to bullying and unkind comments relating to their origin. All the students said they had a good relationship with their supervising teacher. In general, the students' social participation was rather limited. Five out of the eight students said they went straight home after school, usually alone. Three of them attended music school, but only two practised sports within a sports club.