1

“IlikeitherebecauseIhaveto.”Migrationand

AdolescentIdentityFormation:Exploringthe

ExperiencesofStudentsinaLondonSchool

JamesGilsenan

UCLInstituteofEducation

DoctorateinProfessionalEducational,ChildandAdolescent

Psychology

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Acknowledgements

Firstandforemost,thankyoutothestudentswhotookpartinthisresearch.Itis

basedentirelyonyourwillingnesstoshareandreflectuponyourpersonal

experiences,andIhopeitcanbenefitotherslikeyouinthefuture.

Thanksalsotomysupervisors,KarenMajorsandDinaMehmedbegovicforyour

supportoverthepastcoupleofyears,andtoSharonSynmoieandFrancesLee

beforethat.

Finally,thankstomyparents,coursemates,House4,allatIRMO,andClaudia,

MarellaandMacarenaforyourhelpinvarious,butequallyimportantways.

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Declarationofwordcount

Thewordcount,exclusiveofappendicesandreferences,is37,634words.

I,JamesGilsenan,confirmthattheworkpresentedinthisthesisismyown.Where

informationhasbeenderivedfromothersources,Iconfirmthatthishasbeen

indicatedinthethesis.

JamesGilsenan

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Abstract

ThisstudyaimstoexplorethelifeexperiencesofmigrantadolescentsofLatinAmerican

heritage,withaparticularfocusonthepersonalinfluenceofmigrationontheiridentity

formation.Previousresearchhasdemonstratedthatthisisanareaofdifficultyfor

adolescentswhohaveexperiencedinternationalmigrationduringtheirchildhoodyears,

andhighlighteditsimpactonmentalhealth.

Myaimistoshinealightontheexperiencesofthisunder-researchedgroupof

adolescents,helpingtoidentifyboththepositivesanddifficultiesofmigrationfromtheir

perspective,andtodevelopamoredetailedknowledgeofpsychosocialdevelopmental

processesinmigrantadolescents,usingErikson’spsychosocialtheoryasaframework.

Semi-structuredqualitativeinterviews,employingnarrativeandvisualapproacheswere

conductedwithninestudentsinaLondonsecondaryschool.Thematicanalysisofthisdata

hasresultedinthedevelopmentofsixkeythemes,whichcentrearoundthetopicsof

discrimination,loss,culturaladaptation,reducedfreedomandpressuretosucceed.These

werepresentedbacktotheoriginalresearchparticipantsforfeedbackanddevelopment

throughaprocessofmemberreflection,toensurethattheirvoicesarerepresented

faithfully.

Implicationsforpracticearediscussed,withtheaimofinfluencinghowEducational

Psychologists,teachersandotherprofessionalsworkwiththisgroupofyoungpeopleina

waythatpromotespositiveoutcomesinanacademic,socialandpsychologicalsense.

Theseincludewaysinwhichdiscriminationcanbechallengedandreducedwithinschools,

aswellasapproachestofacilitatingthehealthyidentityformationofmigrantstudentsand

respondingtoissueswithinfamiliesandthebroaderenvironmentthatcanprovidea

barriertothis.

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Contents

Chapter1:Introduction 9

1.1.ResearchProblem 9

1.2.ResearchAims 9

1.3.ResearchBackground 9

1.4.GapinCurrentResearch 11

1.5.DefinitionofIdentity 12

1.6.RelevancetotheEducationalPsychologistRole 14

1.7.KeyConcepts 14

Chapter2:LiteratureReview 17

2.1.KeyQuestionsExploredintheLiteratureReview 17

2.2.ApproachtotheLiteratureReview 17

2.3.ReflectionsonStudies 18

2.4.StructureoftheLiteratureReview 18

2.5.LatinAmericansintheUK 19

2.6.MigrantAdolescentIdentityFormation 23

2.7.LanguageLearningandIdentity 28

2.8.ConclusionsBasedonLiteratureReview 31

2.9:ResearchQuestions 32

Chapter3:TheoreticalFramework 33

3.1.Identity:ADevelopmentalPsychologyPerspective 33

3.2.VariousConceptsofIdentity 33

3.3.IdentityinMigrantandEthnicMinorityAdolescents 34

3.4.TheoreticalFramework:Erikson’sPsychosocialTheory 35

3.5.CriticismofErikson’sTheoryandResearchDrawingUponit 36

3.6.RationaleforChoosingTheoreticalFramework 38

Chapter4:StudyDesignandMethodology 40

4.1.PhilosophicalPositioning 40

4.2.RationaleforQualitativeApproach 40

4.3.InterviewApproach 42

4.4.SamplingandRecruitment 44

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4.5.TheLocalContext 45

4.6.DataCollectionProcedure 45

4.7.DataAnalysis 46

4.8.EthicalConsiderations 48

4.9.ResearcherPositioningDuringInterviews:DemonstratingReflexivity 52

4.10.MemberReflectionGroupInterviews 52

4.11.ReliabilityandValidity 52

Chapter5:ResultsandDiscussion 55

5.1.Introduction 55

5.2.TitleQuote 55

5.3.Theme1:ConstrainedFreedomandHighPressure 57

5.4.Theme2:AspirationandConfidenceLoss 62

5.5.Theme3:EmotionalDifficultyandFeelingsofLoss 68

5.6.Theme4:DiscriminationandDifference 73

5.7.Theme5:NavigatingaMulticulturalBackground 79

5.8.Theme6:AdaptingtoaNewSchool 84

5.9.RelativePrevalenceofThemes 87

5.10.KeyFindings 88

Chapter6:ImplicationsforPractice 89

6.1.Introduction 89

6.2.ImplicationsBasedonKeyFinding1 89

6.3.ImplicationsBasedonKeyFinding2 92

6.4.ImplicationsBasedonKeyFinding3 96

6.5.RecommendationSummaryforSchoolsReceivingMigrantStudents 99

Chapter7:EvaluationandCriticalReview 102

7.1.Introduction 102

7.2.RevisitingResearchAims 102

7.3.CriticalReviewandLimitations 102

7.4.ResearchStrengths 103

7.5.ResearcherConclusions:DemonstratingReflexivity 104

7.6.ReflectionsonTheoreticalFramework 104

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Chapter8:ConclusionsandContributiontoKnowledge 107

8.1.Conclusions 107

8.2.DirectionsforFutureResearch 108

References 110

Appendices 129

AppendixA:InterviewGuide 129

AppendixB:ParticipantInformationSheet 133

AppendixC:ParticipantConsentForm 135

AppendixD:InterviewCodes 137

AppendixE:OriginalCodingtoTheme4:DiscriminationandDifference146

AppendixF:FullInterviewTranscript 147

AppendixG:ExampleImagesfromInterviewActivities 161

AppendixH:RecordingSheetfromMemberReflectionInterview 166

AppendixI:EthicalApprovalLetter 167

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FiguresandTables

Table1:SampleTable 44

Figure1:ThemeDiagram 56

Figure2:Theme1withfoursubthemes 57

Figure3:Theme2withsixsubthemes 62

Figure4:Theme3withfivesubthemes 68

Figure5:Theme4withfivesubthemes 73

Figure6:Theme5withfoursubthemes 79

Figure7:Theme6withtwosubthemes 84

Table2:RelativeImportanceofThemesforEachParticipant 87

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Chapter1:Introduction

1.1.ResearchProblem

Existingresearchshowsthattheformationofastablesenseofidentityduringadolescenceis

criticalformentalhealth,withconflictinidentitydevelopmentconsistentlylinkedtopoor

psychologicaloutcomesinarangeofculturalcontexts(e.g.Chen,Lay,WuandYao,2007;

Crocetti,Klimstra,Keijsers,HaleandMeeus,2009;Sandhu,Singh,TungandKundra,2012).

Researchalsoshowsthatmigrantandethnicminorityadolescentsareatparticularriskof

havingdifficultiesinthisarea(e.g.Rousseau,1995,SpencerandMarkstrom-Adams1990).

Littleisknown,however,abouthowyoungpeoplethemselvesnavigateadolescentidentity

formationagainsttheatypicalbackdropofmigration.Myresearchlookstoexplorethis

processindepth,focusingontheindividualexperiencesofmigrantsofLatinAmerican

heritageinLondon.

1.2.ResearchAims

Theoverallaimofthisstudyisthedevelopmentofamoredetailedknowledgeof

psychosocialdevelopmentalprocessesinmigrantadolescentsthatcanthenacttoinfluence

howEducationalPsychologists(EPs),teachersandotherprofessionalsworkwiththisgroup

ofyoungpeopleinawaythatpromotespositiveoutcomesinanacademic,socialand

psychologicalsense.

Myobjectiveistoidentifyboththepositivesanddifficultiesofmigrationfromthe

perspectiveofmigrantadolescents,anditsinfluenceonidentityformation,highlightinghow

theseadolescentscanbebestsupportedtomeettheirpotential.Iwishtogiveavoicetothis

underrepresentedminority,inlinewiththeimportanceplacedintheSENCodeofPractice

(DepartmentforEducation,2015)andbyOfsted(2011)onenablingtheexpressionofpupil

views,allowingchildrenandadolescentsanoutlettoconveytheirexperiences.

1.3.ResearchBackground

1.3.1.PositioningMyselfasaResearcher:DemonstratingReflexivity

IamfromtheRepublicofIreland,acountrywithalonghistoryofemigrationthroughoutits

history,includingwithinmyownimmediateandextendedfamily.Ihavealwaysheldakeen

interestinlearningaboutotherpartsoftheworldandhavetravelledforextendedperiods

throughoutLatinAmericainthepastnumberofyears.IcanspeakandwriteinSpanishand

myYear1placementontheDoctorateinEducationalPsychology(DEdPsy)coursewasinthe

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LondonboroughwiththehighestnumberofpupilsofLatinAmericanheritage.Asaresultof

this,IbegantakingoncasesinvolvingLatinAmericanchildren,concentratingonissues

affectingthiscommunity.Uponbeginningasearchforresearchonthisgroup,Inotedalack

ofpublishedmaterial,whichpromptedmetoconsiderthisasaresearchtopic.

1.3.2.DevelopmentofResearchTopic

Immigrationisakeypoliticalandsocialissueatthecurrenttime(IPSOSMORI,2016).Iam

interestedinexploringwhatEducationalPsychologycancontributetounderstandingaspects

oftheexperiencefromapsychologicalperspectiveandthuscontributingtomaking

immigrationapositiveexperienceformigrantchildrenandfamilies,theeducationsystem

andsocietymorebroadly.

InYear1oftheDEdPsyprogramme,Iconductedasmall-scalepilotstudyexploringthe

experiencesandattitudesoffiveLatinAmericanmigrantparentsregardingtheirchildren’s

education(Gilsenan,2016).Duringthisstudyitemergedthatmanyparentswereconcerned

aboutissuesofidentityconflictandtheirimpactonthegeneralwellbeingandmentalhealth

oftheirchildren.Thiswasespeciallyevidentforthosewithchildrenovertheageofnine,

who,fromtheirparents’perspective,appearedtoexperiencemorepsychologicaldifficultyin

makingthetransitiontolifeintheUKthanyoungerchildrendid.Thislinkstoresearchwhich

hasshownthatoldermigrantchildrenandadolescentsshowhigherratesofanxietyand

depressionthanthegeneralpopulation(e.g.PotochnickandPerreira,2010).Ingeneral,

participantsinmyparentstudylinkedtheirchildren’sdifficultiestoconflictinnational

identity,andalsoreferencedemotionalandmentalhealthdifficultiesintheirolderchildren,

ashighlightedbythefollowingquotes.

“Well,IamBolivian,mywifeaswell,andmydaughterswereborninSpain.Onewasbornin

MadridandtheotherinSeville,sonowtheydon’tknowwheretheyarefrom!”Mauricio,

Bolivianparent

“HeisPeruvian,butnowhesaysheisSpanish.WhenIaskifheisPeruvian,hesays,no,Iam

Spanish…Idon’tseeitinthesameway.”Natalia,PeruvianParent

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“Thefouryearoldspendsherdayplaying.Butthetwelveyearold.Sheisverysensitive.And

sincethishasbeenabigchange,Ithinkthishasaffectedherevenmore…sheisabit

depressed.”Rosa,Bolivianparent

Adair(2015)highlightsthatdiscriminationagainstmigrantchildrenoccursinschools,butthat

theexperienceanditsimpactarenotwellunderstoodfromthechild’sperspective.Adair

(2015,p.3)goesontohighlightthat“theexperiencesthatchildrenhaveintheirfirst

classroomsarefoundationaltohowtheythinkaboutthemselvesaslearnersandmembersof

thelargercommunitiesaroundthem.”Anagnostopoulos,VlassopoulosandLazaratou(2006,

p.36)describehow“theprocessesofidentityformationinadolescentsbelongingtominority

groupsareextremelydifficultwithinaculturalandsocialframeworkwithdoubleandoften

conflictingvalues.”

Inaddition,recentsocietaldiscoursesaroundtheUK’sEuropeanUnion(EU)referendum

haveledtoanincreaseinhatecrimesagainstmigrantsinEngland(HomeOffice,2016)and

greaterinstabilityaroundtheimmigrationstatusoflargenumbersoffamilies,withlikely

negativepsychologicaleffectsonanalreadymarginalisedgroup.Itisworthhighlightingthat

thecurrentresearchisideologicallybasedontherightsofmigrantsandminoritygroupsin

generaltochoosewhetherornottoretaintheirnativelanguageandcultureaftermovingto

theUnitedKingdom(UK),andonmulticulturalismmorebroadly,inlinewithprevious

researchersintheareasuchasRuiz(1984).

1.4.GapinCurrentResearch

TheinclusionofmigrantchildrenandfamiliesintoBritishsocietyrequiresreliableand

trustworthyresearchtoinformpracticeinareassuchaseducation,healthandsocialcare.

OrganisationssuchastheOECDhavealreadycarriedoutalargeamountofinternational

data-gatheringtostatisticallydocumentthecharacteristicsofmigrantworkers.Thishas

provideddetailedinformationon,forexample,theirsocio-economicbackground,age,

educationalbackgroundandcountryoforigin.Sieme,FoxandPietka(2011)describehow

morerecentresearchhasbeguntoexploreaspectssuchasmigrants’ownperspectives,

includingtheirexperiencesbefore,duringandaftermigration,aswellastheiraspirationsand

reasonsformigrating.

Migrantchildrenandadolescents,however,areagroupthathasbeensignificantlylesswell

researched,especiallynewermigrantgroupstotheUK,suchasLatinAmericans.AsSieme,

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FoxandPietka(2011)highlight,thesechildrengenerallyfollowtheirparentstotheir

destinationcountrywithoutpossessingmuchpowerorinfluenceintheirfamilies’decisionto

move.Siemeetal.(2011)alsoproposethatknowingmoreabouthowmigrationis

experiencedbychildren,andtheneedsofyoungpeoplethemselves,especiallyfromnewly-

arrivedgroups,iscriticaltoplanningappropriateservicesandsupportforthesechildren.

Itappearsthatthereisalackofresearchonidentityformationamongminoritygroupsin

general,andparticularlyresearchthatconsiderstheroleofsocialandenvironmentalfactors.

Brittian(2012),forexample,highlightstheneedformodernresearcherstodevelopa

broader,moreinclusiveideaofidentity,buildingontheworkofearliertheorists,andbased

ontheaimofunderstandinghowidentityformationimpactsuponhealthydevelopmentina

varietyofsocialandculturaldomains.Schwartz(2001)highlightshowthe“ideaofidentityas

embeddedininterpersonal,social,andculturalcontextsisanecessaryingredientinthe

designofeffectiveresearchandinterventionprograms”(p.49),andthatalthoughresearch

onidentityhasbeguntolookattheroleofsocialandculturalcontext,thisworkisstillinits

infancy.KingandGanuza(2012),fromalanguageperspective,alsohighlighthowonlyasmall

numberofstudieshavelookedatlanguageacquisitionfromtheperspectiveofindividual

speakers,intermsof“howbilingualandmultilingualindividualsinterpretanddescribetheir

ownexperiencesandlinguisticandculturalstatus”(p.180).

Ihavechosentolookatthespecificareaofyoungpeople’sexperiencesofmigrationinmore

depth,inparticularexploringthepsychologicalconceptofidentityformationamong

adolescents,inordertobetterunderstandtheprocessestheygothroughandhowbestto

supportthemwithinschoolandcommunitycontexts.Mypilotstudyhighlightednational

identityconflictasapotentialareaofdifficultyformigrantsofLatinAmericanheritage.

However,uponconsultingtheliterature(e.g.Rumbaut,1994;Gullan,HoffmanandLeff,

2011;Rousseau,1995;SpencerandMarkstrom-Adams1990),whichisexpandeduponin

Chapter2,arangeofadditionalfactors,bothsociallyandindividuallybasedwereidentified

thathavethepotentialtoinfluenceidentityformationinmigrantadolescents.These

includedethnicandculturalidentification,discrimination,second-languageacquisition,

personalfeelingsoflossandupheaval,mentalhealth,andinter-generationalconflict.

1.5.DefinitionofIdentity

Basedonthewiderangeoffactorsthathavethepotentialtoinfluencemigrantadolescent

identityformation,andmyobjectivetofocusontheperspectivesandpsychological

experiencesofmyindividualresearchparticipants,ratherthanimposingamorefocusedor

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limitedconceptualisation,thegeneralandbroadconceptofidentityproposedbyErikson

(1968)isemployedasatheoreticalframeworkinthisstudy.Eriksonisoneofthekeyfigures

inthefieldsofbothresearchandtheoryregardingpersonalidentity,anddevelopedaneight-

stage,lifespanmodelofhumandevelopment,withtheexplorationofidentityissuesand

identityformationhighlightedasthekeydevelopmentaltasksofadolescence.Erikson’s

broaddefinitionofidentityincludesbothsocial-contextualandinternaldimensions.

ThedefinitionofidentityadoptedinthisstudywasoriginallyproposedbyErikson(1968),

whodefinedidentityas“asubjectivesenseofinvigoratingsamenessandcontinuity”(p.19).

ThisstudydrawsonRageliené’s(2016)definition,whichelaboratesonErikson’swork,

furtherdefiningidentity“asenseofcontinuitywithintheself,aswellasaframeto

differentiatebetweenselfandothers,thusallowingtheindividualtofunctionautonomously

fromothers”(p.2).AccordingtoErikson(1968),althoughidentitydevelopmentismost

pronouncedduringadolescence,theissueofidentityformationisneverdefinitivelyachieved

andremainsalifelongconcern.

1.5.1.CulturalConsiderationsinIdentityFormation

Eriksonpositedthatthedevelopmentaltaskofidentityformationisrelevantacrosscultures,

basedontheideathattheestablishmentofpersonalidentityistheuniversalpsychological

linkbetweenchildhoodandadulthood.However,healsoproposedthattheparticularnature

ofanindividual'sidentitydiffersbetweenvariousculturalgroups,basedonsocialinfluences.

Assuch,itisimportanttoconsiderhowthesefactorsimpacteduponparticipantsinthis

study.Ferreira(2014)proposesthatanimportantunifyingcharacteristicofLatinAmericansis

theirculturalvalues.Ayon&Aisenberg(2010)suggestthatEuropeancultureisbasedon

individualisticandpersonalgoaldrivenvalues,whereasLatinAmericanculturetendstobe

morecollectivist,withmoreofafocusonfamilywell-beingratherthanonindividual

opportunities.

Ferriera(2014)goesontohighlighthowconstructssuchas“familismo”and“respeto”are

centraltoLatinAmericanculture.Familismo,isrepresentativeofthetightconnections,

loyalty,cooperation,andsupportwithinone’sfamily(Ayon&Aisenberg,2010).Respeto,

translatedtoEnglishas“respect”,describesahierarchicaldividebetweenchildren,

adolescentsandadultsbasedondemonstratingrespectandobediencetothosewhoare

olderandwithagreaterstatusandauthority.(Atkinson,Morten,&Sue,1993).Assuch,the

LatinAmericanheritageofparticipantsinthisstudy,whosefamilieshavemigratedfromthe

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countriesofColombia,Peru,Bolivia,EcuadorandtheDominicanRepublic,mayinfluence

theiridentityformationbyforcingthemtoreconcileamorefamily-orientedand

generationallyhierarchicalculture,withaUKculturewherelessimportanceisplacedon

thesefactors.

1.6.RelevancetotheEPRole

ThisresearchaimstoinformEPpracticebydevelopinganunderstandingoftheexperiences

ofasampleofLatinAmericanmigrantsand,byextension,offersomeinsightintothe

experiencesofmigrantadolescentsinLondonmorebroadly.Indoingso,itaimstopromote

professionalstandardsofethics,effectiveservicedeliveryandimproveculturalcompetence

amongEPs.Bybetterunderstandingtheexperiencesofmigrantadolescents,EPswillbe

betterplacedtoworkeffectivelywiththemandtheirfamiliesinavarietyofcontextsandto

transferthisknowledgewithinschoolsandothersettings.

ProfessionalstandardsforEPtraining(BritishPsychologicalSociety,2015)highlightthat

“culturallycompetent/informedpracticeisfundamentaltoEPpracticeintoday’sdiverseand

globalsociety”(p.18).GuidancefromtheHealthandCareProfessionsCouncil(HCPC),a

regulatorybody,statesthatEPsmustbeawareofhowculture,equalityanddiversitycan

impacttheirpracticeandbeabletoadapthowtheyoperatetomeettheneedsofdifferent

groups(HCPC,2015).

RecentresearchhasalsodiscussedEPs’needtoshowanawarenessandknowledgeofother

cultures,andtomeettheneedsofdifferentgroupsthroughtheapplicationofpsychology.

Forexample,Abdi(2015)suggeststhatbothschoolsandEPshaveanimportantrolein

supportingchildrenandyoungpeopleinthedevelopmentoftheirethnicandcultural

identities.Sewell(2016)putsforwardthatEPsareatparticularriskofbiasandpotential

discriminationduetotheirroleinconstructingknowledgeaboutindividualchildrenand

youngpeople,whichcanoftenplacealowerlevelofimportanceontheunderstandings

sharedbychildrenandtheirfamiliescomparedtotheeducationprofessionalsinvolved.

Sewell(2016)suggeststhatEPshavethepotentialtodevelopahigherlevelofawarenessof

howtheirprofessioncanactasacontributingfactortodiscriminationandoppressionagainst

minoritypopulations,andthatensuringthatarangeofvoicesareheardandbeingconscious

ofissuesofprejudice,alongwithsocialandeconomicprivilege,areimportantindeveloping

fairandimpartialEPpracticetoserveallgroupsinsociety.Withthisismind,thisresearch

aimstogiveavoicetooneparticularlessprivilegedgroupwithinsociety.

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1.7.KeyConcepts

Theintroductiontothisreportconcludesbyprovidingworkingdefinitionsofsomeofthe

mostimportantandfrequentlyusedterms,whicharereferredtothroughouttherestofthe

document.Myaimindefiningthesekeytermsistoimprovetheaccessibilityandclarityof

thisresearchreport.

1.7.1.Migrant

Inthisstudy,Ihavechosentousethewordmigrantinabroadsense,todescribeany

individualwhomovestoresideinacountryofwhichtheyarenotanative.Accordingtothe

MigrationObservatory,nouniversally-acceptedagreementexistsonadefinitionoftheterm

“migrant”.Accordingtothisgroup,“migrantsmightbedefinedbyforeignbirth,byforeign

citizenship,orbytheirmovementintoanewcountrytostaytemporarilyortosettleforthe

long-term”(AndersonandBlinder,2017,p.3).Inthecurrentstudy,amigrantisdefinedasan

individualwhowasborninanotherEuropeanornon-EuropeancountryandmovedtotheUK

atsomepointduringtheirlife,withtheintentionofremainingoneitheratemporaryor

permanentbasis.Forconsistency,thetermmigrant,ratherthanimmigrant,isusedinthis

report,exceptwhendirectlyquotingotherresearchersorresearchparticipants.Accordingto

Vore(2015),“migrant”isthebroadertermandencompassesallindividualswhorelocate

fromonecountrytoanother,whereasimmigranthasasimilarmeaning,butalsoaspecific

legaldefinitionregardingtherighttoremainincertaincountries.

Atthecurrenttime,mostLatinAmericanmigrantsarriveintheUKforeconomicreasonsand

mostnowcomeaftertimespentlivinginSpain(McIlwaineandBunge,2016).Thissecondary

migrationisfacilitatedthroughmanyLatinAmericansregularisingtheirimmigrationstatusin

SpainandthusbecomingcitizensoftheEU,withfreedomofmovement.Manyhavethen

beenattractedtoLondoninparticularduetoitexperiencingashortereconomicdownturn

thanlargeSpanishcities,leadingtocontinueddemandforlabour,particularlyinindustries

suchascleaning(McIlwaineandDatta,2014).

Detailedinformationontheprecisemigrationjourneysandlegalstatusofparticipantswas

notcollectedinthecurrentstudy,duetoitsfocusinsteadontheirindividualpsychological

experiences.Accordingtoschoolrecords,noparticipantsinthisstudywereregisteredinthe

UKasrefugeesorasylumseekers,althoughthisdoesnotentirelyprecludethepossibilitythat

thismayhavebeenthecaseatanearlierstageintheiroverallmigrationjourney,asrefugees

continuetoseekasylumfromLatinAmericancountriessuchasColombiaandVenezuela,due

toviolenceandpoliticalpersecution(e.g.Bermudez,2013).

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Withinmyliteraturereview,previousresearchrelatedtorefugeesandasylumseekershas

alsobeenincluded,duetothelargedegreeofsharedexperiencebetweenvariousgroupsof

migrants,whethertheyaredefinedaseconomicmigrantsorrefugees.TheInternational

OrganisationforMigration(IOM)highlightsthefalsedichotomybetweeneconomicmigrants

andrefugeesanddescribehowmigrants“cannotbereducedtoeconomicmigrantsonthe

onehandandrefugeesontheother,”highlightinghowinfact,“itishighlydifficultinmost

casestoisolateauniquecauseforthemigration”(Althaus,2016,p.1).AccordingtoCohen’s

(1989)classificationofvariousmigrantgroups,asignificantproportionofLatinAmerican

migrantsinLondonsharemuchincommonwiththegroupCohendefinesas“helots”,in

termsofbeingoriginallyfromadevelopingcountry,havinganunskilledoccupationand

uncertainaccesstohousingandothersocialservices.ThisisincontrasttothegroupCohen

(1989)describedas“denizens”,thosewithgreatereconomiccapital,oftenholdingmultiple

citizenshipsandworkingaswell-paidexpatriatesinmultinationalcompanies.

1.7.2.LatinAmerican

In thisstudy,LatinAmericansaredefinedas thosewhotracetheirheritagetoSpanishand

Portuguese-speakingCentralandSouthAmericancountriesaswellasMexico,PuertoRicoand

Cuba.ResearchparticipantsaredefinedasLatinAmericaneitherbyvirtueofbeingbornina

Latin American country, or being born to two Latin American parents in another country

outsidetheUK,thereforequalifyingforcitizenshipofaLatinAmericancountry.Theterm“Latin

American”ischosenoveralternativetermssuchas“Latino”or“Hispanic”becausethisisthe

most encompassing, general term, and the one commonly used by the community and

migrant-supportorganisations.“Latino”isgenerallyemployedasamoreinformalterm.

1.7.3.Adolescent

TheWorldHealthOrganisation(2017,p.1)definesadolescenceas“theperiodinhuman

growthanddevelopmentthatoccursafterchildhoodandbeforeadulthood,fromages10to

19.Itrepresentsoneofthecriticaltransitionsinthelifespanandischaracterisedbya

tremendouspaceingrowthandchangethatissecondonlytothatofinfancy.”Participantsin

thisstudyaredrawnfromthemiddleperiodofadolescence,andagedbetween14and17.

Attimes,theterms“child”and“youngperson”arealsousedinthisreport.Theseareterms

thatoverlapwith“adolescent”.TheUKHealthandSafetyExecutive(2018)definesa“young

person”asanyoneundertheageof18andachildasanyonewhohasnotyetreachedthe

legalminimumschoolleavingage.

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Chapter2:LiteratureReview

2.1.KeyQuestionsExploredintheLiteratureReview

Myliteraturereviewaimstoidentify:

• Thesize,distributionandsocioeconomicstatusoftheLatinAmericanpopulationin

theUKandanykeycontextualfactorsimpactinguponLondon’sLatinAmerican

community.

• Whatimpacttheexistingliteraturesuggeststhatmigrationhasonadolescent

developmentingeneral,andidentityformationmorespecifically.

• Howsecond-languageacquisitioninfluencesadolescentidentityformation.

Theseareasoffocuswerechoseninordertohelpmetodevelopanunderstandingofthe

LatinAmericancommunityinLondonmoregenerally,aswellasissuesaroundmigration,

identityandlanguagelearning,andtheinteractionbetweenthesekeyaspectsofmy

research.Itwasdecidedtofocusspecificallyontheareaofsecond-languageacquisitionas

thethirdareaoffocus,as,basedonmyinitialfamiliarisationwiththeliteratureinthearea,I

foundthatthereexistedabodyofresearchbyacademicssuchasNorton(e.g.2000,2013)

highlightingtheimpactofsecond-languageacquisitiononidentityformation.However,this

researchtendstobepublishedlargelywithinlinguisticjournalsratherthanpsychological

journals,wherelanguage-relatedissuesappearedtobeunderrepresented.Assuch,thiswas

includedasaseparate,thirdfocusoftheliteraturereview.

Exploringtheseareasintheliteraturereviewhelpedmetoidentifyandhonetheresearch

questionsforthecurrentstudy,whichareoutlinedattheendofthischapter.

2.2.ApproachtotheLiteratureReview

Inanefforttodevelopanunderstandingoftheareascoveredbymyresearch,Ilooked

separatelyatresearchontheexperiencesofLatinAmericanmigrantsinparticularandissues

ofidentityformationamongmigrantadolescentsmorebroadly.

Iinitiallyconductedasearchoftheexistingresearchontheeducationandgeneral

experiencesofLatinAmericanmigrants,lookingparticularlyattheUK,butalsotakinginto

accountresearchpublishedintheUnitedStates(US).

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Whenreviewingtheexistingliterature,IsearchedtheUCLExplorebooksandjournallibraries

andalsothedatabasesPsycINFOandERIC,usingtheterms“LatinAmerican”,“Latino”,

“Hispanic”,“Education”,AND“School”,“Inclusion”,“Achievement”,“Education”.Ialso

searchedforliteratureonmigrationmorebroadly,andparticularlyitsimpactonidentity

formation,usingthesearchterms“LatinAmerican”,“Latino”,“Hispanic”,“Migrant”,

“Refugee”,“Asylum-seeker”,AND“Identity”,“Self-concept”,“Wellbeing”,“MentalHealth”.

Thesamesearchlocationswereused.

Onlyresearchpublishedwithinthelastthirtyyearswasincludedinthisliteraturereview,and

aneffortwasmadetoincludethemostrecentresearchfromtheperiodsince2010.Search

termsbasedoneducationalachievementwereincludedinorderprovideusefulbackground

informationonhowLatinAmericanchildrenandadolescentsareperforminggenerallywithin

schoolsintheUKrelativetoothergroups,asthiswillalsolikelybeanimportantcontextual

factorwhichinfluencestheiridentityformationthroughsocialcomparison.

2.3.ReflectionsonStudies

Overall,thepartoftheliteraturereviewthatfocusedontheexperiencesofLatinAmerican

migrantsmoregenerallyreflectedsimilarissuesofsocialexclusionandeconomic

disadvantagewithintheLatinAmericancommunityintheUKandintheUnitedStates.Inthe

US,thereisa“Latino”populationofoverfiftymillion(USCensus,2010)andfarmore

statisticaldataandgeneralresearchisavailable.Forthisreason,fortheUnitedStates,my

reviewoftheliteraturewaslimitedsolelytothatwithaparticularfocusonchildrenofschool

age,wherenoequivalentresearchexistsinaUKcontext.Basedonthegeneralpaucityof

relevantresearchconductedintheUK,allstudiesontheLatinAmericancommunitywere

includedinthisreview.

Aroundmigrantadolescentidentity,publishedresearchshowsamarkedskewtowardsthe

US,withthemajorityofpublishedresearchonthetopiccomingfromthatcountry.Aneffort

wasmadetofocusonresearchonLatinAmericanmigration,ratherthanmigrationfrom

otherpartsoftheworldtotheUnitedStates,wherepossible,inordertoincreasethe

potentialtogeneralisefindingstoLatinAmericanadolescentsintheUK.

2.4.StructureoftheLiteratureReview

Thisliteraturereviewhasbeendividedintothreemainsections,correspondingtothethree

questionsoutlinedearlierinthischapter.Thefirstsectioncoverscontextualinformationon

theLatinAmericanpopulationintheUK,withaparticularfocusonissuesrelevantto

19

children.Thesecondexploresresearchonidentityformationinmigrantcommunities,and

thethirdlooksattheroleoflanguageacquisitionandlanguage-learneridentityformation.

Norton(2013)definesidentityinthecontextofsecondlanguageacquisitionas"howa

personunderstandshisorherrelationshiptotheworld,howthatrelationshipisstructured

acrosstimeandspace,andhowthepersonunderstandspossibilitiesforthefuture"(p.45).

Sheproposesthatthisevolvesandissubjecttochangebasedonsecond-language

competency.

2.5.LatinAmericansintheUK

2.5.1.ThesizeanddistributionoftheLatinAmericanpopulationintheUK

LatinAmericansareasizeableandincreasinggroupintheUK.Oneestimatefrom2016

placesthepopulationat250,000,ofwhicharound145,000areinLondon(McIlwaineand

Bunge,2016).ThisislargerthantheUK’sChinese,RomanianorSomalimigrantcommunities.

ThemajorityofUKLatinAmericansarebasedinthesouthofLondon(McIlwaine,Camilo-

CockandLinnekar,2011),wheretheLocalAuthoritywheretheresearchtookplaceis

located.Inordertoanonymisethelocationinwhichtheresearchtookplace,theterm“The

LocalAuthority”or“TheLA”isusedthroughout.McIlwaineetal.(2011)commentuponthe

factthatmigrationfromtheregionisoftenirregularinnature,soitisdifficulttogatherfully

accurateandreliablestatistics.Assuch,thetruepopulationfiguremaybesignificantly

higher.IncomparisonwithotherminoritygroupsintheUKwithcloserhistoricallinkstothe

BritishEmpire,significantlevelsofmovementofpeoplefromLatinAmericatotheUKhave

occurredonlyrelativelyrecently.TheImmigrationActof1971allowedforLatinAmericansto

gaintemporaryBritishworkpermits,andbecauseofright-wingdictatorshipsinmany

countriesinSouthAmericaatthetime,thousandsofpeoplearrivedintheUKtoseekasylum.

Atthecurrenttime,mostLatinAmericanmigrantsarriveintheUKforeconomicreasons,and

mostnowcomeaftertimespentlivinginSpain(McIlwaineandBunge,2016).

McIlwaineetal.(2011),inthefirstmajorpieceofresearchexploringtheexperiencesofLatin

AmericansinLondon,putforwardanimageofsocialexclusion,povertyandfrequently-

experienceddiscrimination,highlightingtheneedforfurtherresearchinordertobuilda

betterunderstandingoftheneedsofthecommunity.Thisstudywasbasedonaquantitative

surveyofover1,000participantsinLondonacrossawiderangeofnationalitiesand

socioeconomicgroups,andalsodrawsonindividualqualitativeinterviewsandfocusgroups.

Oneimportantissueforthisgroupisthat“LatinAmerican”isnotrecognisedasaminority

ethnicitywithintheUnitedKingdomcensus.Assuch,LatinAmericansidentifywithavariety

20

ofdifferentcategoriessuchas“Mixed”,“WhiteOther”and“BlackOther”,basedonthe

differentethnicitiespresentwithinthecommunity.Becauseofthis,itisnotpossibleto

examinefocuseddataonareassuchasacademicattainmentamongLatinAmericansinthe

UK.Block(2008),inareviewoftheexistingliteratureandaqualitativestudybasedona

smallsampleofLatinAmericansinLondon,highlightshowtheinvisibilityofLatinAmericans

arisesfromtheirmultiracialism.

Withlanguageemployedasanapproximatemeasure,itcanbeseenfromrelativelyrecent

researchthatspeakersofSpanishandPortugueseperformbelowthenationalaverageat

GCSElevel,andwithintheLocalAuthoritywherethisstudyisbased,SpanishandPortuguese

speakersarethelowest-achievingpupilsattheendofKeyStage2,whenlanguageswith

fewerthanthirtyspeakersareexcludedfromthefigures(DemieandHau,2013).An

importantpoint,however,isthatthesefigureswillbemixedwithsomeSpanishand

PortuguesespeakersfromSpainandPortugal,ratherthanfromLatinAmerica.Itisnot

possibletogainanaccuratepictureoftherelativeproportionsofEuropeansandLatin

Americansusingcurrentstatistics.However,anecdotally,intheschoolinSouthLondonin

whichmyresearchisbased,staffmentionedthatalloftheirSpanish-speakingstudentsareof

LatinAmericanratherthanSpanishheritage,althoughsomewereborninSpaintotwoLatin

Americanparentsandholddualcitizenship.

Anexploratorypilotstudy(Gilsenan,2016),conductedinYear1oftheDEdPsyprogramme,

highlightedhowLatinAmericanparentstendtoholdveryhighexpectationsandhopesfor

theirchildren’seducation,emphasisingthepersonalsacrificesthattheyhavemadefortheir

children.Theyalsoexperiencedifficultyinadjustingtoanewandunfamiliarcultureand

language,andtodifficulthousingandworkingconditions.Parentsgenerallydemonstrateda

relativelylowlevelofunderstandingoftheUKeducationsystemandofbroadercultureand

socialservices.

2.5.2.ThesocioeconomicsituationoftheLatinAmericanpopulationintheUK

AkeythemeofexistingresearchonLatinAmericansintheUKisthatofsocialexclusion.This

isasomewhatdisputedterm,whichisassociatedwitheconomicdeprivationand“inferiority

inrelationtocentresofpower,resourcesandprevailingvalues”(Estivill,2003,p.19).In

termsofcontext,currentresearchalsomakesclearthelargeandincreasingeconomicand

socialinequalitywithinLondonasawhole.Londoncurrentlyencompassesthehighest

proportionoffamilieswithhouseholdincomesinthebottom10%ofthenation,alongside

thesecondhighestproportionoffamiliesinthetop10%,ashighlightedbytheLondon

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PovertyProfileinanindependentstudydrawingonawiderangeofstatisticalsources

(Aldridge,Born,TinsonandMacInnes,2015).Anti-migrantmediaandpoliticalcommentary,

whichintensifiedinthelead-uptoandimmediateaftermathoftheUK’sEUreferendumin

2016,hasalsobeenlinkedtoanincreaseindiscriminationandviolence,alongwithgeneral

negativestereotypingofeconomicmigrants(e.g.Greenslade,2015;HomeOffice,2016).

Pharoah,HaleandLee(2010),inastudythattookamixedmethodsapproachdrawingon

ethnographicexplorationandobservation,focusgroupsandacommunitysurveycompleted

by100participants.,discoveredthatinaSouthLondonborough’sLatinAmerican

community,therewasaclearpictureofsocialexclusion.Manyresearchparticipantswere

foundtolackknowledgeabouttheirentitlementstohealthandsocialcareservices,with

somemembersofthecommunityavoidingseekinghealthcareandotherservicesaltogether

forfearofdetectionbyimmigrationofficials.LatinAmericanssawthattheywerealow

priorityforlocalgovernmentandthatthequalificationsandemploymentskillspossessed

withinthecommunitywerenotwell-recognisedinwidersociety.Overcrowdedhousingwas

alsoseenasacommonproblem,withindividualsandfamiliesfrequentlyhavingtomoveto

avoidunsuitableandsubstandardlivingconditionsanddetectionbyimmigrationservices.

McIlwaineetal.(2011),inawide-rangingstudymentionedearlierinthischapter,discovered

thatpeopleofLatinAmericanheritageareemployedinallareasofLondon’seconomy,but

thatasignificantproportion,especiallyrecently-arrivedmigrants,enduredifficultand

potentiallyexploitativeworkingconditions.Theywerefoundtoworklonghours,often

havingtocombinemanypart-timejobsinfieldssuchascleaningandcatering.Almost70%of

the1,014respondentstoMcIlwaineetal.’s(2011)studyperceiveddiscriminationasanissue

theyhadexperienced,withmanyfeelingasenseofdistancefromwiderBritishsociety.One

factorlikelytocontributetothisfeelingofmarginalisationiswidespreaddifficultyinspeaking

English,combinedwithacurrentabsenceofappropriateprovisionforlanguagelearning.This

areahasseenlargefundingcutsinrecentyears(Moorhead,2015).McIlwaineetal.’s(2011)

studywaswide-ranging,andusedacombinationofprimaryandsecondarydatasources.It

didnot,however,includeaspecificfocusoneducationortheexperiencesofchildrenand

adolescents,lookinginsteadattheadultpopulation.Thisisagapthatthecurrentresearch

seekstoaddress.

2.5.3.FamilyissuesspecifictoLatinAmericanmigrants

Hornby(2011),drawingonexistingresearchinthefieldandhisowntheoreticalmodelof

parentalinvolvement,highlightstherelationshipbetweenschoolandhomeasakeyfactorin

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determiningthenatureoftheindividualexperiencesofchildrenandyoungpeople.No

availablepublishedresearchexiststodrawupononhome-schoolrelationshipswithinthe

LatinAmericancommunityintheUK,butintheUS,inareviewofresearchandpolicy,

GándaraandContreras(2009),inapublicationexploringthefactorsbehindLatinAmerican

educationalunderachievementintheUS,foundthatmanypoorerLatinAmericanparents

believethattheycannotsupporttheirchildrenacademicallybecauseoftheirlackofformal

academicqualificationsandEnglish-languageskills.Basedontheirstrongdesirefortheir

childrentolearnEnglish,itwasdiscoveredthatmanyLatinAmericanparentsdidnottoteach

theirchildrentoreadinSpanish,thinkingthatthiswouldimpactnegativelyontheirlearning

ofEnglish.Findingsfrommypilotresearch(Gilsenan,2016)alsosuggestthatparentsplacea

strongemphasisandpressureontheirchildrentolearnEnglishrapidlyandbegintoachieve

academicallywithinashortperiodoftime,butoftenlacktheskillstosupporttheminthis

aim.

LatinAmericanmigrantsupportservicesserveasbothlanguageandculturalmediators

betweenthecommunityandwiderBritishsociety.IRMO(TheIndoamericanRefugeeMigrant

Organisation)isamigrant-ledcommunitygroupwithaprimaryaimtoupholdtherightsof

LatinAmericans,empoweringthemtoestablishthemselvesandbuildalifeinLondon.The

organisationprovidesopenaccesstoadvice,education,trainingandculturalopportunitiesto

helppeople,generallyintheirfirstmonthsinLondon.IRMO’sdirectorandmaternity-cover

directorhavebeeninvolvedinongoingconversationsthathavehelpedtoshapebothmy

researchquestionsandinterviewguide,andsupportedtherecruitmentofresearch

participants.

2.5.4.FactorsthatimpactuponLatinAmericanadolescents

McIlwaine(2015),inastudydrawingonherpreviouslargelyquantitativestudy(McIlwaine,

2011)andanothersmaller-scalequalitativestudyinvolving70participantsfoundthat

practicesrelatedto“socialinvisibility”allowundocumentedorirregularLatinAmerican

migrantstotravelaroundLondonwithoutbeingtrackedbyimmigrationservices,butthey

alsohaveapowerfulinfluenceonindividuals’mentalhealth,withanxietyafrequent

experience,aswellasasenseofbeingdisempoweredbyworkinginlow-paidjobswithinthe

blackeconomy,despitemanyLondon-basedLatinAmericanmigrantsholdingfurther-

educationqualifications.Parentalwellbeingandparticularlyanxietyandothermentalhealth

difficultiesaremattersthatmayalsohaveastrongimpactonchildrenandyoungpeopleas

theydevelopinthisenvironment.

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Migrationfromonecountrytoanotherisaprocessthatalsoallowsfortheestablishmentof

newsocialandgendernormswithinagivencommunity,whichhasthepotentialtoactas

bothapositiveandnegativeinfluenceonparentalandadolescentwellbeing.McIlwaineand

Bermúdez(2011),inaLondon-basedstudyfoundthatworking-classwomenbenefittedmost

fromthedifferenceingendernormsandexpectationsbetweenLatinAmericaandtheUK,

generallyincreasingtheirlevelofcontrolovertheirlivesthroughparticipatingincommunity

organisationsandothergroups.Moreeconomicallydisadvantagedmaleswerefoundtobe

theleastactive,bothsociallyandpolitically.Thiswasperceivedtobeinfluencedbyworking

irregularhoursandfeelingsofbeingsociallydisempoweredthroughtheprocessofmigration

andthetypesofworktheywereforcedtoengageinaftermovingtoLondon.Thesefactors

arealsohighlylikelytoimpactonfather-childrelationshipsandgeneralfamilydynamics.This

studywasbasedonlyonLondon’sColombiancommunity,andemployedamixedmethods

approach,drawingonqualitativeandquantitativeresearchconductedbetween2005and

2009.

2.6.MigrantAdolescentIdentityFormation

Thepsychologicalconceptthatthisstudyfocusesonisthatofidentityformation.Thishas

beenchosenbecauseitisanissuethathasbeenlinkedinpreviousresearchtomentalhealth

difficulties,academicunderachievement,andproblematicandanti-socialbehaviourgenerally

amongadolescents(e.g.Chenetal.,2007;Crocettietal.,2009;Sandhu,etal.,2012),and

thusisdeemedworthyoffurtherexploration.AsPumariega,RothandPumariega(2005)

outline,inareviewofpracticearoundthementalhealthofmigrantsintheUnitedStates,the

processofmigrationisincreasinglybeingacknowledgedbyacademicstobebotha

psychologicalprocessaswellasasociologicalone.Thishasledtothementalhealthneedsof

migrantchildrenandyoungpeoplebeingrecognisedtoagreaterdegree.

2.6.1.Establishingandmaintainingabiculturalidentity

Theestablishmentofabiculturalidentityuponexposuretoanewculturalcontextisakey

elementinthemigrationexperienceforadolescents.Berry(2003,p.17)definesbicultural

identityas“thesuccessfulunderstandingandincorporationoftwoculturescontainedbya

person'sselfandconsciousnesswiththeindividualabletofunctionappropriatelyand

effectivelyinamulticulturalcontext.”AstudyconductedintheUnitedStatesbyYeh,Arora,

Inose,Okubo,Li,andGreene(2003)lookedattheexperiencesofeightJapaneseadolescent

migrantsthroughaqualitativeinterview-basedapproach.Resultsindicatedthatoverall,

manyofthoseinterviewedwereabletomaintainrelativelystrongbiculturalidentitiesand

dealeffectivelywiththedifficultiesthattheycameacross.However,participantsdid

24

experiencearangeofissues,fromlanguagebarriersandidentityconflict,toracismand

generaldiscrimination,whichhadanegativeimpactonthisprocess.Researchparticipants

mostoftenreliedonfriendsratherthanonmoreformalstructuresforsupport.Intermsof

identity,participantstypicallyexperiencedadegreeofconflictaboutlivingintwocultures.

Whilesomeparticipantssawthemselvesasnotbelongingtoeitherculture,otherssaw

themselvesasmainlyJapanese.Theauthorshighlightedthat,inlinewithBerry(1997),strong

identificationwithatleastoneculturalgroupcancontributetothemaintenanceof

psychologicalwellbeing.Thus,migrantadolescentswhomainlyidentifythemselvesbytheir

homenationalitymayfunctionmoreeffectivelyintheirhostcountrythanthosewhoalready

feelmarginalisedfromtheirnativecountryandculture.AsLatinAmericanmigrantsin

LondongenerallyarriveviaaportionofchildhoodspentinSpain,theymaystruggleto

articulateanddescribetheirnationalorculturalidentityasdistinctorsharedwiththeir

parents.Thismaymeantheyfeelmarginalisedfromtheirnativecountryandculture,thus

makingthemparticularlyvulnerabletodifficultiesinbiculturalidentityformation.

ThislinkstoastudyconductedbyKnauss,Günther,Belardi,MorleyandvonLersner(2015),

basedinGermany,whichusedcorrelationalandmultipleregressionanalyseswithasample

composedofagroupof46adolescentswithaTurkishmigratorybackgroundandanother45

whowereborninGermany.Theresearchersconcludedthattheperceptionofdiscrimination

waslinkedtopoorerpsychologicaloutcomesamongthoseadolescentswhohadexperienced

internationalmigration.Thiswasfoundtobeparticularlytrueforthosewhodescribedtheir

identityastransculturalandnotfixedtooneparticularethnicornationalidentity.Akey

findingofthisstudy(Knaussetal.,2015,p8)wasthat“comparedtoadolescentswitha

lowerleveloftransculturalidentity,adolescentswithahigherleveloftransculturalidentity

hadabetterpsychologicaladjustment,aslongastheydidnotfeeldiscriminatedagainst.”

Thus,thefindingsofKnaussetal.(2015)proposethatsenseofbelongingmaybediffuse

amongadolescentmigrantswhoholdatransculturalidentity,ratherthanchoosingone

ethnicornationalidentitytoidentifywith,andmightnotfunctionasaneffectivebuffer

whendiscriminationisperceivedandexperiencedwithintheirenvironment.Thismaymean

thatSpanish-raisedyoungpeopleofLatinAmericanheritage,whogenerallyholdtwo

nationalidentitiesbeforearrivingintheUK,areaparticularlyvulnerablegrouptothe

negativeimpactofdiscriminationexperienced.

2.6.2.Impactofidentityintegrationonwellbeing

Schwartzetal.(2015),inastudydrawingonasampleof302participantsoverthreeyears,

foundthatadolescentswithlowerBiculturalIdentityIntegration(BII)showedalowerlevelof

25

self-esteem,alongwithpoorerfamilyrelationships,prosocialbehaviourandoptimism,

comparedwiththosewithahigherlevelofBII,suggestingtheimportanceofbeingableto

integratevariouselementsofone’sidentityintoastablewhole.Thestudylookedatthe

developmentofBIIinLatinAmericanadolescentswhohadrecentlyarrivedintheUS.They

suggesttwoseparatepathsthatadolescentsmaytakeduringtheirinitialyearspost-

migration:agreaterdegreeofintegrationbetweenparticipants’LatinAmericanheritageand

aspectsofUSculturecontributedtopositiveadjustmentandfamilyrelationships,whereas

lessabilityorwillingnesstointegrateaspectsofthesetwoculturesledtodifficultiesfor

migrantadolescentslivinginbiculturalormulticulturalsettings.Alimitationofthisstudyis

thatitlooksonlyattheexperiencesofadolescentsin“gatewaycities”suchasMiamiand

Chicago,whichalreadyhadhighLatinAmericanpopulations,andthereforeitmaynotbe

possibletogeneralisethefindingstootherlocationsintheUSoroutside.InLondon,Latin

Americansmakeuponlyasmallproportionoftheoverallpopulation,comparedforexample,

toMiami’s67%LatinAmericanpopulation(USCensus,2017).

2.6.3.Ethnicidentityformationandacculturation

Gibson(2001)describeshowacculturationreferstopsychologicalchangesthatoccurbased

oncontactwithculturallydifferentsocialcontextsandpeople.Berry(1997,p.20)highlights

fourdifferentpotentialcopingstrategiesthatanindividualcanadoptduringthe

acculturationprocess.

Assimilation:involvesown-cultureshedding,eventhoughitmaybevoluntary.

Integration:involvementintwoculturalcommunitiesandbeingflexiblein

personality.

Marginalisation:involvesrejectionbythedominantsociety,combinedwithown-

cultureloss.

Separation:involvesrejectionofthedominantculture,perhapsreciprocatedby

them.(Berry,1997,p.20)

Berry(1997)highlightsthatwhileitispossiblefortheprocessofacculturationtobe

experiencedwithoutsignificantproblems,itmayalsobeadifficultprocessandrequire

significantadaptation.Ethnicidentityisonecomponentthatmakesacontributiontothe

processofacculturation.AsYehetal.(2003,p.2)outline,itisseenasan“enduring,

fundamentalaspectofselfthatincludesasenseofconnectiontoanethnicgroup,andthe

attitudesandfeelingsassociatedwithmembershipofthatgroup.”Yehetal.(2003,p.3)

concludedthattheprocessofidentityformationmaybe“especiallychallengingfor

26

immigrantyouthsbecausetheyaresimultaneouslytryingtolearnanewlanguage,dealing

withanewculture,relatingtopeers,whileexperiencingacademicandparentalpressures.”

2.6.4.Impactofminority-groupsocietalmessagesonidentityformation

Rumbaut(1994),inastudyexploringtheexperiencesofover5,000childrenofAsian,Latin

AmericanandCaribbeanheritageintheUS,suggeststhattheneedtoachieveacceptance

fromthenewculturewhilesimultaneouslybeingacceptedandmaintainingstrong

relationshipswiththefamilyandcultureoforigincanbeasignificantchallenge.Inparticular,

hesuggeststhathowthechildrenofmigrantsexperienceandrespondtoprejudiceand

discriminationineducational,employmentandhomecontextscanleadtoagreaterlevelof

difficulty,astheynavigatetheprocessofacculturationandadolescentidentityformation.

Rumbaut(1994)highlightsthecomplexityofidentityformationandsuggeststhatformigrant

adolescentstheprocessofidentityformationis“complex,conflictualandstressful”(p.22)

andcanalsobeunderpinnedbysignificantconflictbetweengenerations.

Gullan,HoffmanandLeff(2011),inamorerecentstudyofAfricanAmericanyoungpeoplein

theUnitedStates,drawingonamuchsmallersampleof17adolescentsinfourfocus-groups,

outlinesimilarfindingstoRumbaut(1994),inthateffortstodevelopasenseofidentity

relativetothesurroundingworldanddominantcultureareinfluencedbyoftennegative

societalmessagesaboutAfricanAmericancultureandachievement.Thismayalsobe

somethingthatimpactsuponLatinAmericanyoungpeopleintheUK,wheredominantglobal

stereotypesofLatinAmericanmigrants,perpetuatedbypoliticianssuchasUSPresident

DonaldTrump,areoftenhighlynegative(e.g.Reilly,2016).Inmypilotstudy(Gilsenan,2016),

parentsspokeaboutthenegativeimpressiontheirchildrenhadofLatinAmericancountries,

oftenreferringtothemasviolent,dangerousandundeveloped,ratherthandrawingupon

theirheritageasasourceofpride.

Further research exploring how discrimination impacts on identity and wellbeing have

describedhowyoungpeoplecaninternalisethenegativesocialpositionthatispresentedto

thembywidersociety(DeVosandSuarez-Orozco1990).Thiscanleadtothedevelopmentof

feelingsofinferiority,ashighlightedoriginallybyErikson(1964),andcanalsointerferewith

the process of adolescent identity formation. Spencer andMarkstrom-Adams (1990), in a

reviewoftheexistingliteratureatthetime,proposedthatthatthecomplexityoftheprocess

ofadolescentidentityformationmayincreasebasedonfactorssuchasethnicity,differences

inlanguageand“long-standing,althoughfrequentlyunaddressed,socialstereotypes”(p.290).

27

2.6.5.Migrationandnarrativeidentityformation

Researchalsoindicatesthattheimpactofthetraumaoffamilyseparationandunexpected

migrationjourneyscanmeanthatmigrantyoungpeoplemaystruggletomakesenseofand

formacoherentnarrativearoundtheirexperiencesandwhotheyare.Forexample,McLean

andBreen(2009),inamixedmethodsstudyexploringtheexperiencesof171adolescents,

highlightthat“narrativemeaning-making”isoneofthecentralprocessesofidentity

formation.Theyproposethat“engaginginnarrativepractices,suchasreflectingonpast

eventsortalkingaboutthemwithothers,isanimportantwayinwhichpeopledeveloplife

storiesoranarrativeidentityandisrelatedtopositivewellbeing”(p.1).Inaddition,McLean,

PasupathiandPals(2007)putforwardthat“personalstorytelling”isawayinwhichnarrative

identitycandevelop.Theydescribethisastheabilitytotellstoriestootherpeople,which

aidsindividualsinconnectingtheirexperiencesandtheirpersonalidentityandtodraw

meaningfromtheirexperiences.Itcouldbeexpected,then,thatadolescentswhohave

experiencedoneormoreinstancesofinternationalmigrationduringtheirformativeyears

mightstrugglewiththisaspectofidentityformation.Ifidentityisatleastpartlyconstructed

throughwhatisreflectedfromthosearoundus,thedisruptionandlackofcontinuityinthese

keyrelationshipsislikelytohavehadanimpactonthisprocess.

2.6.6.Relationshipbetweenidentityandotherbehaviouralandmentalhealthissues

Schwartz,Pantin,Prado,SullivanandSzapocznik(2005),inastudylookingatidentityand

problematicbehaviouramongearlyadolescentLatinAmericanmigrantsintheUnitedStates,

foundstrongcorrelationalrelationshipsbetweenfamilyfunctioning,identity,andissueswith

behaviour,andconcludedthat“therelationshipbetweenfamilyfunctioningandbehaviour

problemsoperatedindirectlythroughidentity”(Schwartzetal.,2015,p.20),withinstability

andconfusioninidentitypartiallymediatingtherelationshipbetweenmaladaptivefamily

functioningandearlyadolescentconductissues.Thestudyinvolved181LatinAmerican

migrantadolescentsandtheircaregivers.Identitywasmeasuredbymeansofself-reports

fromadolescentparticipants,withfamilyfunctioningandbehaviourproblemsmeasured

throughacombinationofparentandadolescentreports.Theauthorsdrewonprevious

researchthatshowedthatfamilyfunctioninghasapositivecorrelationwiththe

establishmentofastablesenseofidentityinadolescence(e.g.Mullis,BrailsfordandMullis,

2003)andthathavingastrong,coherentidentityhasbeendemonstratedtohaveaninverse

relationshiptoadolescentbehaviourissues(e.g.Adamsetal.,2001).Theauthorsofthis

studyconcludethatactionsandinterventionsconcentratingbothonadolescentsthemselves

andalsoontheirenvironmentmaybeaneffectivestrategyinbringingaboutareductionin

behaviourproblemsinmigrantteenagers,butthatmorelongitudinalresearchisrequiredin

28

ordertoexplorethewayinwhichidentityformationmediatestherelationshipbetween

familyfunctioningandteenagebehaviourissues.

InresearchconductedinEurope,Crocettietal.(2009),drawingonasampleof1,313

adolescentsintheNetherlandsonalongitudinalbasis,foundthatahavingahighlevelof

anxietywasassociatedwithdifficultyinidentitydevelopment.AnotherstudybyCrocetti,

Rubini,LuyckxandMeeus(2008),drawingontheexperiencesof1,952adolescents,links

identityformationdifficultieswithemotionalinstability,highlightinghowadolescentsin

ethnicminoritygroupsexperienceddifficultyinsimultaneouslydevelopingtheirownidentity

whilealsoevaluating“thecollectivevaluesoftheirculturalheritageandthevaluesofthe

receivingsociety”(Crocettietal.,2008,p.993).Theauthorssuggestedthat“adolescents

belongingtoethnicminoritygroupshavetoconsiderandreconsiderdifferentidentity

alternativestoagreaterextent”(Crocettietal.,2008,p.993)thanthenativeDutch

adolescentswithwhomtheywerecompared.Recentresearchhasalsolinkedidentity

difficultiesamongadolescentstoproblematicbehaviourrangingfromgangmembershipto

religiousextremismandterrorism(e.g.AlRaffie,2013).

Itappears,then,thattheestablishmentofacoherentsenseofidentityisanimportant

elementofpsychologicalwellbeingandadjustmentforadolescents,andthatmigrationand

beingpartofanethnicorculturalminoritycancontributetoariskofdifficultiesinthis

processamongsomechildrenandyoungpeople.Theprimarymechanismsbywhichthis

difficultyoccursappeartobethroughtheexperienceofdiscrimination,acculturativeand

intergenerationalstress,andthechallengeofaligningmultiple,oftenconflictinginfluences

intoacoherentwhole.Tocounterthisdeficit-focusedconclusion,however,Pumariega,Roth

andPumariega(2005)concludethatalthoughmigrantadolescentsexperiencedifficulties,

overalltheyarelessimpacteduponbymentalhealthissues,andshowbetter“social

functioning”thantheiradultcounterparts,suggestingthatthisfindingmaypointtoalevelof

resiliencepresentduringtheadolescentphaseoflife.

2.7.LanguageLearningandIdentity

2.7.1.Fullimmersiongenerallyemployed:evidenceshowsuseofhomelanguageispreferable

ThereisnoexistingresearchongoodpracticearoundlanguageteachingforLatinAmerican

andSpanish-speakingchildreninUKschools.LookingatEAL(EnglishasanAdditional

Language)learnersmorebroadly,Arnotetal.(2012),ina12-monthresearchproject

involvingresearchersfromtheUniversityofCambridgeandAngelaRuskinUniversity,

drawingonareviewoftheexistingliteratureandqualitativeinterviewswithchildrenand

29

educationprofessionals,reportthatinbothprimaryandsecondaryschoolsinEngland,the

“immersionstrategy”wasmostoftenemployed.Thisinvolvesplacingallnewnon-English

speakingarrivalsinmainstreamclassesaswellasprovidingextraEnglishtuitioninsmall

groups.AlimitationofthisstudywasthatresearchtookplaceinapartofEasternEngland

thatpossessesfarlesslanguageandculturaldiversitythaninner-cityareassuchastheLocal

Authoritywheremyresearchtookplace.However,throughmyownworkasaTraineeEPina

numberofinnerLondonboroughs,similarpracticehasbeenobserved.

Wardman(2012)commentsonhowgenerallywithinUKschools,issuesrelatingtothe

language-basedandsocialsupportofferedtochildrenwhoarelearningEnglishremainhighly

underdevelopedandunsophisticated,andthatthereisevidencethattheuseofachild’s

homelanguageisadvantageous,ratherthanapure“immersionstrategy”,bothintermsof

languageacquisitionandchildwellbeingmoregenerally.Wardman(2012)stressesthe

importanceofallschoolstaffwitharesponsibilityforEnglishlanguageteachingdevelopinga

knowledgeoftheprocessesofsecondlanguageacquisitionandthevalueoftheuseofa

child’sfirstlanguageinschool.Thiswasaprimarilyqualitativestudycontextualisedbya

reviewofUKandinternationalliterature,andamixedmethodsapproachinvolvingclassroom

observationsineightprimaryschoolswasusedtotriangulatetheresults.TheBritishCouncil

(2014)alsosuggeststhatafullybilingualapproachistheidealmethodoflearningEnglishasa

secondlanguage,butthatwherethisisnotpossible,theuseofhomelanguagesshouldbe

encouragedandsupported.

2.7.2.Languageasakeyelementofidentity

Norton(2000)drawsonacasestudybasedlongitudinalpieceofresearchfocusingon

migrantwomeninCanada,exploringthemesofidentityandmotivationintheareaof

languageacquisitionandteaching.Norton(2000p.19)arguesthata“conceptionofidentity

asmultiple,asiteofstruggle,andsubjecttochangeacrosstimeandplaceishighly

productiveforunderstandinglanguagelearning.”Shesuggeststhatsecondlanguage

acquisitiontheorywouldbenefitfromdevelopinganunderstandingofidentitythatmakes

referencetolarger,andoftenunequalandunjustsocialstructureswhichmanifest

themselvesindailysocialinteraction,resultinginvariouslevelsofdiscriminationand

prejudice.Inadoptingthisstance,shehighlightstheroleoflanguageas“constitutiveofand

constitutedbyalanguagelearner’sidentity”(Norton,2000,p.27),outlininghowitis

“throughlanguagethatapersonnegotiatesasenseofselfwithinandacrossdifferentsitesat

differentpointsintime,anditisthroughlanguagethatapersongainsaccessto,orisdenied

accessto,powerfulsocialnetworksthatgivelearnerstheopportunitytospeak.”Assuch,

30

languageisnotconceptualisedassomethingneutral,butisunderstoodinrelationtoits

socialcontext.Thus,thoseindividualswhohaveaccesstothegreatestamountofeconomic

resourcesinagivensocietalgroupwillhaveaccesstopower,whichwillimpactuponhow

theyunderstandtheirrelationshiptotheworld.AccordingtoWest(1992),itisan

individual’sdegreeofaccesstothispowerthatwilldefinethewayinwhichtheirhopesand

desiresareestablishedandcommunicated.Basedonthisidea,anindividual’sidentityis

boundtoshiftalongsidechangesineconomicandsocialrelations.Assuch,adolescents’

identitywouldbeexpectedtoevolverapidlyastheirlanguageskillsdevelopwithintheirnew

socialcontext.

2.7.3.Learneridentityformationisimpacteduponbyawiderangeoffactors

Torkmani(2012),aspartofanEPthesis,conductedamixedmethodsstudylookingatthe

experiencesof35adolescentslearningEnglishasanadditionallanguage(EAL)intheUKand,

inparticular,attheprocessoflearneridentityformation.Thefindingsdemonstratethat

adolescents’academicexperiencesandlearneridentityarehighlyinfluencedby“anumber

ofinterlinkedfactors,suchaspeers,parents,teachersandperceivedEnglishlanguage

proficiency,whichtogether,throughasocialcomparisonprocessandintersubjective

interactions,shapeEALstudents’perceptionsofthemselvesaslearners”(Torkmani,2012p.

3).Torkmani(2012)concludesthatalthoughall35participantsintheresearchwere

consideredtohavebroadlysimilarlevelsofEnglishlanguageproficiency,thewiderangeof

self-reportedscoresontheEnglishlanguageratingscaleandresponsesfromindividual

interviewssuggestthatstudents’evaluationoftheirlearningsituationsweredistincttothem

andnotnecessarilyrelatedtotheirassessedEnglishlanguageability.Assuch,itappearsthat

adolescents’learneridentityformationcanbehighlyinfluencedbyfeedbackfromthose

aroundthem,suchasteachersandpeers.

2.7.4.Potentialforschoolstafftothinkstereotypicallyaboutminoritygroups

GaulterandGreen(2015),EPs,usedanactionresearchdesigntoexploreissuessurrounding

theinclusionofpupilsofSlovakianRomaheritageinanEnglishschool.Datawasgathered

throughinvolvingninemembersofstaffandtheuseofvisualresearchmethodswithasmall

numberofchildren.Onekeyfindingthatemergedfromtheresearchwasthatteacherswho

didnotappreciateandvaluethediversityandcomplexnatureofindividualchildren’s

identitiesweremoreinclinedtoemploystereotypicalassumptions,whichhadthepotential

tobenegativeorharmful.GaulterandGreenagreewithHamilton(2011,p.13)inconcluding

thatif“inclusionistobearealityratherthanidealism”,staffneedtodeveloptheabilityto

reflectcriticallyontheirpersonalvaluesandviewsaboutotherculturesanddevotetimeto

31

understandingthevariedbackgroundsandheritagesofthechildrenintheirclass.The

authors(GaulterandGreen,2015,p.49)stressthatEPsneedto“highlighttheimportanceof

integratingthemigrantchild’sidentityintotheschoolenvironmenttolessenfeelingsof

differenceandtodrawuponchildvoiceinordertounderstandtheseidentities.”Thisisagap

thatthecurrentresearchseekstofillbydrawingonthevoiceofmigrantadolescent

participants.

2.8.ConclusionsBasedonLiteratureReview

Basedonthisreviewofrelevantliterature,itisevidentthattheLatinAmericancommunityin

theUKisasignificantly-sizedpopulationthatisgeographicallyconcentratedinSouthLondon.

Povertyandsocialexclusionareevidentwithinthecommunity,againstthebackdropofa

nationalcontextbecomingmorehostiletomigrantsinrecentyears,intermsofboth

governmentpolicyandrecordedactsofdiscrimination.

Thereisalackofresearchonthespecificexperiencesofadolescentsinthiscommunityand

innewmigrantcommunitiesintheUKmorebroadly.However,relativelyloweducational

outcomesintheLocalAuthorityinwhichthisresearchisbasedandverypooreducational

achievementintheUSsuggestagroupthatisvulnerabletounderachievementandpoor

psychologicaloutcomes.English-languagedifficultiesandissuesofanxietyarealsoevident

amongparents,asignificantproportionofwhomengageinlow-paid,insecureemployment.

Theresearchonidentityshowsthatoverall,adolescentsareresilienttomentalhealthissues

broughtaboutbymigration,relativetoadults.Ithasbeenfoundthatitispossibleto

maintainahealthybiculturalidentity,butthattheexperienceofdirectdiscriminationcan

impactuponthis.Inaddition,havingalooserattachmenttooneculturalgroupcanbea

problemforadolescentsintermsoftheiridentityformation.LatinAmericanmigrantscoming

totheUKareatparticularriskofthisastheymayalreadyfeelmarginalisedfromtheirnative

countrygiventheirpreviousSpanishresidenceor,insomecases,birth,contrastingwiththeir

LatinAmericanfamilyheritage.

Furtherresearchalsohighlightstheinteractingfactorsthatmakeidentityformation

challengingformigrantyouth,andclearlydemonstratestheimpactofacculturativeand

intergenerationalstressonidentityformation,showingthatthosewhostruggletointegrate

theirtwocultureshavelowerwellbeingingeneral.Furtherstudiesshowthatidentity

formationisimpacteduponbysocietalmessagesaboutaminoritygroupandalsothat

32

identitydifficultiesappeartomediateotherproblematicissuessuchasconductandfamily

difficulties.

Intermsoflanguageteaching,afullimmersionapproachisgenerallyemployedinUK

schools,eventhoughevidenceshowsthattheuseofhomelanguagesalongsideEnglishis

preferable,bothintermsoflanguagelearning,andintermsofwellbeingandidentity.

Researchalsohighlightsthekeyroleofsecond-languageacquisitioninidentityformation,

suggestingthatidentityislikelytoshiftinlinewithlanguageproficiency.

2.9.ResearchQuestions

Thefindingsofthisliteraturereviewledmetoreflectontherelativelackofqualitative

researchexploringchildrenandadolescents’first-handexperiencesofmigrationandand

howithasimpacteduponhowtheyseethemselves.Iwantedtounderstandmoreaboutthe

experiencestheseyoungpeoplehavebeenthroughandhowtheseexperienceshave

influencedhowtheyidentifyandseethemselves.Iwishedtoexplorewhatfactorsmatterto

adolescentsthemselves,ratherthanprovidingapre-definedsetofissuestorespondto.

Thisledmetowardsformulatingtworesearchquestionstobeexploredthroughthisstudy:

• WhataretheexperiencesofmigrantadolescentsofLatinAmericanheritageina

Londonschool?

o Howdotheseexperiencesimpactontheiridentityformationandhowthey

seethemselves?

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Chapter3:TheoreticalFramework

3.1.Identity:ADevelopmentalPsychologyPerspective

Identityformationtheoriesexistattheintersectionofsocialanddevelopmentalpsychology

(French,Seidman,AllenandAber,2006).MytrainingasapsychologistandworkasaTrainee

EPpositionsmetowardstakinganindividualanddevelopmentalpsychologyperspectiveasa

theoreticalstandpoint.Thefocusofthecurrentresearchontheindividualexperiencesof

adolescentsalsoprovidesarationalefortakingthisdistinctlypsychologicalperspectiveon

identity.Eriksonisthepredominantresearcherinthearea,andmostdevelopmentaltheories

ofidentitybuilduponorareoffshootsfromhisseminalwork,Identity:YouthandCrisis.Sorell

andMontgomery(2001)describeErikson’spsychosocialtheoryoflifespandevelopmentas

the“grandtheory”ofidentitydevelopmentresearch.

3.2.VariousConceptsofIdentity

Althoughtheideaofpersonalidentityhasbeendiscussedinartandliteratureforovera

hundredyears,identityformationisarelativelyrecentacademicconcept.Researchonthe

topicgrewduringthe1960salongsideEricErikson’sinfluentialwork,andidentityisnow

consideredacentralthemeinwesternculture.TheoristssuchasKroger(2004)have

suggestedthatthisriseintheimportanceplacedontheideaofindividualidentityisdueto

therelativelackofcommunitytraditionsandsharedmeaninginmodernindustrialsociety.

AshighlightedbyDeaux(2000),thereisnoclearconsensusamongtheacademiccommunity

withinpsychology,sociologyandanthropologyaboutthedefinitionofidentity,andattimes

thetermisusedinanunclearandill-definedmanner.Baumeister(1999)providesa

particularlycleardefinitionbycontrastingidentitytothesimilarterm,self-concept.He

proposesthatidentityprovidesananswertothequestion“Whoareyou?”Self-concept,in

comparison,mayprovideanswerstoothertypesofquestionsuchas“Whatkindofperson

areyou?”and“Howgoodareyou?”Baumeister(1999)concludesthat“identitymaycontain

materialthatisnotpartoftheself-concept,becauseidentityisnotfullycontainedinsidethe

person’sownmind”(p.249).

Manypsychologists,forexampleMarcia(1994)withhisIdentityStatusTheory,continueto

developthinkingfromanEriksonian,developmentalperspective,althoughVanHoof(1999)

proposesthatMarcia’sworkisan“offshoot”ratherthanadirectdevelopmentofErikson’s

ideas.Thisliesincontrast,however,tothesocialpsychologypositiononidentity,whichputs

lessfocusonwithin-personfactors;instead,identityisseenasaninteractionbetweena

34

personandtheirenvironment(Josselson1994).Thisalsoechoestheanthropologicalview,

whichproposesthatinordertoexist,identityrequirescomparisonwithanotherentity(Rew

andCampbell1999).

3.3.IdentityinMigrantandEthnicMinorityAdolescents

TwoimportantprocessesthatmigrantadolescentsintheUKmustnavigatearecultural

adaptationandethnicidentityformation,withinacontextwheretheirethnicitydiffersfrom

thatofthemajoritypopulation.

Berry(1997),asdiscussedindetailinChapter2,highlightsassimilation,integration,

marginalisationandseparationasthefourdifferentpotentialcopingstrategiesthatan

individualcanadoptduringtheacculturationprocess,astheyadapttoanewcultural

context.Eachofthesestrategiescomeswithasetofpossibleadvantagesanddisadvantages,

withintegrationasthemostadaptiveandmarginalisationasthemostmaladaptiveoverall.

Ethnicidentityisapartofanindividual’ssocialidentitythatTajfel(1981)describesas

derivingfromtheirknowledgeofmembershipofasocialgroup,togetherwiththevalueand

importanceattachedtoit.Thetermethnicidentityisoftenusedasasynonymforracial

identity.However,asPhinney(1992)highlights,anindividual’sethnicityismadeupofmore

thanrace,describinghowitalsoencompassesthesetofbeliefs,valuesandcultureofa

person’sheritage.Phinney(1988)alsodescribeshow“inordertoachieveasecureethnic

identity,minorityadolescentsmustexplorethemeaningofbeingaminorityina

predominantlywhitesociety”(p.2).Phinney(1988)describeshowEriksondidnotdevelopin

anydetailtheprocessbywhichone'scultureorethnicityisincorporatedintoone'spersonal

identityandthattherehasbeenrelativelylittleresearchonthedevelopmentofethnic

identityinadolescenceoradulthood.

Phinney’sModelofEthnicIdentityDevelopment(1989,1992)isathreestagemodelwhich

sheproposesunderpinstheidentityformationexperiencesofethnicminorityadolescents.

Stage1iscalledUnexaminedEthnicIdentity.Here,anindividualhasnotyetengagedin

explorationoftheirpersonalethnicity,andthereforemayaccept,withoutquestion,the

majorityculture’sdominantvaluesandattitudes.ThisstagebearssimilaritiestoMarcia’s

diffusionandforeclosureidentitystatus,basedoneitheralackofactiveexploration,orthe

adoptionofothers’opinionsandvalueswithoutquestioningthese.Stage2iscalledEthnic

IdentitySearch/Moratorium.Phinney(1989)proposedthatIndividualsarriveatthisstageat

thepointthattheyencounterasituationorlifecircumstancethatforcesthemtobecome

35

awareoftheirethnicityandbegintoexploreit.Thiscouldbetriggeredbyanovertactof

discriminationorracism,orcouldbemoreofagradualprocess.Phinney(1989)definedStage

3asEthnicIdentityAchievement.Thisstageisbasedonanindividualreachingasenseof

acceptancebasedondevelopingaclearunderstandingoftheirethnicityanditsplacerelative

tothemajorityculture.

Thesetheoriesaredrawnuponininterpretingmyfindings,particularlythoserelatedto

culturalandethnicidentity.However,astheconceptualisationofidentityinthisstudy

encompassesthesefactors,butisbroaderinscope,adecisionwasmadetouseErikson’s

morewide-rangingtheoryasatheoreticalframework.

3.4.TheoreticalFramework:Erikson’sPsychosocialTheory

ErikEriksonwasapsychoanalystanddevelopmentalpsychologist,whoestablishedhistheory

ofpsychosocialdevelopmentbydrawingupontheFreudiantheoryofpsychosexual

developmenttoestablishanewtheorythatincludedstagesthroughoutthelife-span,aswell

asconsideringbothenvironmentalandsocialinfluences.Erikson’s(e.g.1950,1982)

psychosocialdevelopmenttheoryproposesthatdevelopmentthroughoutanindividual’slife-

coursetakesplaceineightstages,duringwhichapersonmustgothroughvariouscentral

crisisperiodsinordertoproceedtothenextstage.Eriksonclarifiedthatanindividualdoes

notremain“neatlylocatedinonestage;ratherpersonscanbeseentooscillatebetweenat

leasttwostagesandmovemoredefinitelyintoahigheroneonlywhenanevenhigherone

beginstodeterminetheinterplay”(Erikson1978,p.28).Fourofthesestages,basedonthe

developmentoftrust,autonomy,initiativeandindustry,happenduringinfancyand

childhood.Afurtherthree,basedonintimacy,generativityandegointegrity,areproposedto

takeplaceduringadulthood.

Thisresearchfocusesonadolescence,whichGilleardandHiggs(2016)describeasthe

“pivotalfifthstagebetweenchildhoodandadulthood,shiftingtheindividual’sconcernsaway

fromtheinstitutionsofchildhoodtowardthoseofadulthood”(p.302).Erikson(1968)

definedidentityversusroleconfusionasthecentralcrisistobeovercomeduring

adolescence.Intermsofthebroaderhierarchyofthestages,theidentitystageisfollowedby

theintimacystageandprecededbytheindustrystage,whichisfocusedonthedevelopment

ofkeyskillssuchasnumeracyandliteracy.Erikson(1968)calledtheperiodbetween

childhoodandthedevelopmentofacoherentidentityapsychological“moratorium”.During

thistime,anadolescentcanexperimentwiththeiridentitywhilesocietalpressuresare

suspended.Thisadolescentmoratoriumisconceptualisedasastageindevelopmentwhena

36

commitmenttoagivenlife-pathhasnotyetbeenmade,butchoicesareinsteadtentative

andexploratory.Eriksonvieweditasanactivestruggletoexploreandtakeondifferentroles,

andatimeinone’slifewithmanycrisesandunresolvedquestions.

Eriksondescribedhisconceptofidentityas“theaccruedconfidenceintheinnersameness

andcontinuityofone’smeaningforothers,theinnerexperienceofoneself”(Erikson,1950,

p.235).Histheorycanbeseenasrelationalinthatitencompassesmeaning-makingatan

individuallevel,butwithinasocialcontext,ashighlightedbyJosselson(1994).Seligmanand

Shanok(1998)describehowputtingforwardtheideathatpsychosocialdevelopmentisan

interactiveprocessbetweenaperson,theirindividualpsycheandthesocietytheyliveinis

Erikson’smostsignificantcontributiontopsychologicaltheory.

Eriksonsawadolescenceasaparticularlyimportantlifestage.InErikson’s(1968)view,

identityformationbeginsinchildhood,butgrowsinimportanceduringadolescence.He

theorisedthatduringthisperiod,adolescentsmustworktowardsachievingthedifficulttask

ofintegratingarangeofearlierexperiencesandtraitsintoamorestableadultidentity.

Eriksonuses“identitycrisis”asatermtodescribetheperiodofconfusionandinstability

adolescentstypicallygothroughastheystrugglewithvariouschoicesandalternativesduring

thistime.DrawingonErikson’swork,CôtéandLevine(2002)highlighthowacoherentand

stableidentityhelpsintheprocessoforganisingandprovidingmeaningtoaperson’s

experiences,guidingboththeirdecision-makingandbehaviours.Amorefragmentedor

unstablesenseofidentity,ontheotherhand,isseentoleadtoayoungpersonbeingmore

susceptibletoexternalinfluenceswithintheirimmediateorbroaderenvironment.Marcia

(1994)builtonErikson’sideasandexploredthenotionofidentityforeclosure,whichoccurs

whenindividualsmakeaprematurecommitmenttoanoccupation,life-pathorideology,

withoutanyperiodofexplorationbeforehand.Althougha“foreclosed”individualmay

appeartohavethebenefitsofastrongidentity,thisstrengthislessabletocopewith

externalforcesandeventsinaperson’slife.AsVanHoof(1999)describes,thestatusnames

givenbyMarciarelatetoslightlydifferentconceptsthanthesametermsthatErikson

originallyused.Forexample,Marciareferredtotheidentitystatusofmoratoriumas“a

psychologicalstateofconsciousconsiderationofidentityalternatives”(VanHoof,1999,p.

499),whereasforErikson,amoratoriumis“istheperiodoftimeinwhichindividualsarefree

fromadultresponsibilities”(VanHoof,1999,p.499).

3.5.CriticismofErikson’sTheoryandResearchDrawingUponIt

Erikson’sinclusionofthewholelifecycleinhispsychosocialtheorygaveaframeforseeing

37

developmentinamoreholisticandlife-longmanner,withanemphasisonthedynamic

relationshipbetweenanindividualandtheirenvironment,astheybothchangeovertime.In

buildinguponFreud’spsychosexualtheorytoincludethesignificanceofthewidercultural

context,Eriksonprovidedabaseonwhichtoexplorethevarietyofexperiencesofdifferent

culturalgroupswithindevelopmentalpsychology.

However,thatdoesnotmeanthatErikson’stheoryisfreeofbiasandinclusiveintermsof

theexperiencesofthewidevarietyofindividualsthatithasthepotentialtorepresent.A

largeamountofthecriticismofErikson’sworkhascentredontheideathathistheoryof

psychosocialdevelopmentisderivedfromandthusmainlyprovidesadescriptionofthe

developmentofEuropeanAmericanmales,andisthereforemostapplicabletothisrelatively

privilegedgroup.

Feministstandpointtheoristshavehighlightedthataweaknessofgrandtheoriessuchasthat

proposedbyEriksonisthattheysacrificefocusonthediverserangeofindividual,personal

experienceinordertofocusonmoreuniversal,abstractprinciples(e.g.MillerandScholnick,

2000).Otheracademicshavealsocautionedagainstbroadlygeneralisingtheorydevelopedin

onesocialsettinganddrawingonthelivedexperiencesofoneparticulargroup(e.g.Harding

1990).SorellandMontgomery(2001)critiquetheemphasisEriksonplacedonthebiological

differencesbetweenmenandwomenasanexplanationfordifferencesintheirpsychosocial

development,particularlyduringadulthood.Theyalsoaddressedthetopicofamale,

patriarchalbiasthatmanyhavearguedunderliesErikson’swork.However,despitetheir

criticisms,SorellandMontgomery(2001)argueinsupportofthemoregeneralconcepts

includedintheframework,andthevalueofusingadevelopmentally-rootedpsychosocial

theoryasawaytointerpretandunderstandidentitydevelopmentandhumandevelopment

morebroadly.TheyconcludethatErikson’spsychosocialmodelisvalidonanexplanatory

level,butincompletedescriptively,inthattheeight-stagemodelprovidesauseful

explanationforchangeacrossthelife-span,butthedescriptionofthischangeisrootedinthe

experiencesofmodern,westernmaledevelopment,andassuchisnotcomplete.Intheir

viewthough,despitethecriticismsofbias,primarilyonthebasisofgender,socioeconomic

status,andethnicity,theidentityconstructstillhasvalue.

Brittian(2012)suggeststhatthatinbothEriksonandMarcia’sworktheroleandagencyof

theindividualisunderrepresented,intermsoftheircapacitytoplayanactiveroleinshaping

theenvironmentaroundthem.Brittian(2012)describeshowsomeoftheshortcomingsof

EriksonandMarcia’sworkareovercomebydevelopmentalsystemstheories,which

38

emphasisetheindividual’sroleingeneratingtheirownmeaningbasedonarangeof

influencesatdifferentlevels,drawingoneco-systemicworkbyresearcherssuchas

Bronfenbrenner(2005).However,Brittian(2012)describeshowtheliteratureregarding

adolescentidentityformationinminoritygroups,suchasAfricanAmericans,hasbeen“much

toomolecular,focusingondemographiccharacteristics,suchaseconomicstatus,race,

ethnicity,andgender,inanondynamic,non-individual-contextrelationalway”(p.4).

3.6.RationaleforChoosingTheoreticalFramework

Overallthen,Erikson’spsychosocialtheoryisadoptedasthetheoreticalframeworkforthis

research,asitisseentoprovidetheclearestpsychologically-basedaccountofidentity

formationinadolescence,withthesimplicityofthemodelprovidingausefulframefor

exploringtheprocessofidentityformationinmigrantadolescents.Researcherssuchas

McKinney(2001)alsohighlightthewideuseofErikson’stheorywithinthefieldof

psychology,andSchwartz(2001)describeshowalthoughtherearearangeofothertheories

ofidentityformationwithintheacademicliterature,manyofthesearegroundedinErikson’s

originalwork.Thisincludes,forexample,Phinney(e.g.1989,1992)workontheformationof

ethnicidentityasanaddedfactoramongindividualsbelongingtoethnicminoritygroups.

ThisstudyaimstoaddresssomeofthecritiquesofErikson’swork,byfocusingonthelived

experiencesofoneparticularminoritygroup,whodifferintermsofculture,languageand

societalcontextfromtheoriginalsampleonwhichErikson’sworkwasbased.Itseeksto

examinehowErikson’spsychosocialtheoryappliestoasampleofrecently-arrivedmigrant

adolescentsin21stcenturyLondon,usingitasatheoreticalframeworktodeepen

understandingoftheirlivedexperiences,whileatthesametimeofferingtheopportunityto

evaluatetheusefulnessandrelevanceofErikson’stheoryinthiscontext.Theresearch

approachfocusesonparticipants’ownsubjectivelifeexperiences,allowingaspaceforthem

toexploreandarticulatethevariousfactorsthathaveinfluencedtheiridentityformation

againstthebackdropoftheirmigrationexperience,ratherthanonlyfocusingontheroleof

particulardemographiccharacteristics,whichBrittian(2012)highlightedasafeatureof

previousresearchonminorityadolescentidentityformation.

Throughthisopen-ended,participant-drivenapproach,andalsobyrecruitingabroadlyequal

sampleoffemaleandmaleparticipants,mystudyaimstoaddresssomeofthecriticismsof

patriarchalbiasinErikson’soriginalworkbygainingaroundedunderstandingofthe

influenceofmigrationonidentityformationinbothgenders.

39

The objective of the current research is not the generation of an entirely new adolescent

identitydevelopmenttheory,butinsteadtoexplorehowthepsychosocialtheorydevisedby

Eriksoncanbeusedtointerprettheexperiencesofmigrantadolescents.Accordingtothisaim,

keyelementsofhispsychosocialtheoryweredrawnupontodeviseactivitiesandquestions

fortheinterviewguide,andalsointheinterpretationandanalysisofdata,whichwasfocused

on the identification of common themes underpinning the experiences of Latin American

migrants.

UsingErikson’sstagetheoryasatheoreticalframeworktoguidemyefforts,Ihavechosento

examinehowtheexperiencesbroughtaboutbymigrationmightimpactuponandpotentially

disruptthepsychosocialdevelopmentofmigrantadolescents,focusingparticularlyontheir

identityformation.Thiswasdoneinawaythataimstoprovideinsightintohowmigrant

adolescentsseethemselves,aswellastheirpersonalambitionsandgoalsinlife,alongwith

howabletheyfeeltosucceedinthese.Theseaspectsaredrawnfromtheindividualelement

ofErikson’sidentitymodel.Inaddition,theresearchaimstoexploreparticipants’senseof

connectionwithotherswithintheirimmediateandextendedenvironment.Theseareaspects

thatmakeupthesocialandenvironmentalcomponentofErikson’sidentitymodel.

40

Chapter4:StudyDesignandMethodology

4.1.PhilosophicalPositioning

Willig(2001)describeshowontologyisrelatedofthenatureoftheworldandour

understandingofwhatmakesupreality.Inthisstudy,theontologicalpositiontakenis

relativist,intermsofacknowledgingtheexistenceofmultiplerealitiesthatareconstructed

byindividuals.Researchbasedonthisontologypositsthatthereisnopossiblecorrectreality

thatcanbeobjectivelymeasuredorobserved.Guba(1990)describeshowrelativismimplies

thatbecausemultipleinterpretationsofrealityexist,noneofthesecanbeconsidered

objectivelytrue.AccordingtoLevers(2013,p.2),“thepurposeofsciencefromarelativist

ontologyistounderstandthesubjectiveexperienceofrealityandmultipletruths.”

Epistemologyisconcernedwiththetheoryofknowledge(Willig,2001).Intermsof

epistemology,myassumptionisthatknowledgeisconstructedbyeachoftheindividuals

involvedintheresearchandthatmyroleistointerpretthis,throughthelensofmyown

personalvalues.ThisreflectsSmith’s(1983)positionthattheresearchertakesa“subject-

subjectposture”wherebothpersonalvaluesandfactsareseenaslinked.Thus,sincethe

researchercannotbeseparatedfromtheirfindings,theresearchisvalue-bound.Thisisa

constructivistapproach,withtheviewtakenthatrealityisconstructedbytheindividual

withinthegroupandthereforeitneedstobeinterpretedbytheresearcher.Thiscontrasts

withaconstructionistperspective,wheremeaningandexperienceareproducedand

reproducedsocially,ratherthanoriginatingwithinindividualpeople(Burr,1995).Ponterotto

(2005,p.129)putsforwardthatconstructiviststakearelativistperspective,assuming

“multiple,apprehendableandequallyvalidrealities.”

Guba(1990)arguesthattheappropriateepistemologicalparadigmforqualitativeresearchis

constructivism.AsIamusingErikson’spsychosocialmodel,atheoreticalframeworkdrawn

fromindividualpsychology,thishasalsoledmetowardstakingthisconstructivistposition,

whichfitswiththeuseofadevelopmentalpsychologytheoryintheanalysisand

interpretation.Constructivismiscloselyalignedwithinterpretivism,inthatforboth,itis

importanttounderstandsubjectiveexperiencesthataretime-andcontext-bound.Schwandt

(1994)claimsthatconstructivismissynonymouswithaninterpretivistapproach.

4.2.RationaleforQualitativeApproach

Aqualitativeapproachhasbeenadoptedinthisresearchasitfacilitatestheprocessof

describingandanalysingtheindividuallivedexperiencesoftheresearchparticipants.As

41

Merriam(1998)explains,aqualitativeapproachcanbechosenwhentheresearcherisnot

interestedindirectlytestingahypothesis,butmoreinthegenerationofinsight.Thus,data

collectioncantheninvolvemanydifferentsourcesofinformation,includinginformal

discussionsandinterviewsandareviewofcurrentpolicydocumentationandresearchinthe

areaofinterest.Thedifficultyofbothdefiningandmeasuringidentity,aswellasmyown

skillsasaresearcher,alsoledmetoconsiderqualitativemethodsasthewaytobestanswer

thestatedresearchquestions.

Hausser(1983,p.177)haspreviouslycriticisedresearchinthefieldofidentityoverthe

“predominanceofreadymade,narrowlyfocusedresearchinstruments,whichregularlyfailto

takeintoaccountthesubjectiveimportanceofselfexperience,soimportantforidentity

development.”Myaiminthisresearch,then,wasnottojustdefineandlabelaparticular

identitystatusatonepointintime,but,followingKraus(2000),toinstead“drawthelinesof

theidentityprocessincooperation”(p.4)withtheinterviewparticipantthemselvesthrough

anactiveprocessofself-construction,whichIaimedtofacilitatetakingplacethrougha

processofinteractionduringtheinterviewitself.Myaimwastoprovideparticipantswitha

platformtoconstruethemselvesasactivedesignersoftheirownlives,seeingadolescence

“notasatimewhichistobelivedthroughpassively,wheresocietyorbiologytakesoverthe

activerole,butasaprocess,whichisandcanbeinfluencedbyanactivesubject”(Kraus,

2000,p.5).Feedbackreceivedbothduringandaftertheinterviewsindicatedthat

participantsvaluedusingtheinterviewasaspaceforself-reflection,intermsofboth

articulatingandorderingthenarrativeoftheirlives.

Althoughthecurrentresearchdoesnotclaimtobetransformativeinscope,itisinspiredby

aspectsofthetransformative,community-basedapproachtoresearchoutlinedbyMertens

(2010)andBamberger,RughandMabry(2006),whichstressestheimportanceofthe

mannerinwhichcontactisestablishedwithcommunitiesinwaysthatareculturallysensitive,

ensuringthatclearrecommendationsaremadeandthatallstakeholdersareprovidedwith

accesstofindings.Mycurrentresearchquestionsbuilduponmyinitialpilotstudy,andhave

beenformulatedincollaborationwithaLatinAmericanmigrantsupportgroupcalledIRMO,

ensuringthattheresearchaimsaremeaningfultothemandsitalongsidetheirprioritiesasa

communityorganisation.IhavealsobeeninvolvedwithIRMOonanongoingbasis,providing

adviceoneducation-relatedissuesandrunningaworkshopforrecently-arrivedparentson

Englishlanguageacquisitionandtheemotionalexperienceofmigrationforchildrenand

youngpeople,whichdrewuponsomeoftheinitialfindingsofthisresearch.

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4.3.InterviewApproach

Iconstructedasemi-structured,activity-basedguideforuseduringtheindividualinterviews,

focusedaroundexploringmyresearchquestions.Acopyoftheinterviewguideisincludedin

AppendixA.

Theinterviewguidewasdevelopedwiththeaimofallowingparticipantstotelltheirown

storythroughaseriesofactivities,bothvisualandconversation-based.Itdeliberately

avoidedthecollectionofarangeoffactualdatasuchasdateofarrivaltotheUK,andfocused

moreonparticipants’individualanduniqueexperiencesandperspectives,withtheaimof

helpingthemtomakesenseoftheirownexperiencesthroughtheinterviewprocess.Idrew

uponErikson’spsychosocialtheoryintermsofexploringboththeindividualselfcomponent

andthesocialandenvironmentalcomponentofErikson’sidentitymodelthroughoutmy

interviewguide,whichwasdividedintofivesections.Aftersomeinitialrapport-buildingand

sharingofmyownmigrationjourney,theinterviewsfocusedon:

1.Photo-sharing:Thisactivityaimedtoexploreparticipants’experiencesofmigrationand

personalchangebycontrastinganimageofthemselvesbeforemovingtotheUKwithone

fromaftertheyhadmoved.Iinitiallydemonstratedmyselfwithapersonalexampleofa

phototakenbeforeandaftermyownmigrationjourney.Theparticipantwastheninvited,on

anoptionalbasis,toplacetwophotosofthemselvessidebyside,onefrombeforeandone

fromaftertheymovedtotheUK.Iftheyhadnotbroughtphotostotheinterview,theywere

askedtorecalltwospecificmemories.Anotherpurposeofthisactivitywastomakeclearthat

Iwasadoptingtheuseoftheterm“migrant”todescribemyself,and,implicitly,any

individualwhomovestoanothercountry.Thiswasdoneasanattempttodeveloprapport

andestablishcommonalityandsharedexperience,whileatthesametimebeingmindfulof

theinherentpowerimbalancebetweenresearcherandparticipant,despitethissmallareaof

commonalityexistingbetweenus.

2.Influencers–IdentityandWellbeing:Theaimofthisactivitywastoprioritisethevarious

influencesonparticipants’identityandhowtheseimpactuponthemastheymature.I

presentedtheparticipantwithanA3pieceofpaperwiththeirnameatthecentreandfour

concentriccirclesaroundit.Participantswereaskedtothinkofallthepeopleandfactorsthat

influencehowtheyfeelaboutthemselves,andplacethemwithinthecircles.Theparticipant

wasatthecentreandtheaspectsthatweremostimportantwereplacedinthecloser

concentriccircles,withthoselessimportantpositionedfurtheraway.

43

3.MovingtoLondon:Thissectionoftheinterviewpromptedparticipantstoreflectonand

exploretheexperienceofmigrationaswellasstageswhichtheywentthroughinestablishing

themselvesinLondon.Itbeganbyaskingthemtorecallthemomenttheyfirstheardthat

theywouldbemovingtoLondon.Theaimwastogatherparticipants’migrationjourneysin

theirownwords,andwasinformedbynarrativeresearchapproaches.

4.LanguageExploration:Here,questionsexploredtheimpactoflanguageacquisitionon

participants’identityandhowtheyinteractedwiththeworldaroundthem.Itlookedto

exploretheimpactofspeakinginasecondlanguageanddevelopingcompetencyinEnglish

onhowparticipantssawthemselvesandtheirevolvingidentitydevelopment.

5.HowIseemyselfandHowothersseeme:Theaimherewastoexplorehowparticipants

sawtheirself-identityasdifferentorsimilartohowotherssawthem.Thisisanactivity

adaptedfromAwan(2007).Intheoriginalversion,participantswereaskedtoputtogether

identitycollagesusingmaterialsdrawnfrommagazinesandnewspapersthatexpressed“how

Iseemyself”and“howIthinkotherpeopleseeme”.Inthisstudy,however,pendrawings

wereusedtosavetime.Theaimofthissectionoftheinterviewguide,then,wastocontrast

adolescents’self-identitieswiththeirperceptionsofhowtheybelievetheyareperceivedin

thewiderworld,inordertodiscoveranydifferencesandexplorethesethroughfurther

questioning.

6.ResponsetoQuotes:Thissectionoftheinterviewinvolvedparticipantsrespondingto

threequotesonthetopicofimmigrationandidentity.Onecamefromaparentinterview

duringthepilotphaseofthisresearchproject,onecamefromaColombianauthorand

anotherfromaFrenchartist.Theaimofthisfinalsectionwastolookathowthesocial

contextandideasof“LatinAmerican”and“migrant”socialidentitiesresonatedwith

participants.

Theapproachofasemi-structuredinterviewwaschosenbasedonthedesiretogainarich

pictureoftheindividualexperiencesofparticipants.Semi-structuredinterviewslooktoavoid

undueresearcherinfluenceandobtainparticipantviewsintheirownwords.Theinterview

guidecontainsopen-endedquestions,allowingtheinterviewertomoveawayfromtheguide

attimes,ifnecessary.However,duetohavingabroadstructureinplaceitispossibleto

compareindividualinterviewsinameaningfulway,drawingoutbothdifferencesand

similarities.

44

ExamplesofvisualrecordsfromActivities2and5areincludedinAppendixG.

4.4.SamplingandRecruitment

ParticipantswererecruitedinasingleschoolintheLocalAuthorityinSouthLondon.The

schoolisanaverage-sizedmixedgenderschoolthatperformswellcomparedtonational

averagesandwasrecentlyratedas“Good”byOfsted.

Potentialparticipantswereidentifiedinapurposivemannerthroughtheschool,first

identifyingparticipantswhofitthebasiccriteriaforthestudy(beinginYears9-12,aged14-

17,ofLatinAmericanheritageandhavingmovedtotheUKmorethanthreeyearsago)and

thenapproachingsuitableparticipants,providingthemandtheirparentswithinformationon

theproject,andaskingiftheywouldliketotakepart.AminimumofthreeyearsintheUK

wasdecideduponinordertoensurethatparticipantspossessedsufficientEnglish-language

skillstoengageintheinterview.ThiswasbasedonpreviousresearchbyHakuta,Butlerand

Witt(2000),whichconcludedthatverbalproficiencytakesatleastthreeyearstodevelop.

Nineinterviewswerecarriedoutintotal,andaneffortwasmadetoachievearoughlyeven

gendersplit.Fourfemalesandfivesmaleswereinterviewed.Allnameshavebeen

anonymised.Thesenineinterviewsexhaustedtheentiresampleavailable,asallotherLatin

Americanstudentsintheschoolweremorerecentarrivals,withinsufficientlevelsofEnglish-

languageabilitytoparticipateinthestudy.

Table1:SampleTable

Name Gender Year

Group

Time

studying

inaUK

School

Countryof

Birth

Participant1 Kemina Female 10 4years,

6

months

Colombia

Participant2 Bruno Male 9 2years,

11

months

Bolivia

45

Participant3 Kristian Male 10 2years,

9

months

Colombia

Participant4 Karmen Female 9 3years,

8

months

Spain

Participant5 Samuel Male 10 3years,

8

months

Ecuador

Participant6 Hana Female 10 3years,

8

months

Spain

Participant7 Claudio Male 10 4years,

8

months

Spain

Participant8 Marc Male 10 3years Spain

Participant9 Kesi Female 12 5years8

months

Colombia

4.5.TheLocalContext

TheLocalAuthority(LA)inwhichtheinterviewstookplaceisaboroughininnerLondon,with

apopulationintheregionof300,000.Ithasahighlevelofpopulationturnover,and

accordingtofigurespublishedbytheLocalAuthority,ithasalevelofpopulationdensity

amongthehighestinEngland(LA,StateoftheBorough,2012).27%ofresidentsliveinLocal

Authoritymaintainedsocialhousing,andtheLAisthe14thmostdeprivedboroughinthe

country(LACYPS,ServiceImprovementPlan,2011-14).Overone-thirdofchildrenofprimary

schoolagereceivefreeschoolmeals(LACYPS,ServiceImprovementPlan,2011-2014),which

isfrequentlyusedasanindicatorofpovertyoreconomicdeprivation.Thislevelisovertwice

thenationalaverage(DfE,2015).

4.6.DataCollectionProcedure

4.6.1.Pilotinterview

Apilotinterviewwasconductedinordertotestmyinterviewguideandthemeaningfulness

ofmyquestionsfortheresearchsample.Allofthetopicareasandactivitiesdescribedinthe

interviewguidewerecoveredinaninterviewtimeof55minutes,withinthehourinitially

46

allocatedfortheinterview.Duringtheinterviewitself,Ididnotseefittousethetimeline

activitythathadbeenincludedintheoriginalguide,andassuch,thiswasomittedfromthe

finalinterviewguide.Basedonthequalityofthisinterviewandthefactthatnofurther

changesweremadebasedonthepilot,adecisionwasmadetoincludethedatafromthis

interviewintheanalysis.

4.6.2.InterviewProcess

Theinterviewstookplaceinaprivateroomwithintheschoolbuilding,andwereaudio-

recordedfortranscription,withtheconsentofparticipants.Allparticipantswereinformed

thattheycouldcontactmethroughanamedadultintheschooloverthefollowingthree

monthsiftherewasanyaspectoftheinterviewthattheywouldliketofollowuponorclarify

duringthistime.

4.6.3.Participantfeedbackoninterviews

Allparticipantsweresentanonlineformfollowingtheinterview,whichgavethemthe

opportunitytogivefeedbackontheinterviewprocessitself,andalsotoprovideany

additionalcommentsrelevanttothetopic.

Overall,participantsratedtheinterviewprocesshighly,givingitameanratingof8outof10.

Somecommentsfromparticipantsareincludedbelow:

“IthinkithasbeenthefirsttimeIopeneduptosomeoneandexplainedmythoughtsonthis

topic.”(Claudio)

“IexpressedmyselfandwhatIfoundinterestingisthathewantstohelpotherpeoplethat

wereonthesamesituationwhentheycometotheUK.”(Karmen)

4.7.DataAnalysis

4.7.1.Codingandthematicanalysisprocess

TheinterviewsweretranscribedandthequalitativeresearchprogrammeAtlas.tiwasusedto

annotatethetranscripts,withcodesandthemesthenevolvingfromthedata.Afulltranscript

ofoneinterviewisincludedinAppendixF.Thistranscripthasbeenlinenumbered,andall

quotesattributedtoKeminawithinChapter5canbefoundatthelinenumbershowndirectly

afterthequote.AcopyofallofthecodesforthistranscriptisincludedinAppendixD.Allof

thecodesthatmadeuponeparticularthemeareincludedinAppendixE.Theapproachto

thematicanalysisdescribedbyBraunandClarke(2006)wasusedtoguidetheanalysis

47

process.Thisinvolvestheresearcherinitiallybecomingfamiliarwiththedatathrough

readingtheinterviewtranscriptsanumberoftimes,thengoingontogenerateinitialcodes

andthemesandfinallylookingtoreviewanddefinethesethemes.Codingwasalsoinformed

bySaldaña’s(2009)generalcriteriaforcodingdecisions,inparticularthequestion:“asyou’re

applyingthecodingmethod(s)tothedata,areyoumakingnewdiscoveries,insights,and

connectionsaboutyourparticipants,theirprocessesorthephenomenonunder

investigation?”(Saldaña,2009,p.51).ThiswasaquestionIkeptattheforefrontofmymind

throughoutthecodingprocess.

AccordingtoBraunandClarke(2006),thepurposeofconductingathematicanalysisisthe

identificationofpatternsofmeaningwithinasetofdatathatofferanswerstoresearch

questionsthathavebeenputforward.Patternsareuncoveredandthendefinedthrougha

process,beginningwithbecomingfamiliarwiththedataandmovingontoproducingcodes,

thendevelopingthemes,andfinallyrevisingthesethemes.Anadvantageofthematicanalysis

highlightedbyBraunandClarke(2006)isthatitistheoreticallyflexible.Assuch,itcanbe

employedwithinavarietyofdifferenttheoreticalframeworksasawaytoinvestigatethe

answerstoawidevarietyofresearchquestions.BraunandClarke(2006)suggestthat

thematicanalysisisparticularlysuitedtoexploringthetypesofquestionsthatarebasedon

individualexperience,aswellasexploringviewsandperceptionsasawaytodevelopan

understandingaroundtheconstructionofmeaning.Givenmyresearchquestionscloselyfit

withthematicanalysis’sstrengthsasamethod,andthatmyaimwastoexaminehowthe

researchparticipantsmadesenseoftheirownpersonalandsocialworldsandtodiscoverthe

meaningsofparticularexperiencestoparticipants,itwasdecidedtoadoptitasmydata

analysisapproach.

Inductiveanalysiswascarriedout,basedonundertakingacodingofthedatawithoutthe

attempttoinitiallyfititintoaparticulartheoryorframework.116codeswerefirstidentified

bymanuallyaddingcodestoeachoftheninetranscriptsusingtheAtlas.ticomputer

program,andthenclusteredaccordingtotopic,anddividedintothesectionsofLanguage,

CulturalIdentity,PersonalIdentity,FamilyIssues,Education,Discrimination,Feelingson

Migration,PeersandTheRoleofTeachers.Itwasfelt,however,thattheseinitialthemes

weretooliteral,merelyreflectingkeywordswithinsetsofcodesandthestagesofthe

interviewguideitself.Adecisionwasmadetoconsidersomeofthemainthemesthat

emergedacrosseachoftheseinitialninecategories.Duringthisprocess,the166codeswere

againclusteredwithinaWorddocumentandadifferentsixthemeswereidentified,which

eachoftheinitialcodesweresubsumedwithin,andcutacrossthedifferentcategories

48

initiallyidentified.Themeswerethendefinedandgivendrafttitles,andthecodesthatsat

withineachwereagainclusteredintosubthemes,leadingtoeachofthesixthemeshaving

betweentwoandfivesubthemesintotal.Thesesubthemeswerethengivennames,which

alongwiththethemenames,evolvedandchangedslightlythroughoutthewritingofthe

Chapter5,andparticularlybasedontherememberreflectioninterviewsconducted

4.7.2.Alternativeapproachestoanalysisconsidered

InterpretivePhenomenologicalAnalysis(IPA)wasconsideredasanapproachtoanalysis,butI

eventuallyconcludedthatitwouldnotbeasuitablemethodologicalapproachtoanswermy

researchquestionsastheyarenotbasedpurelyonunderstandingtheexperienceof

migrationbutlooktoexploretheimpactoftheexperienceonthespecificpsychological

phenomenonofidentityformation.

4.8.EthicalConsiderations

AresearchintroductionandconsentletterwasprovidedinEnglishforparticipantsandtheir

parentsinadvanceoftheinterviewsandexplainedtoparentsinSpanishifthiswas

necessary.TheseareincludedinAppendixBandC.Atthestartandendofeachinterview,

participantswerealsoremindedoftheirrighttowithdrawtheirconsenttoparticipateinthe

projectatanypointduringtheinterview,andthisrighttowithdrawwasalsomadeclearat

theendofeachinterview,duringdebriefing.

Theprocessofparticipantselectioninvolvedconsultationwiththeschool’sEALmentor,who

hadtaughtorwascurrentlyteachingalloftheparticipantsinthisstudyandsoknewthem

personally.Theaimofthesediscussionswastoexcludefromthestudyanypotential

participantwhowasconsideredtobeatriskofexperiencingemotionaldiscomfortor

distress.Nopotentialparticipantswereexcludedbasedonthisprocessofconsultation.Care

wasalsotakentoensurethattheinterviewswereconductedinasensitivemanner,without

applyingpressuretoparticipantstodiscussorrevealinformationthattheydidnotfeel

comfortabledivulging.AsaTraineeEPandformerAssistantPsychologistandteacher,Ihave

manyyearsofexperienceofhavingemotionallysignificantconversationswithchildrenand

youngpeopleandidentifyingsignsofdiscomfortandanxiety.

Ononeoccasion,aparticipantbecameupsetandbegantocryduringtheinterviewitselfdue

tothedifficultyofdescribingthehardshipshehadexperiencedasachild.Onthisoccasion,I

checkedinwiththeparticipantaboutwhetherhewantedtopauseorfinishtheinterview,

whichhedeclined.Attheendoftheinterview,Ithenaskedhimifhewantedtospendsome

49

timeawayfromhisclassmates,eitheraloneortomeetwithamemberofstaff.Heagain

declinedthisoffer,andappearedtohaveregainedhiscomposureatthispoint.Ialsoasked

theschool’sEALmentortocheckinwiththisboyattheendofthedayandagainlaterinthe

week,toexplorehisemotionalstate.Shelaterreportedthatafterspeakingtotheindividual,

nofurtheractionneededtobetaken.

Timewasspentatthebeginningoftheinterviewbuildingrapportwitheachparticipantand

makingthemfeelatease,andthroughouttheprocess,itwasmadeclearthattherewereno

rightorwronganswersorparticularexpectationsfortheirresponsesfrommyperspective.

Participantswerealsoinformedabouttheconfidentialityandanonymityoftheirresponses.

Intheinitialpartoftheinterviewwhereparticipantswereinvitedtobringaphotograph,this

wasframedclearlyasanoptionalinvitationinordertoreduceanypressurefeltby

participants,andplacethepowerandcontrolwiththem.Iftheyforgottoorchosenotto

bringphotographs,theywereinvitedtoimaginetwodifferentscenariosinstead.

Participantsweresignpostedtoatrustedadultwithintheschoolwhomtheycouldgotoif

theyhadanyquestionsaftertheinterview.Thiskeyperson,theEALmentorwhointroduced

themtotheproject,alsocheckedinwitheachparticipantinthedaysfollowingtheinterview.

Thisadultwasfamiliartoallparticipantsandhadmycontactdetailsifanyquestionsarose.I

alsocheckedinwiththispersonintheweeksfollowingtheinterviews,andnoissueswere

reported.ConfirmationofethicalapprovalisincludedinAppendixI.

4.9.ResearcherPositioningDuringInterviews:DemonstratingReflexivity

Iidentifyasaneconomicmigrantandmigrantstudent/workerfromaformerBritishcolony,

andmyownidentityhascontributedtomyselectionofmigrationandidentityasaresearch

topic.Therefore,itisimportanttoconsiderhowthisaffectedtheresearchonatheoretical,

practicalandinteractionallevel,particularlyintermsofhowitmayinfluencehowIselectand

interprettheory.

Myownidentityandappearancemayaffecttheparticipantresponsesandinterpretationsof

myquestionsduringinterviews.Mypresentationasawhitemaleandrepresentativeofa

LocalAuthorityislikelytooutweighparticipants’perceptionsofmeasa“migrant”basedon

myaccentorothercues.Thefirstsectionoftheinterviewschedule,however,requiresmeto

discussfeaturesofmyownmigrationjourney,makingclearthatIamadoptingtheuseofthe

termmigranttodescribemyself,and,implicitly,anyindividualwhomovestoanother

countryforeducationaloremploymentreasons.However,onanumberofoccasionsduring

50

theinterviews,participantsreferredtoexpectingtoseemore“peoplelikeyou”with“pale

skin”inLondon,suggestingthattheyperceivedmeasrepresentativeofthedominantWhite

BritishpopulationintheUK.Mypositionwithinthisresearchrequiredmetoengagein

reflexivepracticeaboutmymotives,potentialbiasandparticipantperceptions.Ialso

engagedinregularformalsupervisionwithmyresearchsupervisorsandinformaldiscussions

withcolleaguesintheLocalAuthoritywhereIamonplacement.

4.10.MemberReflectionGroupInterviews

4.10.1.Rationaleforconductingthese

LincolnandGuba(1985)encouragequalitativeresearcherstoengageinaprocessofmember

checkinginordertoenhancerigour.Intheirview,“themembercheck…isthemostcrucial

techniqueforestablishingcredibility”(p.314).

TheConsolidatedCriteriaforReportingQualitativeResearch(COREQ)checklistlistsmember

checkingasamethodtoenhancerigourby“ensuringthattheparticipants’ownmeanings

andperspectivesarerepresentedandnotcurtailedbytheresearchers’ownagendaand

knowledge”(Tong,SainsburyandCraig2007,p.356).MacKenzie,ChristensenandTurner

(2015)outlinehowensuringaccuraterepresentationisofparticularlyhighimportancein

community-basedresearchwheretheaimoftheresearchistodocumenttheexperiences

commontoasinglecommunity,asthecurrentresearchdoes.

Estroff(1995)raisesthequestionofwhetherresearchparticipantshavethecapacitytotruly

engageintheprocessofacademicresearchoriftheyarelikelytomerelyacquiescetothe

researcher’sviewsinthewaythatapatientacceptsadoctor’streatmentdecisions.Forthis

reason,thedecisionwasmadetoconductmymembercheckingingroups,asanattemptto

reducethisinherentpowerimbalancebetweenparticipantandresearcher,byallowingthem

todiscussamongthemselves,ratherthanonlymakecommentsdirectlytome.Buildingon

this,Thomas(2017)outlineshowresearchersusingtermssuchas“validation”arelikelyto

holdtheassumptionthatthereexistsa“correct”oronetrueversionoftheinterviewor

analysis,andsuggeststhattherearedescriptionsthatdemonstratemoreneutralityin

relationtotheassumptionsthatunderlietheconstructionofknowledge,suchas“participant

feedback”and“memberreflection”.Forthisreason,theterm“memberreflection”was

chosenforthisstudy.

4.10.2.Memberreflectionsessionplan

51

Inordertoprepareformymemberreflectioninterviews,Ifirstadaptedsomeofthe

languageusedinmydraftthemes,toensurethattheywouldbeunderstandableand

meaningfulforparticipantswhenpresentedinastandaloneway.Groupsoftwoorthree

participantswereselectedbasedonyeargroup,andonfeedbackfromtheschoolonwhich

participantswouldbelikelytoworkbesttogether.Groupslasted40minutestoonehour

each.Sevenoftheoriginalnineparticipantstookpart,asonewasabsentfromschoolonthe

daytheytookplaceandoneparticipanthadmovedtoadifferentschool.

Ifirstthankedeveryonefortheirinitialinterviewsandforchoosingtocometothefollow-up

group,andbrieflyexplainedtheprocessIhadgonethroughinthetimesincetheinitial

interviewsinordertoreachtheprovisionalversionofmythematicanalysis.Istressedthat

theseweremyearly-stageattemptstosummarisetheircollectiveexperiences,andthattheir

responseswouldbevaluableinensuringthatIdidsoaccurately.Participantswereinitially

given20minutestowalkaroundtheroomindependentlyinordertoreadthethemesand

attachstickersofdifferentcolourstoindicatethattheyeitherstronglyagree,kindofagree,

ordisagree.AnexampleoftheoutputofthisprocessisincludedinAppendixH.Theywere

alsoinvitedtoaddanyotherthoughtsatthispointineitherEnglishorSpanish.Thisplanwas

agreedcollaborativelywithparticipantsintheinitialgroup,includingthecolourcodingand

thecategorieschosen.

Afterthisprocesswascompleted,eachthemewasthendiscussedinturn,withparticipants

invitedtodiscussamongthemselves,andshareanycommentsorquestionsdirectlywithme.

Attheendofthesession,eachparticipantwasgiventheopportunityforafinalreflectionor

commentonthethematicanalysisandtheirexperienceofbeinginvolvedintheresearchasa

whole.

4.10.3.Researcherreflectionsonthememberreflectiongroupinterviews

Thisprocessdevelopedmyconfidenceasaresearcherinthevalidityofmythemesandthe

overallprocessofdataanalysis.Moreparticipantseither“strongly”or“kindof”agreedwith

eachthemeandsubthemethanhadexpresseditduringtheoriginalinterviews,therefore

providinganendorsementfortheanalysisconducted.Allparticipantsalsocommented

positivelyontheexperience,withkeyquoteshighlightingthisincludedbelow.

“Youcoveredmostofit…themajoritywasreflectedandsomejustonlyindividualsrelateto,

butasanoverallthingthatmostofthestudentshavegonethrough,thathavegonethrough

thisprocess,youhavecovereditall.”(Claudio,duringmemberreflection)

52

“Ilikedit,thankyou,becausenotalotofpeopleaskotherpeopleabouttheirexperiences,it's

justlike,OK,youmovedhere,sothat'sfine[laughs].”(Kemina,duringmemberreflection)

Forsomethemes,participantsbuiltuporchallengedmyoriginalwording,andbasedonthis,

Imadeanumberofchangestohowthemesandsubthemesweredescribed.Forexample,

basedonthreeparticipantsdisagreeingwithasubthemeonthedifficultyofbeingseparated

fromtheirparentsandsiblings,Ireframedthistoincludetheexperiencesofthosewhowere

notonlyseparatedbyfromfamilymembersbynationalborders,butwhofeltthattheyhad

verylimitedcontactandquiteadistantrelationshipwiththeirparentsinLondon,duelargely

totheirlongworkinghours.Oneparticipantalsoencapsulatedthedifficultyofconductinga

thematicanalysisduetothediversityofindividualexperience.

“Inmyopinion,likeeverysinglestatementthat'sinthesheetiskindoftrueandkindoffalse

causelikeeveryonehasn’tlikethesameexperienceintheirlives,becauseyoucanactuallynot

tellhowlifeisdrawn.”(Kristian,duringmemberreflection)

4.11.ReliabilityandValidity

Inthepast,qualitativeapproachestoresearchhavebeencriticisedforlackingclearly

measurablereliabilitycriteria.Smith,FlowersandLarkin(2009)suggestthatwhile

establishingthereliabilityofqualitativeresearchisimportant,thereisaneedtodevelop

criteriaspecifictoqualitativeratherthanquantitativemethods.Mystudyisdiscussedbelow

inrelationtocriteriasetoutbyYardley(2000).

4.11.1.SensitivitytoContext

Thismeanstheanalysisbeingsensitivetothedata,aswellastothesocialcontextand

relationshipsbetweentheresearcherandparticipants.Forthecurrentstudy,thiswas

ensuredthroughtheinterviewprocessitselfandtheapproachtoanalysis,wherebythe

experiencesofparticipantswereexploredindepth,inawaythataimedtohelpthemin

makingsenseoftheirownexperiences.Theresearchfocusandresearchquestionswerealso

developedincollaborationwithalocalmigrantsupportgroupinordertoensurethatthey

weresensitivetothesocialcontext.

4.11.2.CommitmentandRigour

Thiscanbeseenashavingadeepengagementwiththetopicareainadditionto

methodologicalrigourindatacollectionandanalysis.Thishasbeenensuredthroughthe

53

continualuseofsupervision,promptingmetohabituallyreflectontheresearchprocess.

Smith,FlowerandLarkin(2009)highlighthowhavinganappropriatesampleandresearch

questions,thequalityoftheindividualinterviewsthemselvesandthenatureoftheanalysis

arealsoindicatorsofcommitmentandrigourwithinaqualitativestudy.Ifeelconfidentin

therationalebehindmychoiceofresearchquestionsandparticipants,andadditional

informationonthesecanbefoundearlierinChapter4.

4.11.3.TransparencyandCoherence

Thishasbeendescribedasclarityinresearchaims,withtransparentmethodsanddata

presentation.Yardley(2000)alsostatesthatinqualitativeresearch,thecodingprocess

shouldbevalidatedbyatleasttwoindividuals,toensuretransparency.Idiscussedboth

initialcodingandthemegenerationwithmytworesearchsupervisors.Throughthese

discussionsandmyownindividualreflection,itwaspossibletogivedefinitionstothemost

pertinentthemes,whichweretheninterpretedthroughuseofpsychologicaltheory.This

processensuredthattheanalysesreflectedthedatainthemostobjectiveway,whilealso

recognisingmyinfluenceasaresearcher.

Inter-raterreliabilitytestingwasalsocarriedoutwithacolleagueofmineontheDEdPsy

course.Ourconclusionwasthatingeneral,althoughwecapturedthesamebroadthemes,

mycodeswerelongerandmoredescriptivethanhers.Forexample,inresponsetothe

passagebelow,shecoded“maturity”whereasIcoded“migrationseenasincreasing

emotionalmaturity”.

“Itmademechangeasaperson,itmademeappreciatealotofstuffthatIcouldn’t

appreciatebackthen.Itmademeknowthedifficultyofstuff,mademehaveapointofview

ofadults,howadultsseetheworldandhowchildrenseeit,andtobeabletocompareand

makemyselfbemoremature.”(Claudio)

4.11.4.ImpactandImportance

Impactandimportancecanbeunderstoodeitherinatheoreticalsense,intermsofenriching

academicunderstanding,orinamorepracticalsenseintermsofprovidingdataandguidance

forschools,educationleadersandpolicymakers.Thecurrentstudyaimstodiscoverhowthe

processofmigrationhasimpactedonhowtheadolescentparticipantsunderstand

themselves.Throughthis,myobjectivewastogaininsightintohowanideaofoneselfand

one’sidentityisconstructedagainstthebackdropoftheatypicalexperienceofchildhoodor

adolescentmigrationinordertofurthertheoreticalunderstandinginthisarea.Ontheother

54

hand,IhavealsoconsultedwithseniorfigureswithintheLocalAuthorityandworkedclosely

withamigrantsupportgroupinthedevelopmentofmyresearch,sothatmyeventual

recommendationshavethepotentialtohavepracticalrelevanceonbothoftheselevels.

55

Chapter5:ResultsandDiscussion

5.1.Introduction

Inthischapter,theresultsofmythematicanalysisarepresented,alongwithlinkstorelevant

researchandpsychologicaltheory.116codeswereinitiallyidentifiedafterthedatahadbeen

transcribed,andthesewereeventuallyclusteredintosixthemesand26subthemes.These

areincludedinthissection,supportedbyverbatimquotesfromthoseinterviewed.

Theanalysisconductedrepresentsonesubjectiveinterpretationofthedata,andadifferent

researchercouldhaveidentified,namedandarticulatedthethemesinadifferentway.The

sixthemeswerecommontothenineinterviewsconducted,buttherewerealsoareasof

differencethatemergedineachtheme,andthesearecommenteduponineachsection.

Eachofthesubthemesiscomposedofbetweentwoandsixoftheoriginal116codes

generatedduringthedataanalysisphase.Foreachsubtheme,thenumberofparticipants

whoexpressedtheexperienceorpointofviewdescribedduringtheinitialinterviewsis

included,intheinterestsoftransparency.Commentshavealsobeenaddedbasedonthe

subsequentmemberreflectioninterviews,especiallywherelargedifferenceswereevident

betweentheinitialandmemberreflectioninterviews.Sevenoftheoriginalnineparticipants

tookpartinthese.DetailsofthisprocessareprovidedinChapter4.

Inpresentingquotesinthereport,somesmallalterationshavebeenmade.Therepetitionof

particularwordsandsoundssuchas“ehhh”havegenerallybeenremovedfromtheverbatim

extractspresented,aswellasanyshortpauses.Squarebracketshavebeenusedwhereitwas

deemednecessarytoprovideadditionaldetailonwhataparticipantwasreferringto.

Kemina’sinterviewtranscripthasbeenincludedinAppendixF.Thenumberswhichfollow

eachofherverbatimquotesinthischaptercorrespondtothoseintheoriginaltranscriptin

AppendixF.

5.2.TitleQuote

“IlikeitherebecauseIhaveto”waschosenasmytitlequote,asIfeelitcapturesthe

reluctanceandemotionalpain,combinedwithresilienceanddetermination,which

underpinnedtheexperiencesofmigrantadolescentparticipantsinthisstudy.Indescribing

hisexperiences,ClaudiooutlinedhowhehadmaturedandbecomesuccessfulintheUK,both

academicallyandsocially,despitecontinuingtodisagreewithhisparents’decisiontomove

here,andfeelinganacutesenseoflossforhispreviouslifeinSpain.

56

Thisquotehighlightstheimportanceofschoolsrecognisingchildrenandadolescents’lackof

agencyaroundmigration,anddemonstratingempathyfortheiremotions,whileatthesame

timeseekingtopromoteresiliencefactors,whichfacilitatepositiveadaptationandidentity

formation.Theseincludeaspectssuchasasupportivepeergroupandopportunitiesto

pursuehobbiesandinterests,Englishlanguageacquisitionandthepresenceofrelevantrole

modelsintheschoolenvironment.

Figure1outlinesthesixthemesgeneratedthroughtheprocessofthematicanalysis.These

arethendiscussedinturnintheremainderofthischapter.

Figure 1: Theme Diagram

Adolescents'experiencesofmigrationandidentityformation

1.ConstrainedFreedomandHighPressure

2.AspirationandLossofConfidence

3.EmotionalDifficulty

andFeelingsof Loss

4.DiscriminationandDifference

5.Navigatinga

MulticulturalBackground

6.AdaptingtoaNewSchool

57

5.3.Theme1:ConstrainedFreedomandHighPressure

Figure 2: Theme 1 with four subthemes

Figure2illustratesTheme1,andthefoursubthemesthatcomposeit.Participantslinkedthe

processofmovingtoanunfamiliarcountrywithhavinglessfreedomthantheyhadintheir

homecountries,eitherinSpainorLatinAmerica.Theymentionedspendinglesstimeoutside

thehomeingeneralthanwhentheyhadbeenlivingintheirhomecountry.Parentsmay

allowtheirteenagechildrenlessindependencethantheymayhaveaffordedthemintheir

homecountry,wheretheythemselveshadabetterunderstandingofthelanguage,thelocal

areaandculture,aswellasfactorssuchassafety.McIlwaineetal.(2011),intheirmixed

methodsresearch,foundapictureofsocialisolationamongLondon’sLatinAmerican

community,whichmayacttorestricttheamountoffreedomandagencytheypermittotheir

children.AstudybySchwartz,CôtéandArnett(2005),whichlookedatthreedifferentethnic

groupsintheUnitedStatesandsuggestedthatlowerlevelsofagencyandfreedomwere

relatedtolessexplorationandlessflexibleidentitycommitment,andpositivelyrelatedto

avoidancebehavioursinadolescents.

Theme1:ConstrainedFreedomandHighPressure

1.Familyastheoneconstant

and keyinfluenceonadolescents

2.Importanceoffittinginandmaintainingapositivepublic

image

3.Parentsseenas

restrictingadolescents’freedom

4.Additionalresponsibilityplacedon

adolescentsforthingsliketranslation

“Yeahandalsothey[parents]just

wantyoutostayathomesothat

youcanlearnEnglish.”(Kemina,

duringmemberreflection)

“Theyalwaysexpectyoutobethenext

businessman,thenextdoctor,thenextlawyer,

causethey'realreadymakingthesacrifice.”

(Claudio,duringmemberreflection)

58

ThiscurtailedfreedomcouldreducetheopportunityforwhatEriksoncallsthepsychosocial

moratorium,aperiodofexplorationwithabsentresponsibilities,meaningthatyoungpeople

spendlesstimeexploringnewidentitiesandaremorefocussedonsociallyandparentally

prescribedgoals.Berman,Schwartz,Kurtines,andBerman(2001)highlighttheimportanceof

thisstageandshowthatmoratoriumisassociatedwithindicatorsofthedevelopmentof

criticalthinking,particularlyinthecapacitytogenerateavarietyofalternativeswhenan

individualisfacedwithanimportantlifechoice.

5.3.1.Familyastheoneconstantandkeyinfluenceonadolescents

“Mymotherismymainrolemodel.Shealwaysguidesmeinagoodway.”Marc

“AslongasmyMumishappyandmyfamilyishappythenit’salrightbecausefriends,youcanhave

themanywhereandeverywhere.”Kemina,Line410

“Myparentsaremostimportantinfluence.BecausetheyalwaystalktomeaboutwhatIshoulddo,

andhowIshouldbehave.”Bruno

“Wellyouseefamily,likeinmostcasesthey'retheonlypeoplethatstaynexttoyouatallpoints–in

difficulttimesandgoodtimes.SowithcomingtoLondon,they'reliketheonlypeoplethatsupport

youatalltimes.”Claudio

Familywasseenbyeveryparticipanttobethemaininfluenceontheirlifeandhowtheysee

themselves,abovefriendsorotherfactors.Allparticipantsalsoagreedwiththisduring

memberreflection.Parentsandsiblings,butparticularlymothers,wereseentobetheone

constantinyoungpeople’slivesthroughoutthetransitionbetweeneithertwoorthree

countriesduringtheirchildhoodandadolescentyears.Parentswereperceivedtohavehigh

expectationsoftheirchildren,leadingtopressuretosucceed,butsomeparticipants

mentionedthattheywereoftenunabletoprovidepracticalsupportaroundeducation,due

todifficultieswiththeEnglishlanguage.Oneparticipantalsomentionedhisdesiretorepay

thesacrificeshisparentshadmadeforhiminmovingtoEngland.

KaoandTienda(1998)haveputforwardthetheorythatalackofknowledgeoftheirnew

country’seducationsystemcanleadtounrealisticallyhighorlowaspirationsamongmigrant

andminorityfamilies.Childrenmayalsobeawarethatexpectationsheldbytheirparents

maynotbeapplicabletotheirownsituationandthiscouldmeanthatsiblingsandpeersact

59

asmoredirectrolemodels.Thiswasthecaseinthisstudy,whereparentswereseenas

providingencouragementandhighexpectations,butlittlepracticalsupport.

5.3.2.Importanceoffittinginandmaintainingapositiveimageinpublic

“SowhenI’mout,I’mbeingaverynicegirl–helpfulandpolitesoIthinkthatpeopleoutsideof

schoolthinkthatI’manicegirlandthatthey’recomfortablewithme.”Kemina,Line450

“SointhestreetsIjusttrytoactlikeanormal...Idon'ttrytostandoutintermsoftryingtotake

attention,Itrytostandoutintermsofthingsthataregood.”Claudio

Twoparticipantsmentionedtheideathattheywantedtoconsciouslyprojectapositive

imagetotheworld,andbeseenascontributingtoboththeschoolcommunityandsocietyas

awhole.Duringmemberreflection,afurtherthreeparticipantsmentionedthatthey‘kindof’

agreewiththis.Therewasasensethattheseparticipantsfeltthatsomepeopleinthewider

localcommunityheldanegativeperceptionofrecently-arrivedmigrants,andassuch,they

wereconsciousofalwayspresentingapositiveimagetotheworldthatdidnotreinforce

perceivednegativestereotypes.

5.3.3.Parentsseenasrestrictingadolescents’freedom

“Thenwhenwecamehere,wedidn’tgoout.Like,mymumdoesn’twanttogoouttotheparkor

anythinghere.”Karmen

“Youstartmissingthosedaysofschoolwhenyoucansocialisewithotherpeople,especiallyin

London‘cosyoudon’tgettogoouttoplacesorplayinparksasmuchasothercountries.”Claudio

Threeparticipantsfeltthattheirparents’strictnessandthefactthattheygenerallyspentless

timeoutdoorsdoingthingslikegoingtoparksaftermovingtoLondonmeantthat

adolescentsoftenhadlesscontactwiththeoutsideworldthantheydidintheirprevious

countryandspentmoretimeathome.Duringmemberreflection,afurtherthree

participantsindicatedthatthey“kindof”agreewiththis.Participantsfeltthattheyshould

havemorefreedomwhencomparingthemselvestotheirpeers,butperceivedthattheir

parentswereactivelyconstrainingthis,leadingsomeparticipantstoexpressadegreeof

resentmentoverthis.TheyalsomentionedstrictnessasacommontraitofLatinAmerican

parentsandthatgenerallychildrenandteenagersareheldtomorestringentbehavioural

standardsthantheirBritishcounterparts.

60

ThisfitswithresearchfromtheUnitedStatesbyRibar(2012),whichfoundthatmigrant

familiestendedtodevotelesstimetocommunityactivitiesandleisurethanthoseborninthe

UnitedStates.Previousqualitativeresearchbythisauthor(Gilsenan,2016)alsofoundthat

parentsgenerallyarrivedinsociallyweakpositions,withoutanyknowledgeofEnglish,a

socialnetworkbeyondtheimmediatefamily,andanyunderstandingofthefunctioningof

Englishpublicservices.McIlwaine(2015)alsofoundthatanxietyandfeelingsof

disempowermentarecommonamongLatinAmericanparents,whichislikelytohavea

strongimpactonchildrenandyoungpeople,andparticularlyonhowmuchindependence

theyareaffordedwithinthelocalcommunity.

5.3.4.Additionalresponsibilityplacedonadolescentsforthingsliketranslation

“It’sbasicallybecauseparentsalsoaskyoutogoandtranslateforthemandbelike‘yeahyouneed

totranslatethis,youneedtohelpmedothisandthat.’Don’tpressureusbecauseschoolisalreadya

lotofpressuresopleaserelax.”Kemina,Line556

“WellItalktomyparentsinSpanishbutwhenwegoout,becausemymumanddadalsodon’tknow

howspeakEnglish,I’mtheone,like,Ineedtoaskifweneedsomething.”Karmen

FourparticipantsfeltthatbecausetheirparentswerelessfluentinEnglishthantheywere,

theywereoftenobligedtodotranslationworkforthemandgenerallyhelptheirparentsto

communicatewithothersoutsidethehome.Duringmemberreflection,threemore

participantsindicatedthattheystronglyagreedwiththis.Someparticipantsalsofeltthat

theyhadtotakeonadditionalresponsibilitiesforthingslikecleaningandwashingtheir

clothesaftertheirmovetoLondonduetotheirparents’needtoworklongerhoursthanthey

hadbefore.Thisbroughtaboutanincreasedawarenessofadultconcernssuchasthoseofa

financialnatureaftermovingtoEngland.Therewasasensethatmovingcountrymeant

participantsbegantoseethedifficultyandoccasionalcrueltyoflife,whichcaused

adolescentstorapidlymaturefromtherelativeinnocenceofchildhood.

Buildingonthis,astudybyRenzaho,DhingraandGeorgeou(2017)foundthatbecause

childrenlearnEnglishfasterthantheirparentsdo,thisabilityleadstothemactingas

translators,interpretersandadvocatesfortheirparents,helpingthemtofunctioninthisnew

contextbyactingasculturalambassadors.However,children’snewfoundpowerasfamily

languagebrokersoftenresultsintheoldergenerationfeelingdisempoweredandinsome

caseshumiliated.Thesefactorscanservetochallengetraditionalfamilyroles,andleadto

decreasedvaluebeingplacedonparents’culturalcapital,withaconsequentnegativeimpact

61

ondynamicswithinindividualfamilieswhereparents’skillsarenotseenasusefulwithintheir

newenvironment.

LatinAmericanadolescentsintheUnitedStateshavebeenfoundinsomestudiestoview

languagebrokeringpositivelyandtopotentiallyresultinastrongerethnicidentity(e.g.

Weisskirch,2005).However,inotherresearch,ithasbeendiscoveredthatthatthereisoften

amorenegativesidetooccupyingthisrole,withchildrenandadolescentsmissingeducation

andotheropportunitiesforsocialinteractioninordertohelptheirparentstocompletedaily

tasks(Tang,2001).Thiscancauseconflictforyoungpeople,especiallywhenthisinvolves

activitiesthatareseenasnecessaryinmaintainingtheirsocialpositionwithinschoolorother

contexts.Whenthistopicwasdiscussedduringthememberreflectioninterviews,

participantsgenerallyviewedthistranslationworkinapositiveway,recognisinghow

necessaryandhelpfulitwastotheirfamilies.

BasedonresearchconductedinLondon,Cline,CrafterandProkopiou(2014)produceda

bookofguidanceforschoolsinusingchildrenaslanguagebrokers,highlightingthatyoung

peoplegenerallyenjoyedtherole,butthattheyfounditeasierwhenschoolstaff“perceived

bilingualismasanasset,valuedtherole,acknowledgedtheresponsibilitythatcamewithit

anddidnotaskthemtoactinthisrolewhenthetopictobediscussedmadethatriskyor

disturbing”(p.7).

62

5.4.Theme2:AspirationandConfidenceLoss

“AtthemomentI’mlookingforjobsformyself…butit'slimiting,likethere'sjobsthatyou

can'tdobecauseyoujustdon’tunderstand[thelanguage].”Kemina(duringmember

reflection)

Figure 3: Theme 2 with six subthemes.

Figure3illustratesTheme2,aswellasthefoursubthemesthatcomposeit.Itemerged

throughtheinterviewsthattheprocessofmigrationhasthepotentialtoconstrain

aspirationsintheshort-term,byfocusingadolescentsontheimmediate,dauntinggoalof

languagelearning,meaningthattheyoftenfinditdifficulttolookbeyondthistowardstheir

broadergoalsandambitionsinlife.Assuch,manybecomeentirelyfocusedonthe

magnitudeoftheinitialtaskoflearningasecondlanguagethatparticipantsgenerallyhad

littleexposuretoorinterestinpriortotheirmovetoLondon,whichwasgenerallyan

unexpectedmovefromtheirperspective.

ItappearsthatperhapsmanyadolescentmigrantsremaininDevelopmentalStage4:Industry

versusInferiority(Erikson,1959)foranextendedperiod,havingtheirdevelopmentstagnate

somewhatduetotheimmediatepracticalandpsychologicaldemandsofmigration.This

stageisarticulatedingivinglanguageacquisitionandmasteryprecedenceovereverything

else.Atthisdevelopmentallevel,Erikson(1959)defines“industry”asmasteringculturally-

definedwaysofachievingone’sgoals,forexamplereading,writingandmaths.Migrantsmay

Theme 2:Aspirationand

LossofConfidence

1.Earlyaspirations areoftenlimitedtolearning English

2.Senseofpressureandexpectation

around Englishlearning

3.OverridingfearoftheEnglishlanguage

4.Mathsclassseenasan

opportunitytoexperiencesuccessand

buildconfidence

63

oftenstillbeatthisstagewellintotheirteenageyearsduetonothavingtheabilitytoread

andwriteproficientlyinEnglish,meaningthereisadisjunctionbetweentheiremotionaland

physicalmaturity,andthedevelopmentofthesecond-languageliteracyskillsthatare

necessarytoengagewiththeirnewenvironment.

ToppelbergandCollins(2010)referencethisdisjunctioninastudylookingatlanguage

acquisitionanditsimpactonculturaladaptationinmigrantchildrenandadolescentsinthe

UnitedStates.Theyfoundthat“communicativecompetenceandsocialcompetenceare

correlatedinEnglish-languagelearninginchildren”(p.8).Theirresearchfoundthat

adolescentswithpoorEnglish-languagemasteryareofteninfantilisedandignoredbytheir

classmates.Overall,theyfoundthatEnglishlanguagecompetencehasapositiveimpacton

adolescents’psychologicaldevelopment,capacitytoemotionallyregulate,andaccessto

aspectssuchasteacherpraiseandunderstandingruleswithintheclassroom,withthe

oppositetrueforthosewhostruggletomastertheEnglishlanguage.

Manyparticipantsinthecurrentstudyexperiencedlanguagelearningasadeepandlasting

lossofself-confidence.Mostspokeaboutthefeartheyheldaboutspeakingandlearning

Englishandhowthispervadedallaspectsoftheirlife,bothinschoolandoutside.Halfofthe

participantshadreachedapointwheretheyfeltconfidentintheirabilitytospeakEnglish,

buttheotherhalfwerestillstrugglingwithconfidenceissues.Thisseemedtobeespecially

trueofboys,whoappearedtobepotentiallylesswillingtotakerisksintheirlearning.A

possiblecontributingfactortothismaybetheinfluenceofLatinopatriarchalculture,which

emphasisestheimportanceofmenbeingstrongandincontrol(Piniero,2012).Kingand

Ganuza(2005),intheirreflectionsonastudyexploringtheexperiencesofChileanmigrant

teenagersinEurope,commentedthattheirfindingsraisethevalueofgivinggreater

attentiontogenderdifferencesobservedinidentityandsecondlanguageacquisition,with

boysindicatingamuchhigherlevelofracismanddiscriminationexperienced.Thisimpacted

significantlyontheirconfidenceandmotivationtointegrateintothedominantculture.

5.4.1.EarlyaspirationsareoftenlimitedtoEnglishlanguagelearning

“IwaslookingtolearnmyEnglish,that’sall.”Kristian

“IwantedtolearnEnglishatleast…ThatwastheonlyhopeIhad.”Hana

“AndIalwayswantedtogetintomedicineandallofthat,sogetgoodgrades,butatthattimeit

wasquite,sortoflikeabigdream[becauseofthelanguage],Iwaslikeno,Ican’t,Ican'tachieveAs,

64

that’slikeajoke.SoIkeptsayingoh,atleastifIcangetCsorsomething,Ithinkthatwas,yeah,my

maingoal,getfriends,getCsandyeah,thatwasit,itwasquitelowatthattime[laughs].”Kesi

ThreeparticipantssawbecomingproficientinEnglishastheironlyshorttomediumterm

goaluponstartingschoolintheUKandfounditdifficulttohaveconcreteaimsbeyondthis,

sinceeverythingappearedtodependontheirEnglish-languagelevel.Onemoreparticipant

stronglyagreedwiththisduringmemberreflection,withthreeparticipants“kindof”

agreeing.SomealsoreferencedtheirverylowlevelofEnglishbeforehandasareasonwhy

thetaskappearedsodauntingtothem.

5.4.2.SenseofpressureandexpectationaroundEnglishlearning

“Don’tputtoomuchpressureonus.Becauseputtingpressureonuswilljuststressusoutandifyou

putalotofpressurethere’sgonnabeapointwheresomeone’sgonnacry.”Kemina,Line546

“Ithinkitwouldbegoodforteacherstohavealittlemorepatience.Sometimeswecan’tgetitthe

firsttime,soweneedabitmoretimetogetit.”Marc

“Manyteachers,atthebeginning,theydon’tevencareaboutyou.Theydon’tevenhelpyou.And

theyjudgeyouandthey’relookingatyouforlike,yourlowgradesandtheydon’tknowhowitisin

yourlife.”Kristian

“Likewhenyoufirstcomehere,mymumkeptonlikeyou'renotgettinggoodgrades,you'renot

gettingthis,you’renotgettingthat.You’vegottounderstandthatwe'removingin,leavingallour

friends,ourfamily,ourculture,ourlanguageaswell,soit'salot.”Kesi

PressuretolearnEnglishrapidlyfrombothparentsandteacherswasspokenaboutas

detrimentalbyfourparticipants,withexpectationsforEnglishlanguagelearningoften

perceivedasunrealistic.Onemoreparticipantstronglyagreedandone“kindof”agreed

duringmemberreflection.Participantsfeltthatbeingjudgedbytheirgradeswithintheirfirst

yearsoflearningEnglishwasalsounjust,andthatmoreallowanceneededtobemadefor

theirstatusasEALlearners.

ResearchconductedbyEisenchlas,SchalleyandGuillemin(2013)foundthatwhilemigrant

children’scompetencyintheEnglishlanguageisahighlyimportantfactor,children’sskills

andabilitiesinlanguagesotherthanEnglishareoftenneglectedornotrecognised.Thislinks

toworkbyMehmedbegovic(2008)inLondon,whereachildcommentedduringaresearch

interviewthat“Miss,whoneedsthelanguagesofimmigrants?Youneedtobegoodat

65

English,verygoodatEnglish.”Thishighlightsthechild’slowperceivedimportanceof

minoritylanguagesor,asshedescribedthem,“immigrantlanguages”.Mehmedbegovic

(2008,p.6)reflectsonhowherquestioncaptures“issuesofinequality,powerand

marginalisationandrecognitionthattheonlyaffirmedanddesirableprofileistheoneofa

highlycompetentEnglishspeaker,nativeornearnative”.Thiswasasentimentthatwas

echoedbymanyparticipantsinthecurrentresearch,whogenerallysawtheirskillsinSpanish

asirrelevanttotheirnewcontext.

Eisenchalas,SchalleyandGuillemin(2013),inastudyconductedinAustralia,foundthat

parentswhowanttoraisetheirchildrenbilinguallyhaveverylittlesupportavailableto

achievethis,intermsofmaintaininghomelanguageliteracyifmigrationhasinterrupted

literacydevelopment.ThissituationappearstobeverysimilarintheUK,whereinitsreport

entitledLanguagesfortheFuture,theBritishCouncil(2013)stressestheimportanceof

utilisingthelinguisticskillsoftheUK’sminoritycommunities,warningthatthecurrentfailure

todosoisawasteoflinguisticresources.ThisreportalsohighlightsSpanishasthemost

importantsecondlanguagefortheUK,basedonarangeofeconomic,political,culturaland

educationalindicators.However,ashighlightedbyMehmedbegovicandBak(2017),the

valueputonforeignlanguageteachingintheUKappearstobecurrentlydecreasing.They

describeayear-on-yearreductioninboththenumberofschoolsofferingforeignlanguage

classes,andinGCSEandA-leveltake-upfromstudents.

Martín(2005)foundthatmigrantandrefugeeparents,worriedabouttheirchildren’s

progresscomparedtonative-bornpeers,oftendecidetochangetousingEnglishintheir

conversationswiththeirchildren,despitethemselveshavingalimitedlevelofcompetencyin

English.Thiscontradictsalargebodyofexistingresearchthatprovidesevidencethat

maintaininganddevelopingachild’shomelanguagedoesnothaveanynegativeimpacton

theacquisitionofasecondlanguage(e.g.Cummins,2001).

Forparticipantsinthisstudywhohadmasteredthelanguageandbeguntodemonstrate

theirpotentialacademically,greatpridewasdrawnfromtheachievementofmaking

noticeableprogressinEnglishandbeginningtoshowtheirtrueacademicabilities.Thislinks

totheideaofovercomingdifficultyandassuchdevelopingasenseofcontrolovertheir

experiencesanddevelopmentasaresiliencefactor,asproposedbyUngaretal.(2007).

66

5.4.3.OverridingfearoftheEnglishlanguage

“Well,IwasscaredbecauseIdidn’tknowhowtospeakEnglish.Therewasnothinganyone,like,

couldexplaintome.”Karmen

“Ifelt,like,scared.BecauseIdidn’tunderstandwhatwashappening,orwhereIhadtogo.”Bruno

FourparticipantscommentedthattheyfeltscaredbytheprospectoflearningEnglish,and

oftenremainedsilentasawaytoavoidfeelingself-consciousinspeakingaloudinfrontof

others.Twomore“kindof”agreedwiththisduringmemberreflection.Oneparticipantalso

mentionedthatbecauseofherLatinAmericanaccentanddialect,shehadasimilar

experiencewhenfirstmovingtoSpain,inthatshewasinitiallysilent,notwantingtochoose

thewrongwordorpronunciation.Itappearstotakemorethanthreeyearsforrecently-

arrivedadolescentstofindtheirvoiceinthisnewcontext,andsomestillfelthighlyself-

consciousaboutthingslikereadingaloudafterthispoint.

5.4.4.Mathsclassseenasanopportunitytoexperiencesuccessandbuildconfidence

“Foreveryotherlessontheyputmeinalowset,andthenformathsonlyIwasinhighsetbecause

youknow,manyofthethingsIhaddonethreeyearsagoinSpain.”Kesi

“Itwaseasierformetolearnhowtoanswersomequestionsinclass,especiallyinmaths.Inmaths

youdon’tneedthelanguagesomuch,soIfeltmoreconfidentthere.”Bruno

Threeparticipantsmentionedthatduetothelowerlanguagedemandsinmaths,itwas

possibleforstudentstoreachafeelingofachievingtheirpotentialmorequickly,whereas

subjectslikeEnglishremaineddifficultforamuchlongerperiodoftime.Theyalsoexpressed

frustrationatbeingplacedinlowsetsattimes.Afurtherthreeagreedduringmember

reflection.ThislinkstoresearchbyCummins(2001),wherehedescribestwoprinciples,

MaximumCognitiveEngagementandMaximumIdentityInvestment.TheMaximum

CognitiveEngagementprinciplestressesthatlearningmustbeinlinewithalearner’s

cognitiveabilities,whichisnotdefinedbytheirlevelofproficiencyintheirsecondlanguage.

AsMehmedbegovic(2012,p.69)highlights,“althoughnegotiatinglanguagebarrierswith

cognitivelyappropriateteachingandlearningremainsoneofthemostchallengingaspectsof

workingwithnewarrivals,teachersmuststrivetofindawayofmakingcognitively

appropriateworkaccessibleforchildrenwhoaredevelopingtheiracademiclanguage

proficiency.”

67

Mehmedbegovic(2012,p.69)buildsonCummins’worktodescribehowIdentityInvestment

is“aboutcreatingconditionsineducationalsettingswherechildrenbuildonwhattheyhave

andwhattheyknow;theirpriorexperiencesarenotdismissed,but‘allowedin’asthe

foundationstoneoftheircurrentandfutureexperiencesandlearning.”Assuch,itis

importantthatmigrantadolescentsaregiventheopportunitytodrawupontheirexisting

skillsandknowledgewithintheclassroom,throughdifferentiatedlearningtasksandtheuse

oftheirhomelanguagewhereappropriate.

68

5.5.Theme3:EmotionalDifficultyandFeelingsofLoss

“Ithinkmigrationdevelopsyou,yourpersonalstrength…ButIthinkitalsomakesyouweakin

thesensethatyou'reayoungkidandyou'rebeingexposedtothingsevensomeadultsmay

noteverhavetoovercomeandthefactthatyou'revulnerablebynotspeakingEnglishand

losingfriends,family.”(Claudio,duringmemberreflection).

Figure 4: Theme 3 with five subthemes.

Figure4illustratesTheme3,aswellasthefivesubthemesthatcomposeit.Migration

broughtaboutexperiencesoflossforalltheadolescentsinterviewed.Forsixoutofnine

participants,thiswasthesecondtimeintheirlifethattheyhadexperiencedthesignificant

upheavalofinternationalmigration.Participantsspokeaboutthelossofimportant

friendshipsandalsothephysicalobjectsanditemsofsentimentalvaluerelatedtotheir

childhood,whichhadbeenleftbehind,aswellassignificantperiodsoftimespentawayfrom

parentsandotherfamilymembers,whichislikelytohaveanimpactonattachment

formationandmaintenancethroughoutchildhood.ThemovetoEnglandwasgenerallymade

instages,withoneparentoftenfirstmovingaloneinordertosecurework.Thismovewas

oftenunexpectedforparticipants,andonmanyoccasionstheymentionedbeingdeceived

abouttheirinitialmovetoLondon,believingthattheywerevisitingfamilyratherthan

movingpermanently.

Theme3:Emotional

DifficultyandFeelingsof

Loss

1.Losingcontactwitholdfriends

2.Difficultyofbeingapartfromparentsandsiblings

3.Feelingsofloneliness andisolationduringearlymonthsin

London

4.UnhappinessandresistancetomovetoLondon.Deception

often involvedininitialmove

5.Migrationseenas

developingpersonal

strengthandperseverance

69

Researchontraumaandidentityformation(Berman,2016)suggeststhattraumatic

experiencescandisruptidentitydevelopment,butthat“traumacanalsobeincorporated

intoone’sidentity,servingnotonlyasaturningpointorreferencepoint,butalsodefining

one’slifeandpurpose”(Berman,2016,p.1).Thiswasevidentamongtheyoungpeople

interviewed,withsometakingprideintheirabilitytoovercomethedifficultiesbroughtabout

bytheirmove,whereasothers,whodeniedthattheirmovehadimpactedupontheminany

way,appearedlessabletodrawself-esteemfromtheachievementofadaptingtoanew

countryandeducationalcontext.

Batista-PintoWiese(2010)alsospeaksaboutpsychologicaltraumainbothchildrenand

adolescentsasaresultofinternationalmigration,particularlyforcedmigration.She

concludesthat“migrationhasamassiveinterferenceinthechild’spsychological

developmentandmentalhealth,whichcanbesevereifrelatedtoacculturativestressor

traumaticstates”(Batista-PintoWiese,2010,p.142).Sheproposesthatyoungchildrenareat

riskofdevelopinginsecure,ambivalent,ordisorganisedattachmentbasedontheideathat

theabsenceoftrustintheirsurroundingscanmanifestitselfnegativelyinlessexploratory

behaviourandindependence.Shesuggeststhattheimpactofthemigrationexperiencemay

presentinadolescentsandolderchildrenasincreasedexternalisedaggressivebehaviour,in

additiontointernalisedanxietyanddepressivesymptoms.

5.5.1.Losingcontactwitholdfriends

“That’sthething,wetravelalot,youdolosealotoffriends.”Hana

“IthinkIlosteverything.Friendships,teachers,‘cosyouknow,yougetusedtothemalot,andyeah,

Ithinkeverythingliterally,theculture,everything.Everythingwascompletelydifferent.”Kesi

EightparticipantsspokeaboutleavingbehindclosefriendsinSpainorLatinAmericaafter

movingtotheUK,andtheemotionalpainanddifficultythishadcausedthem,aswellas

facingthedifficultyofestablishinganewsocialnetworkinLondon.Thiswasfoundtobe

especiallydifficultforthosewhoarrivedintheirschoolbeforeacommunityofpupilsofLatin

Americanheritagehadbecomeestablishedinthearea.

5.5.2.Difficultyofbeingapartfromparentsandsiblings

“Wewereliketwoyearswithouthim,soIhadto,mymumsaidthatIwaslikethedadofthefamily

atthatpoint.”Claudio

70

“Thenmymumleft,andshewenttoSpain,andmydadnevertookcareofme,soIwasbymyself,

withmygrandmother.”Kristian

Themajorityofparticipants,fiveintotal,spokeaboutemotionaldifficultiestheyhad

experiencedduetostaggeredfamilymigrationthroughouttheirchildhoodandadolescence.

Somehadlivedwithextendedfamily,awayfrombothoftheirparentsforperiodsoftime,

andmanyothershadbeenseparatedfromtheirfathersandinonecasetheirsiblingfor

substantialperiodsduetoimmigrationandemployment-relatedissues.Duringmember

reflection,someparticipantsmentionedthattheydidnotseethisasadifficultyperse,as

theyhadbecomeusedtospendingverylittletimewiththeirparents,duetotheirwork

commitmentsinbothSpainandtheUK.Previousresearchbythisauthor(Gilsenan,2016)

foundthatLatinAmericanparentsoftenworkverylonghourscomposedofmultiplesplit

shiftseachday.ThisissomethingthatwasalsofoundinMcIlwaineetal.’s(2011)wider-

rangingquantitativestudy.

Jones,SharpeandSogren(2003),inastudylookingateconomicmigrationfromthe

Caribbean,foundthatthepositiveattachmentschildrenalreadyhadwiththeirparentsdid

notreducethedegreeoflossandemotionaldifficultythattheyfeltafterbeingseparated

fromthem.Theyconcludethat“thepersistenceandseverityofemotionalproblemsrelating

tounresolvedlossindicatethatpositiveattachmentbehavioursininfancydonotnecessarily

insulatechildrenagainstthreatstotheirattachmentbondsinadolescence”(Jonesetal.,

2003,p.18).Inparticular,thefindingsfromthisstudysuggestthattheconceptof

attachmentandattachmentdifficulties,whicharegenerallylookedatininfantsandyoung

children,areexperiencedinadifferentbutequallysignificantwaybyolderchildrenand

adolescents.Theseissuesappearedtobeexperiencedbyparticipantsinthecurrentstudy,

duetoseparationtakingplaceatvariouspointsduringchildhoodandadolescence,combined

withlackofcontactandtimespenttogetherinLondon.

5.5.3.FeelingsoflonelinessandisolationduringearlymonthsinLondon

“Like,whenIenteredtotheschoolandIwassadand,like,alonebecauseIdidn’thavefriends…Oh,

inYear6,like,halfwaythroughtheyear,ItoldmymumanddadthatIwanttogobacktoSpain

becauseofallofthatwashappening,Iwasfeelingaloneandallofthat.”Karmen

“Soitwasquitehardatfirst‘cositwasonlyusthree[LatinAmericanstudents]sowewouldbethe

onlygroupofthreepeoplesittingintheplaygroundandwhenweweredoinggroupactivitieswe

wouldbethethreeleftover.”Kesi

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“WhenImovedhereIfeltlikeitwaslikeoneortwoyearswhenIwasjuststruggling,cryingalot

andthefactthatIcouldn’tspeakwithanyone.”Claudio

Fiveparticipantsspokeaboutthedeepsenseofsadnessandlossthattheyfeltintheirinitial

weeksandmonthsinLondon,combinedwithadesiretoreturnhomeand,insomecases,a

feelingoffrustrationandangertowardstheirparentsforbringingthesedifficultiesupon

them.Itisthereforehighlyimportantthatadultsaroundtheseadolescentsinschoolare

sensitivetotheiremotionalstatesandneeds.Itiscrucialforthoseworkingwithmigrant

adolescentstorecognisethatevenifmigrants,ratherthanrefugees,areseentohaveleft

theircountrybychoice,thisisnotthecaseforchildrenandteenagers.Theymayarrive

havingfeelingsofangerandresentmenttoworkthroughratherthaninitiallyfeelingreadyto

embracethenewopportunitiesavailabletothem.

Ifinterpretingparticipants’experiencesintheirearlymonthsinLondonfromapersonal

changeperspectiveusingtheKüblerRoss(2005)StagesofGriefmodel,itcouldbeexpected

thatyoungpeoplewillremainintheShockandDenialphasesforanextendedperiod,dueto

theabruptandundesirednatureoftheirmove,beforemovingonthoughDepressionand

ExperimentationtowardsIntegration.Itisonlyinthelatterstagesofthismodelthattheywill

bereadytolearnandengageactivelywithschoolinLondon.

5.5.4.UnhappinessandresistancetomovetoLondon.Deceptionofteninvolvedininitial

move

“ItoldmymumIdidn’twanttocome,soshesaid,‘Whoareyougoingtostaywith?’AndIsaid,Ican

staywithmybrotherormyauntieormyuncle.”Karmen

“Ididn’tagreewithmymumtocomehere,butonceIknewIdidn’thaveawayback,inmymind

saidIhadtohaveatargetandmytargetwastohaveanallrightlevelofEnglish,havegoodfriends,

playfootball.”Claudio

“No,notatall.TheyhadplannedtocomealreadysoIdidn’thaveanysay[aboutcomingto

London].”Marc

“Iremembercryingeverysingledayandtheschoolwasgoingtostartsoonandtheyhadeverything

readyforme,uniform,school,everything,soitwashorrible.”Kesi

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EightparticipantsdescribedbeinginitiallyveryresistanttotheideaofmovingtoLondon,

havingbeengenerallycontentandsecurewithintheirlivesinSpain.Asmigrationwas

generallyundertakenduetofinancialnecessity,childrendidnothaveanysayorinfluenceon

theirfamilies’decisiontomovetoLondon.Participantsspokeaboutbeinggivenashort

periodoftimetoprepareforthemoveandformanyparticipants,deceptionwasinvolved,in

thattheywereinitiallytoldthattheyweregoingtoLondonforaholiday,ortomeetother

familymembers,buteventuallytoldthattheywerestayinginLondononapermanentbasis.

Duringthememberreflectioninterviews,sixoutofsevenparticipantsrevealedthat

deceptionhadbeeninvolvedintheirinitialmove,havingbeentoldthattheywereinitially

movingtoLondonforaholidayorashorttrip.

5.5.5.Migrationseenasdevelopingpersonalstrengthandperseverance

“Whentheytookthedecisiontomovetohere…ithelpedmetochangemywayofseeingtheworld.

Itmadememorestrong.”Bruno

“IthinkImatured,IthinkitmademeappreciatealotofstuffthatIdidn’thavebackthen.”Claudio

Fiveparticipantsexpressedhowtheyfeltthattheexperienceofmigrationhadeventually

broughtaboutpositivedifferencesintheircharacters,suchasincreasedmaturityand

emotionalstrength.Fiveofsevenparticipantsagreedwiththissubthemeduringmember

reflection.Theyoftenreflectedontheirownpersonalstrengthofcharacter,whichtheyhad

drawnuponinordertomakeitthroughthedifficultearlymonthsinLondon,andcontrasted

theirpersonalitynowtohowithadbeenbeforeinapositiveway.Participantsspokeabout

feelingstrongerandmoreconfidentnow,aswellashavingabetterunderstandingofthe

adultworld.Therewasasenseamongsomeparticipants,however,thattheirmovehad

prematurelyendedtheinnocenceoftheirchildhoods,forcingthemtoconfronthardshipand

difficultyatanearlyage.

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5.6.Theme4:DiscriminationandDifference

“Ohmygosh,ifItoldyouthethingsthattheysay…ohyouneedtogobacktoyourcountry,

youneedtogetout.That’swhattheytellme.I’mlike,that’srudeandthey’relike‘it’sajoke,

it’sajoke’Butasmuchasit’sajoke,Iwishtheydidn’tsayit.”Kemina,Line438

“Yeah,somethinglike,includinglike,causeI’mColombianthey[otherstudents]callmelike

you,youdrugaddictandstufflikethat.”(Kristian,duringmemberreflection).

Figure 5: Theme 4 with five subthemes

Figure5illustratesTheme4,aswellasthefivesubthemesthatcomposeit.Mostparticipants

wereawareof,orhaddirectlyexperienceddiscriminationorxenophobiasincetheirmoveto

London,andthemajoritywerekeenlyawareoftheirstatusaseconomicmigrantsinasociety

thatmostsawasbecominglesswelcomingtowardsnewarrivals.Thisdiscriminationand

senseofdifferencemayservetodistanceyoungpeoplefromBritishidentity,cementinga

viewofthemselvesasoutsiderswithinabroadlyhostilepostEUreferendumnational

context.

Participantsthemselvesdidnotseemtolinknationalidentityconflictstotheirgeneral

wellbeing,unliketheirparentsduringthepilotstudyconductedbythisauthor(Gilsenan,

2016).Foradolescents,theexperiencestheyhadgonethroughduetomigrationandthe

Theme4:DiscriminationandDifference

1.EUreferendumlinked to

negativepublicattitudestoimmigration

2.Experienceofdirect

discriminationornegative

stereotypinginschool

3.Experienceof

discriminationornegative

stereotypinginthewidercommunity

4.Accentandrecencyof

arrival arethekeymarkersofdifference

5.Importanceofan

understandingpeer-groupin

givingconfidenceto

speak

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impactoftheseontheirdevelopmenthadthestrongestimpactonboththeiridentityand

wellbeing.Participantsgenerallysawtheirtwonationalidentitiesassittingeasilysideby

side.Oneexception,however,waswhen,inadifferentschool,directdiscriminationfroman

adultwasexperienceddirectedtowards“Latinos”,whichservedtostrengthenthis

individual’ssenseofLatinAmericanculturalidentityovertheirSpanishidentity.

Participantsseemedtobeparticularlyemotionallyinfluencedbydiscriminationthatcame

fromnon-whiteBritishindividuals,perhapsgiventhattheymayhaveconsideredthempeers

asthoseofamigrantbackgroundorminorityethnicity.However,itappearsthatlinesmaybe

beingredrawnaspartofBritain’sspecificallyanti-migrantpoliticalandmediacontext,which

meansthatLatinAmericanmigrantsstruggletoidentifyalliesinschool,outsideoftheir

immediatecommunity,withdiscriminationfocusedonaccentandrecencyofarrival,rather

thanonethnicityingeneral.Duringthememberreflectioninterviews,participantsalso

mentionedexperiencingdiscriminationwithintheLatinAmericancommunitybasedon

factorssuchasrecencyofarrival.

5.6.1.EUreferendumlinkedtonegativepublicattitudestoimmigration

“Yeah,mostlyBrexit.Like,forexample,I’veheardmanypeople,say‘Ihopetheygoalreadybecause

Latinpeoplearecomingherethemost.MostofitisLatin.’Sotheythinkwe’regoingtotakeallthe

benefits.”Hana

“YoucouldseethetensionwithalltheBrexitthingthatwasgoingon,theyjustwerelikethey're

takingawayyourjobs,they'redoingthis,butthat'snotthecase.”Kesi

“Andthemediahasaninfluence,soifthemediasayssomethingandit’sinthenews,peoplewillbe

influencedbyitandspreadthewordanditgetstous,peoplesaying‘ohthey’regonnacomeand

takeourjobs.’Andtheydon’tseethethingsthatwedoaswell.Wealsohelpthecountrytodevelop,

buttheyjustdon’tseeitthatway.”Kemina,Line494

ThreeparticipantsraisedtheissueoftheUK’sdecisiontoleavetheEUandassociateditwith

anincreasinglyhostilecontextfornewly-arrivedmigrantstotheUK.Fiveoutofseven

participantsalsoagreedduringmemberreflectioninterviews.Manyplacedtheresponsibility

onthemediaforgeneratinganti-migrantsentiment,andsomedirectlylinkedphrasessuchas

“they’retakingourjobs”and“theyshouldgobacktotheirowncountry”,whichtheyhad

heardbothinandoutsideschool,tothoseusedduringthepoliticalandmediadebatearound

theEUreferendum.

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ThereisevidencethatracistincidentsinBritishschoolshaveincreasedinrecentyears(e.g.

Busby2017).ArecentsurveyofteachersinWalesintotheissue,carriedoutbyShowRacism

TheRedCard(2017),highlightedteachers’lackofconfidenceandtrainingonthistopic.

Teacherswerefoundtobeinagreementthatanti-racisteducationshouldhaveaplace

withintheschoolcurriculum,with90%ofteacherssurveyedbelievedthatthiswasa

necessarystep.AfterastudybasedinEngland,WalesandNorthernIrelandshowedthat22%

ofteachersbelievethat,inthelastyear,studentshadexperiencedeitherahatecrimeor

hatespeechwhileatschool(AssociationofTeachersandLecturersATL,2017).Dr.Mary

Bousted,SecretaryoftheATLaddedthat“theGovernmentneedstoproduceupdated

guidancethatincludesdiscussionofhatecrimeandspeechandencouragescriticalthinking.”

Overall,then,apictureemergesofincreasingnumbersofxenophobicandracistincidentsin

schoolandteachingstafffeelingunderpreparedtodealwiththiseffectively.

5.6.2.Experiencesofdirectdiscriminationornegativestereotypinginschool

“Yeah,discrimination.InlikeYear7there’speoplecominguptomebecauseI’mColombianand

sayingohdoyougotcocaine,doyousellcocaine,givemeonekiloplease…andthathurtsme,cause

they’retalkingaboutmycountry,andit’salwayscocaine.”Kristian

“Shesaidwhereareyoufrom,andIwaslike,I’mColombian,andthenshesaidohyeah,youhadto

beColombian.Sothat’swhenIwaslikewhatdoyoumeanIhadtobeColombian,andthenshewas

likeyeah,allyouguysaredoingthesamething.”Kesi

“Becausetheysaythatthey’rejustcomingheretotaketheirparents’jobs…therewerechildrenwho

weregoodwithmebuttherewerechildrenwhowereracistandsaidthoseSpanisharejusthereto

taketheworkfromourparents.”Karmen

Fourparticipantsdescribedinstancesofhavinghostilitydirectedtowardstheminschool,

eithertargetedtowardstheirstatusasarecently-arrivedmigrantortowardstheirLatin

Americanheritage.Afurthertwoparticipants“kindof”agreedduringmemberreflection.In

someinstances,participantssawthatabusewasdisguisedas“jokesandbanter”byothers,

butitwasnotexperiencedassuchbytheindividualsinvolved.Oneparticipantdescribeda

wayinwhichhehadpositivelydealtwithdiscriminationinthepast,byeitherresponding

withhumourorstoppingtheincidentimmediatelybytellingateacher.

WhiletheresearchdiscussedinChapter2describesthenegativeimpactofdiscriminationon

identityformationandpsychologicalwellbeing,otherresearchpointstosubtletiesand

copingmechanismsthatareworthyofexploration.Forexample,Dion,DionandPak(1992)

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foundthatyoungpeoplerespondedtoperceiveddiscriminationthroughdevelopinga

strongerlevelofidentificationwiththeirownethnicorculturalgroup,potentiallytoactasa

shieldagainstnegativesocietalperceptions.Phinney,ChaviraandTate(1993)foundthat

youngpeopleprotectedthemselvesfromdiscriminationbydevelopingandexpressing

negativestereotypesabouttheirgroup,ordownplayingtheimportanceoftheirethnicityor

culturalbackground.Thisminimisingoftheimportanceofnationalityorculturewas

potentiallythecasefortwoparticipantsinparticularinthecurrentstudy,whospokeabout

howtheydidnotidentifyatallwiththeLatinAmericanandSpanishspeakingcommunityin

school.

5.6.3.Experienceofdiscriminationornegativestereotypinginthewidercommunity

“Oh,god.AfterBrexit,Iliterallyheard,like,onthestreets,many,like,racistcommentsagainstLatin

people,andotherminoritygroups.”Hana

“Whentheysayoh,whereareyoufrom,Isayah,I’mColombian,they'llrelateyoustraightaway

withPabloEscobarandtheywillassumethatyouaredisrespectful,naughty,notverygood.”Kesi

“Because,peoplethinkthatimmigrantstheycomeheretotakeourjobsandeventhoughtheEnglish

peoplesay‘oh,wedon’tsaythat’.It’struethattheydo.Deepinsidetheydosaythatandsometimes

whenyouwatchthenews,themessage,themoralisthatimmigrantsarecomingtotakeourjobs.”

Kemina,Line491

Discriminationinthewidercommunitywasoftenseenashidden,butthemajorityof

participants,fiveintotal,perceivedanegativeattitudetowardsthem,havingdirectly

experiencedorbeenawareofcommentstofamilymembersaboutimmigrantstakingjobs

andbenefits.Duringmemberreflection,allparticipantseitherstronglyor“kindof”agreed

thatdiscriminationinthewidercommunityisanissue.Participantsfeltliketheywere

treateddifferentlyinthewiderworldduetotheirstatusasrecently-arrivedmigrants.Two

hadexperienceddirecthostilityfrommembersofthepublicbasedonthefactthattheywere

speakingSpanishonpublictransportandinthestreet.

Itisnoteworthythatmembersofthesamecommunityhadverydifferentexperiencesof

prejudiceanddiscriminationwithinasimilarschoolandlocalcontext,andassuch,available

researchwasconsultedinanattempttoexplainthis.AstudybyRuggieroandTaylor(1997)

exploredself-esteemandperceivedcontrolinordertoinvestigatewhymembersofminority

groupsattimesminimisediscriminationexperiencedwhenaskedtospeakaboutit

afterwards.IndividualsofAsianandblackheritagerespondedtonegativefeedbackafter

77

beingpresentedwithinformationregardingtheprobabilityofdiscrimination.Overall,

membersofminoritygroupstendedtominimisetheimpactofdiscriminationandinstead

blamedthemselvesfortheirperceivedfailure.Byminimisingtheimpactofdiscriminationas

theydid,individualsfromanethnicminorityprotectedtheirsocialstateself-esteem.This

was,however,atthecostofloweringtheirperformancestateself-esteem.

5.6.4.Accentandrecencyofarrivalarethekeymarkersofdifference

“Everyonetalksaboutmyaccent.Everyone.Myteachersdon’tsayitinarudewaybutthere’s

peopleinmyschool,especiallytheYear11swhoalwayshavetosaysomethingaboutmyaccent.”

Kemina,Line427

“Weknowthegrammarperfectly,perhapseventhewordsandhowtospell,butwestilldon’tknow

reallyhowtopronounce.”Hana

“MaybethepronunciationisthemostdifficultthingforSpanishspeakers…sometimespeoplecan’t

understandyouwhenyou’retryingtotalkwiththem.”Marc

“SomaybeifsomeonewastryingtospeakinEnglishandobviouslytheywouldhaveafunnyaccent,

andallofthat,theywouldjustlaughatit.”Kesi

EvenwhenprogressismadeinEnglishlanguageacquisition,accentmarksmigrantteenagers

outasdifferent,andwasoftenatargetforbullyingandinsultsfromotherstudentsinschool.

Fiveparticipantsspokeaboutthefactthatalthoughtheyhadmaderapidprogressin

acquiringgrammarandvocabularyinEnglish,theaspectthattheyfoundmostdifficultto

masterwaspronunciation.Allparticipantseitherstronglyagreedor“kindof”agreedwith

thisduringmemberreflection.Thiswasreportedtoimpactontheirabilitytobeunderstood

byothers,andalsomadethematargetattimesforcruelcommentsfromotherstudents.

SomeeventuallyrealisedthattheywouldlikelyneverspeakwithanativeEnglishaccenteven

iftheyachievedfluency,andassuch,becamemoreassertiveinrespondingtothese

comments,astheirconfidenceinEnglishgrew.Moyer(2004)observesthataccentis

“psychologicallyloaded”(p.42)becauseitallowsthespeakertobeidentifiedimmediatelyas

eithernativeornon-native,theresponsetowhichmaydifferwidelybetweenvarioussocial

contexts,somethingthatparticipantsinthisstudyappearedtobeacutelyawareof.

5.6.5.Importanceofhavinganunderstandingpeergroupingivingconfidencetospeak

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“Imeantheylearnedwithme,theywaitedformetogetmywordsoutandtheyallowedmeto

expressmyselfinawaythatIfeltconfident,andIdidn’tfeelliketheywouldlaughorembarrassme

infrontofeveryone.”Claudio

“WhenIjoinedthebasketballteamandeveryonewasseriousandliketheywerefocusedon

basketballsoevenifyousaiditwrongtheywouldcoachyou,theywouldn’tlaugh,theywouldn’t

makeajoke.”Kesi

FourparticipantsmentionedthatitwasessentialtotheirdevelopmentofEnglishlanguage

skillstohaveasocialcontextwithintheirfirstyearthatwasunderstandingandgavethem

theconfidencetospeakinEnglishinanon-judgementalenvironment.Onemoreparticipant

“kindof”agreedwiththisduringmemberreflection.ForthosewhohadarrivedinEngland

duringtheprimaryschoolyears,schoolwasoftenseentoprovidethiscontext.Secondary

school,however,wasgenerallyseenasalessnurturingandcaringenvironment.Forthose

whohadarrivedafterYear7,settingssuchassportsteamsprovidedamoreconfidence-

buildingenvironment.

Oneparticipantmentionedhowbeinggiventheresponsibilityofbeingmadeprefecttookher

mindofftheself-consciousnessthatshehadaroundspeakingEnglish,allowinghertofocus

onprojectingapositiveimageofherselfgenerally.Anotherparticipantmentionedhowhe

valuedthefactthatteacherssometimesusedhimasarolemodelformorenewly-arrived

studentstohighlighttheprogresstheycouldmakeinEnglishandacademicwork.

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5.7.Theme5:NavigatingaMulticulturalBackground

“They[parents]trytosupportyou,theytrytoempathisewithyou…theycantryashardas

theycanbutit'sgonnabeimpossibleforthemunlesstheycangothroughthesame

experienceofgoingtoanewschoolandlearninganewcountry.”(Claudio,duringmember

reflection)

Figure 6: Theme 5 with four subthemes

Figure6illustratesTheme5,aswellasthefoursubthemesthatcomposeit.Althoughover

halfoftheparticipantsinthisstudywereborninaLatinAmericancountry,allparticipants

hadspentatleastpartoftheirchildhoodinSpainand,assuch,werenowforcedtonavigate

theirevolvingidentityinathirdcountrythatdifferedfromtheirandtheirparents’birth

country.Youngpeople,then,hadtonavigatebeingpartofa“Latino”schoolandlocal

community,whichtheyfeltavaryinglevelofidentificationwithorrelianceupon,whilealso

adaptingtoBritishcultureandeducation.Therewasasenseamongparticipantsthatparents

didnothaveahighlevelofunderstandingorabilitytoempathisedirectlywiththeirchildren

regardingthespecificdifficultiestheyexperienced,leadingtocertainparticipantsfeeling

quiteisolatedwithintheirfamilies.Anagnostopoulosetal.(2006,p.236),inastudylooking

Theme5:NavigatingaMulticulturalBackground

1.Adolescentsfeeltheir

experiencesarenotrecognised

andunderstoodby

parents

2.Culturaldifferencesperceived

betweenhomecountryand

theUK

3.FeelingcomfortablewithmixedSpanishand

Latin Americanidentity

4.PrideinLatinAmericanheritage

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atadolescentexperiencesofmigrationanditsimpactonfamilydynamics,providean

explanationofthisprocess,describinghowthe“invariablypainfulgradualprocessofthe

parents’de-idealization,whichusuallyoccursduringadolescence,nowmaybecome

traumatic,duetoitsforcedexternalverification.”Theyconcludethataftertherejectionof

parentalauthority,adolescentscanthenbecomeisolated,disillusionedandatriskofseeking

alternativestoparentalauthoritywithintheirenvironments.

ParticipantsalsohighlightedthattheyfounditdifficulttoidentifyaparticularBritishculture

tointegrateinto,residinginthemostdiverseboroughinEngland.Thisfitswithother

researchconductedinLondonbyCooke(2008),whoconcludesthatnewly-arrivedyoung

peoplefoundthemselvesfrequentlylivinginmulticulturalareasofLondonthatwere

“occasionallythesitesofconflictaswellastogethernessindifference”(Cooke,2008,p.22).

Intheirreviewofsocialvaluesandculture,MasgoretandWard(2006)foundthatknowledge

ofthenewcountry’svaluesandcultureaidstheacculturationprocessbutisnotdirectly

relatedtotheestablishmentofpositivecommunicationandrelationships.Theyconclude

thatthebestsocioculturaladaptationoutcomesarebasedonhavingaclearunderstandingof

thedifferencesinvaluesandbeliefsfoundinthenewculture,ratherthaninpurelyaccepting

thesewithoutconsideration.Thissuggeststhatintegrationisatwo-wayprocessofboth

gettingtoknownewsocialnorms,aswellasreflectinguponthoseofone’shomeculture.

Immersioninoneparticularhobby,usuallyremovedfromlanguage,seemedtobeawayfor

someparticipantsofgroundingtheiridentityinsomethingfromthepast.Thiswassomething

thatwasafeatureofthelivesofthosewhoappearedtohaveadaptedbesttolifeinLondon.

5.7.1.Adolescentsfeeltheirexperiencesarenotrecognisedandunderstoodbyparents

“Yeahbecausetheparentsthinkthatit’smorepositivethingsthannegativethings...Ithinkthey

shouldtellparentshowchildrenfeelwhentheychangecountryfromonedaytoanotherbecause

theirliveschangeintheblinkofaneyeandfromthatdaytheythinkthattheirliveschanged

totally.”Karmen

“Shedoesn’tknowwhenIhavehomework,allshesaysishaveyougotanyhomework?Goanddoit.

Shedoesn’tknowhowI’mdoinginschoolorcometoparents’eveningevenifthey

callher.”Claudio

Fourparticipantsinitiallyspokeaboutfeelingthattheirparentsdidnothaveagood

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understandingofthedifficultiesthattheyhadtogothroughinadaptingtolifeinLondon,

particularlyinschool.Allparticipantseitherstronglyor“kindof”agreedwiththisduring

memberreflection.Therewasasensethatparentsexpectedtheirchildrentobehappyand

enthusiasticaboutthenewopportunitiesaffordedtothembylifeinLondon,withoutfully

appreciatingthesadnessandemotionaldifficultiesthattheyexperiencedduringthe

transition.Oneparticipantalsospokeaboutthefactthathisparentshadalowlevelof

understandingofthenatureofhisschoolworkandthetasksdemandedofhim.

ResearchconductedinFrancebyMoguérouandSantelli(2015)demonstratesthathelpfrom

parentsofmigrantchildrenandadolescentsisoftenunforthcoming,mainlybecauseparents’

lackofknowledgeoftheeducationsystemmeansthattheircapacitytoofferpractical

supportislimited,andthatsiblingsareoftenamajorsourceofeducationalsupportinlarge

migrantfamilies.Thisissomethingthatparticipantsinthisstudymentionedonoccasion,

withextendedfamilysuchascousinsprovidingrolemodelsandsupportforacademic

achievement,whichparentswereunabletodo.

5.7.2.CulturaldifferencesperceivedbetweenhomecountryandtheUK

“ThepeoplearoundmebehavedifferentlythaninSpain…theyaremorechattyandfreetotalkto

otherpeoplethaninSpain.”Bruno

“IknowinSpainweraiseourvoicealot,butitdoesn’tseemlikewe’reactuallyfighting.Buthereit

soundslikethey’refightingeverytime…asyougetalittlebitmoretimehereandyoukeepliving

hereforawhileyouunderstandit’sactuallyfriendlyfighting.”Hana

“Butbefore,whenIcamehereIthoughtIwasgonnaseemany,manywhitepeopledrinkingtea

[laughs].”Kristian

Fourparticipantsmentionedexperiencingadegreeofculturaldissonanceuponmovingto

LondonfromSpain.TheygenerallyknewlittleofmodernBritishsocietyandculturebefore

movingtoLondonandweresurprisedbyLondon’smulticulturalnature,havingexpecteda

moretraditionalandmonoculturalWhite-Britishenvironment.

5.7.3.FeelingcomfortablewithmixedSpanishandLatinAmericanidentity

“Yeah,IfeellikeI’mSpanishandfromEcuadoratthesametime.”Karmen

“Idon’tmindreally,beingcalledSpanishorEcuadorian.”Samuel

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“IfeelmoreDominicanbecauseofmyparentsandfamily,butIfeelSpanishaswell.Idon’tthinkI

willeverfeelEnglish.”Marc

“IfeelmoreSpanish,butIknowthatI’mBoliviansoIsaytopeoplethatI’mfromBolivia.”Bruno

ParticipantsgenerallyfeltthattheirSpanishandLatinAmericanidentitiessateasilybeside

eachotheranddidnotexperiencealargedegreeofconflictbetweenthem.Fourparticipants

mentionedthisdirectly,butthetopicdidnotariseintheotherinterviews.Allparticipants

eitherstronglyor“kindof”agreedwiththissubthemeduringmemberreflection.Thiswasin

strongcontrasttoearlierresearchbythisauthor(Gilsenan,2016),inwhichparentsfeltthat

issuesofnationalidentityconflictunderpinnedmanyoftheemotionaldifficulties

experiencedbytheirchildren.Knaussetal.(2015)describe,however,howthistypeof

transculturalidentitymaymakeadolescentsmoresusceptibletothenegativeimpactof

discriminationthanthosewhoholdasinglenationalorethnicidentity.

ThoseborninSpaingenerallysawthemselvesasequallySpanishandLatinAmerican,

whereasthoseborninLatinAmericaprioritisedtheirLatinAmericanheritageovertheir

Spanish,despitethefactthatfeaturessuchastheiraccenthadoftenbeenshapedbytheir

timeinSpain.Oneparticipantwasconsciousofsomeconflictinhisnationalidentityinthat

hefeltmoreSpanish,havinglefthishomecountryatayoungage,butfeltitwasmore

honesttosayhewasfromBolivia,sincehehadbeenbornthere.Anotherparticipanthad

experiencedhidinghisLatinidentitywhilehewasinSpaininordertoblendinwiththe

majorityculture.

Twoparticipantsspokeabouttheiridentityassomethingtheycouldcontrolandshaperather

thantheircultureorhomelanguagebeingsomethingfixedthatdefinedasignificantelement

oftheiridentityorpersonality.Theseparticipantsseemedtorejectcultureassomethingthat

definesanindividual’ssenseofself,andinsteadappearedtoviewcultureassomethingthat

contributeslittletotheiridentityoverall.ThisissomethingthatMcLean(2016)alsofoundin

herresearchlookingatthetheexperiencesofmixed-raceyoungpeople,whereshedescribes

theideathatforsomeyoungpeople,culturewas“rejectedinlightofanindependentsense

ofself”(McLean,2016,p.150).Fortheseparticipants,aspectssuchastheirinterestsinmusic

orsportweremuchmoreimportantfortheminformingwhotheyare.

5.7.4.PrideinLatinAmericanheritage

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“I’mproudtobeColombianandIwillalwaysbeproud.SoIdon’tmindifyoulike,insultme,likeI

don’tcare,I’mnotgoingtohearyou.”Kristian

“Ibelievethatyoushouldneverforgetyourrootsandifyou'reColombian,butyeah,youcamehere,

you'restillColombian.IfyouwanttotaketheBritishcultureofcourse‘cosyouhavetherightto,you

werebroughtuphere,butatleastkeepyourotherhalfintact.”Kesi

“EvenifIgottogotoSpainrightnowIthinkIhaveamoredevelopedmind-set,moremature,and

I’vekindofrealisedthatthefactthatI’verefusedthatIwasColombianwasquitestupid,andabit

prejudicedagainsttheColombianpeoplereally.”Claudio

FiveparticipantsmentionedfeelingasenseofprideintheirLatinAmericanheritage,andone

inparticulardecidedtobeginidentifyingasColombianratherthanasSpanishaftermovingto

theUK.Participantsalsospokeaboutthevalueintheirschoolrecognisingandcelebrating

LatinAmericancultureandgivingequalprominenceandimportanceto,forexample,

tragediesandeventsthatoccurinSouthAmericatothosethatoccurinEurope,wantingtheir

schooltoadoptaglobalstandpoint,freeofEurocentricbiasintermsoftheprioritygivento

globalevents.

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5.8.Theme6:AdaptingtoaNewSchool

“Thefactthatyou’vegotaplacewhereyoucanbesafeinawayandthenhaveyourfriends

andalsolearn,it'sverygood.School’salwaysbeenthereandeventhoughIdon’tfeelthat

feelingasmuchwhenI’minschool,whenI’moutsideIreallymissschool.”Claudio

Figure 7: Theme 6 with two subthemes

Figure7illustratesTheme6,aswellasthetwosubthemeswhichcomposeit.Participants

spokeatlengthabouttheexperienceofadaptingtoanewschoolenvironment,andthe

positivesandnegativesthishadbroughttothem,bothsociallyandacademically.Thevast

majorityofparticipantsspokepositivelyaboutschoolandwerehighlymotivatedtoachieve

academically.However,ageneralpictureemergedaroundhowtheideaofbeing“fromhere”

asdemonstratedthroughaccentandrecencyofarrival,appearedtobekeytoentryinto

society’s“in-group”.Strongrelationshipswithindividualteachersintheschoolwhoactedas

advocateswereparticularlyimportantforcertainparticipants,andsomespokeaboutthe

practicaldifficultyofcommunicatingwithteachersingeneralintheirearlymonthsinschool,

andthustheimportanceofhavingonepersonintheschoolwhomtheycouldtrust.All

participantswereawareoftheexistenceofa“Latino”or“Spanishspeaking”communityin

theschool,buttheyhadverydifferentrelationshipswiththis.Somewerefullyimmersedand

Theme6:AdaptingtoaNewSchool

1.Educationalachievementseen asaroute

tosocialacceptance

2.Comfortinsharingtheexperienceoflanguagelearning

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spokeaboutspendingmostoftheirtimeoutsidelessonsspeakingSpanish,whereasothers

hadverylittlesocialcontactwithotherSpanishspeakerswithintheschool.

Schoolhasthepotentialtoprovideaparticularlyimportantenvironmentformigrant

adolescentsandtoofferanormalisingcontext,tohelpthemtofeelsecurethroughset

routines,andtoprovideasecondsecurebaseoutsideoftheirhome,orperhapstheironly

securebase.Thiscanfacilitateexplorationandtheexperienceofapsychosocialmoratorium

amongmigrantyoungpeople.

Buildingonthisidea,inresearchconductedbytheOrganisationforEconomicCo-operation

andDevelopment(OECD,2015),firstgenerationmigrantstudentsintheUnitedKingdom

expressedastrongersenseofbelongingatschoolthanthosewithoutamigration

background(OECD,2015).Thisfitswiththefindingsofthecurrentresearch,wherealmostall

participantsspokepositivelyabouttheirexperienceinschoolandtheirfeelingofbelonging

there.InthisOECD(2015)study,havingahigherpercentageofmigrantstudentsinaschool

wasfoundnottohaveanynegativeimpactoneitheroverallacademicperformanceorsocial

integration.However,thereportsuggeststhat“afteraccountingforsocio-economicstatus

andperformanceinreadingandmathematics,immigrantstudentsare44%morelikelythan

non-immigrantstudentstobeenrolledinvocationalprogrammes”(p.14),andthat“the

systematictrackingofdisadvantagedimmigrantsintovocationalpathwaysandless-

demandingcoursesnotonlylimitstheacademicskillstheymayacquire,butalsocreatesan

additionalbarrierintohigh-statusprofessionaloccupationslateron”(p.14).Thisisafactor

thatwasnotspecificallyexploredinmyresearch,butgiventhelossofconfidenceexpressed

byparticipantsaftermigration,itislikelythattheymayacceptalessambitiousacademic

trajectory,ifthisisproposedbytheschool.

5.8.1.Educationalachievementseenasaroutetosocialacceptance

“Youneededucationbecauseifyou’renotgoodinyoureducation,thenpeoplearegoingtosay‘oh,

you’redumb,youneedtostartstudyingmore’andpeoplewilltellyoustuffaboutyourselfthatyou

wouldn’tliketohear.”Kemina,Line96

“Becauseschoolisimportantinlife,ifyouwanttobesomeoneinlifeyouhavetogotoschooland

besomeoneandlike,getahighlevel.Idon’twanttobenothing,Iwanttogetmymoney.”Kristian

Threeparticipantsspokeabouttheirsensethatdoingwellinschoolwouldallowthemto

progressandbeseenpositivelybyboththeirfamilyandsocietyasawhole.Afurtherthree

86

eitherstronglyor“kindof”agreedwiththisduringmemberreflection.However,one

participantwasalsoconsciousofthenegativeattentionthatsuccesscanbringwithina

minoritycommunity,wherelosingone’saccent,achievingwellinschoolandthelooseningof

tiestothecommunitycouldbemetwithresentmentfromsomeparts.Thislinkstoprevious

researchbyCarter(2006),whoidentifiedthenotionof“actingwhite”,andfoundthat

academicallysuccessfulAfricanAmericanstudentsoftenriskedbeingnegativelylabelledfor

theiracademicachievement,andlosingsocialcapitalamongtheirpeers.Asaconsequence,

theyoftenresisteddoingschoolworkandworkedtodeflectattentionfromeducational

achievement,stressingtheirachievementsinsportsinstead,andsharingworkwithlower-

achievingpeersasawaytobuildandmaintainsocialties.IntheUK,researchbytheEP

Robinson(2013)uncoveredsimilarfindingswhenexaminingpeerrelationshipsandidentity

amonghighlyachievingboysofAfro-CaribbeanheritageinLondon.Shefoundthatboysin

thestudysawthatpeerscouldhavebothapositiveandnegativeimpactonattainment,and

thatboysusedquitecomplexstrategiestomanagetheserelationshipsandbalance

popularityontheonehandwithacademicattainmentontheother.Robinson(2013)speaks

abouthow“boyswereveryawareofhowtheyperformedandwereperceivedbyothers.The

boyspurposefullycreatedcharactersforthemselvesandoccupieddifferentpositionsto

differentends”(Robinson,2013,p.87).ThisreflectssomewhattheexperienceofClaudio,

whospokeabouthowotherscouldsometimesseehisachievementpositivelybydescribing

himas“smart”,orelsenegativelybylabellinghima“nerd”.

5.8.2.Comfortinsharingtheexperienceoflanguagelearning

“Yeah,itwasapositivething.Yeah,becausethereweremoreSpanishpeoplewhodidn’tknowhow

tospeakEnglishwithme,soIwascomfortable.”Kemina,Line255.

“Ifeltnervousthattherewouldn’tbeanyonetotalkto.ButwhenIcamehereIfoundpeoplethat

spokeSpanish.”Bruno

“Yeah,ImentionedthefriendItoldyouthatwasreallycompetitivewithme,meandhimwentvery

wellalonginYear6andIthinkitwasdestinyintheformthatbothofuscametothesameschool,

andthankstohimI’vealways,I’veneverfeltlonely,I’vealwayshadhim.”Claudio

Fiveparticipantsmentionedthattheyvaluedhavingthesensethattheywerenottheonly

onegoingthroughtheexperienceoflanguagelearning.Havingsomelanguageteachingin

smallgroups,supportedbytheirhomelanguage,gavestudentsafeelingthattheywere

beingsupportedandnotaloneintheexperience.Peersalsoinfluencedparticipantsby

providingsomepositivecompetitionandinfluence.

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MostparticipantsspokeabouttheimportantroleofhavingaSpanishspeakingfriendintheir

initialweeksandmonthsinLondoninordertoeasethetransitiontotheirnewschool.

5.9.RelativePrevalenceofThemes

Throughoutthischapter,thenumberofparticipantswhosequotesmakeupagiven

subthemehasbeenoutlinedinthetext.Themes1,3,and5wereuniversal,inthatevery

participantcontributedtoatleastoneofthesubthemesthatmakeupthesethemes.Eight

participantscontributedtoTheme4,sevencontributedtoTheme2andsixparticipants

contributedtoTheme6.

Thetablebelowoutlinestherelativeprevalenceofeachthemeandsubthemeacrossthe

nineparticipantinterviews.Forexample,Theme1,subtheme1is‘Familyastheoneconstant

andkeyinfluenceonadolescents.’Thiswasreportedbyallparticipants,ascanbeseeninthe

secondcolumnofthetable,witha‘1’ineachrow.

Table2:RelativeImportanceofThemesforEachParticipant

Name Theme1:

Constrained

Freedom

andHigh

Pressure

Theme2:

Aspiration

and

Confidence

Loss

Theme3:

Emotional

Difficulties

and

Feelingsof

Loss

Theme4:

Discriminati

onand

Difference

Theme5:

Navigating

a

Multicultur

al

Background

Theme6:

Adaptingto

aNew

School

Kemina Subtheme

1,2,3,4

Subtheme

2,3

Subtheme

1,4

Subtheme

1,2,3

Subtheme

4

Subtheme

1,2

Bruno Subtheme

1

Subtheme

3,4

Subtheme

1,3,5

Subtheme

5

Subtheme

2,3

Subtheme

2

Kristian Subtheme

1,4

Subtheme

1,2

Subtheme

1,2,4,5

Subtheme

2

Subtheme

1,2,4

Subtheme

1

Karmen Subtheme

1,3,4

Subtheme

3

Subtheme

1,2,4,3

Subtheme

2,5

Subtheme:

1,3

Subtheme

2

Samuel Subtheme

1

N/A Subtheme

2,3,4

N/A Subtheme

3

N/A

Hana Subtheme

1

Subtheme

1,3,4

Subtheme

1,2,4,5

Subtheme

1,3,4

Subtheme

4,2

N/A

88

Claudio Subtheme

1,2,3,4

N/A Subtheme

1,2,3,4,5

Subtheme

3,5

Subtheme

1,4

Subtheme

1,2

Marc Subtheme:

1

Subtheme

2

Subtheme

4

Subtheme

3,4

Subtheme

3

N/A

Kesi Subtheme

1

Subtheme

1,2,4

Subtheme

1,4,3,5

Subtheme

12,3,4,5,

Subtheme

1,2,4

Subtheme

2Total

Numberof

Participants

Contributing

toTheme

9 7 9 8 9 6

5.10.KeyFindings

Thesethreekeyfindingsarebasedonthesixthemesidentifiedinthischapter.The

ImplicationsforPracticedescribedinChapter6respondtoeachofthesethreekeyfindings.

1.Specificallyanti-migrantdiscriminationisanissue,andistargetedatandimpacting

particularlyuponrecently-arrivedadolescents.

BasedonTheme4:DiscriminationandDifference

2.Lackoffreedomcombinedwithlanguagedifficultiescausemigrantadolescents’personal

andidentitydevelopmenttostallforaperiodaftermigration.

BasedonTheme3:EmotionalDifficultiesandFeelingsofLoss,andTheme5:Navigatinga

MulticulturalBackground.

3.Intergenerationaldifficultiesarecommon.Theseareoftenunderpinnedbytheperceived

deceptioninvolvedintheinitialmovetotheUK,combinedwithadolescents’feelingthat

theirparentscannotsupporttheiracademicandsocialdevelopmenthere.

BasedonTheme1:ConstrainedFreedomandHighPressure,andTheme2:Aspirationand

ConfidenceLoss.

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Chapter6:ImplicationsforPractice

6.1.Introduction

Inthissection,arangeofimplicationsforpracticeareoutlinedthroughaconsiderationof

howEPpracticecandevelopbasedonthefindingsofthecurrentresearchandinwhatareas

EPscanprovidemosteffectivesupporttoschools.ItisofvalueforEPstoraisethe

importanceofissuesrelatedtoidentityformationwithinschoolaspartofourwhole-school

mentalhealthremit.AshighlightedbySchwartzandPetrova(2018,p.1),“greater

consistencyandcoherencewithinone’ssenseofidentityislikelytoleadtohigherwell-being,

fewersymptomsofanxietyanddepression,andlowerlikelihoodofengagementin

delinquentandhealth-compromisingbehaviours.”Assuch,itisofimportancetodiscover

andimplementwaysofpromotinghealthyidentitydevelopmentinyoungpeople,whilealso

developingaclearunderstandingofhowtopreventdifficultiesinidentitydevelopment.EPs

havethepotentialtoprovidevaluablesupporttoschoolsinthisarea.

Oneimportantpointtonoteisthatfrom1999until2011,localauthoritiespossessed

additionalring-fencedfundingforEALlearnersthroughtheEthnicMinorityAchievement

(EMA)grant(Strand,2015),whichalsofundedEMAteamswithinlocalauthorities.Mostof

thesehavesincebeencutbythecurrentgovernment,andtheboroughwherethisresearch

tookplacehasnooverallLApolicyfortheintegrationofmigrantandEALpupils.Thisisnow

downtoschoolsindividually,andassuch,EPscanplayakeyroleinensuringthattheneeds

ofthisgrouparemetwithinschools.

6.2.ImplicationsbasedonKeyFinding1:

Specificallyanti-migrantdiscriminationisanissue,andistargetedatandimpacting

particularlyuponrecently-arrivedstudents

ThisfindingdrawsonTheme4:DiscriminationandDifference.

ThereisaneedforEPstobeinvolvedintraininginschoolsfocusedonthefollowingareas:

• Supportingadolescentsinrespondingtodiscrimination.

• Developingteachers’confidenceinintervening.

• Respondingtoincidentsaftertheyoccur,asanopportunityforlearning.

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Anti-migrantdiscriminationwasaprominentthemewithinmyresearchfindingsand

somethingthatresearchshowsisincreasingwithinschools,thatschoolsarestrugglingto

dealwitheffectively,andthathasastrongnegativeimpactonidentityformation.Inthis

sectionofmyreport,IwillconsiderwhatthismeansforEPpractice,andspecifically,howEPs

canmosteffectivelysupportschoolsinthisarea.

AsEPsMohamed(2012)andMohamedandThomas(2017)highlight,schoolshavealegal

dutytoplayanactiveroleinpreventinganddealingwithbullyingand“schoolsshouldhave

robustproceduresinplacethatrecogniseanddealwithbullyingandracistincidents,aswell

asprovisiontosupportchildrenwhomaybeexperiencingbullying”(MohamedandThomas,

p.259).Theyhighlighthowprovisioncouldpotentiallyincludearangeofapproaches,

includingsocialskillsinterventions,therapeuticinputandpeermentoring.Oneofthese

approaches,peersupport,iselaboratedhere.EPsmayalsoplayaroleinsupportingschools

toaddresswidersocio-politicaleventssuchastheEUreferendumwithintheclassroomto

ensurethatdominantmediaandpoliticaldiscoursesarenotreplayedunchallenged,andthat

teachersfeelmoreconfidentdealingwithinstancesofdiscriminationwithintheclassroom.

6.2.1.Supportingadolescentsinrespondingtodiscrimination

OnewaythatEPscanusethefindingsofthisresearchisinsupportingschoolstodevelop

peersupportapproachestocounteranti-migrantbullying.Cowie,MyersandAziz(2017)

highlighthowpeersupportmethods“havebeenshownovermanyyearstoimprovethe

emotionalclimateofaschoolandtoencouragechildrentotakeactionagainstbullyingand

otherformsofsocialexclusion”(p.96).ThisisanareainwhichEPshavethepotentialto

makeasignificantimpact,bysupportingschoolsinatrainingcapacitytodevelopwhole-

schoolpractice,asPriceandJones(2001)havedonepreviously.Thisstudyexploredthe

implementationofapeer-supportschemeinasecondaryschoolinWales,andshowedsome

positiveimpact,bothforthepeermentorsthemselvesandthestudentstheysupported.

However,theyencounterednumerousorganisationalandtimetablingdifficultiesandalso

reportedthatstudentsexpressedasenseofstigmaaroundseekingsupport.Thissuggests

thatpeer-supportapproachesmaybemoreeffectiveifallstudentsinagivenyeargroupare

trainedandinvolvedratherthanonlyspecificvolunteers.

6.2.2.Developingteachers’confidenceinintervening

Thisstudyhashighlightedthatitisimportantthatdiscriminationonthebasisof

characteristicssuchasaccentandrecencyofarrivalisdealtwithbyschoolsonan

organisationallevelandconsideredalongsidediscriminationonthebasisofethnicity,sexual

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orientation,orothercategoriesprotectedbytheEqualityAct(2010).Thismayrequireinput

forteachingstaffonissuessuchasculturalcompetenceandtheappropriatewaytoboth

avoidandchallengesubtleinstancesofprejudiceanddiscrimination.Participantsinthis

studymentionedexperiencingdiscriminationonafrequentbasisinschool,particularlyona

minority-on-minoritybasis.Knaussetal.(2015)proposesthatalthoughitisimportantto

educateyoungpeopleinhowtodealwithdiscriminationandracism,“supporting

adolescentstocopewithexperiencesofdiscriminationisnotenough.Itisalsoimportantto

keeponraisingawarenessaboutthedetrimentaleffectsofobvious,aswellassubtleethnic

discrimination,andabouttherelevanceofappreciatingdiversityinsociety”(p.10).

ThereisscopeforEPstobecomeinvolvedinworkinthisarea,highlightingthepsychological

impactofdiscriminationandsupportingteachersindevelopingculturalcompetencyskills.A

BritishPsychologicalSociety(2006)paperonpromotingracialequalitywithinEPservices

highlightsthatakeyelementofaddressingracisminschoolsistheimplementationofanti-

racistapproachesaspartofthecurriculumandphilosophyofschoolstopreventthe

developmentofentrenchedracistattitudes.Suchapproachesshouldaddressbeliefs,feelings

andbehaviours.ThisisanareathatEPsshouldbeinvolvedinwithinschoolsaspartofa

whole-schoolapproachtomentalhealthandwellbeing.

6.2.3.Respondingtoincidentsaftertheyoccurasanopportunityforlearning

Bothapproachesmentionedintheprecedingsectionsaimtopreventinstancesofanti-

migrantdiscriminationfromoccurringwithinschools.Thisresearchalsosuggests,however,

thatthereisaneedforschoolstoconsiderhowtorespondtoinstancesofdiscrimination

whentheydooccur.Restorativeapproachesareawayofenablingthosewhohavebeen

harmedordamagedinsomewaytocommunicatethistothoseresponsibleandforthemto

acknowledgethisimpactandtakeactiontomakeamends.Cowie,MyersandAziz(2017)

proposethat“restorativepracticeinschools,includingconflictresolution,canhelptochange

theclimateofparticularsocialcontextsandofferwin-winalternativestoviolenceandabuse”

(p.96),citingrecentresearchsuchasthatcarriedoutbySellman,CreminandMcCluskey

(2017).Theypositthat“schoolsareinanidealpositiontoaddresssocialandmoralissues,

suchastheroleofincomersinmainstreamsociety,andcancreateopportunitiesforyoung

peopletoengageinreasoneddebatesaboutcontroversialissues”(Cowie,MyersandAziz,

2017,p96).

Macready(2009),anEP,drewuponaVygotskian,sociallearningperspectiveinproposinga

restorativejusticemodelforschools,basedontheideathatthelearningenvironments

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withinschoolsarecrucialtothelearningofsocialresponsibility.Macready(2009)concludes

that“restorativepracticeoffersopportunitiesforlearningsocialresponsibilitybothata

reactivelevelofspecificanduniqueepisodesofinteraction,andataproactivelevelthatwill

reflect,aswellasconstitute,thevaluesandprinciplesoftheschoolcommunity”(p.219).It

wouldbebeneficialforEPstobuildonMacready’sworkandsupportschoolstodeveloptheir

practiceinthisarea.Oneimportantpointtonote,however,isthatarangeofanti-bullying

approachesinschoolshavebeenshowntobelesseffectiveinmorediverseenvironments

(Evans,FraserandCotter,2014),suggestingthattheimplementationofanti-bullying

programsindiverse,heterogeneousschoolpopulations,suchastheoneinwhichthis

researchtookplace,presentsauniquesetofchallenges.Theauthorsstresstheneedfor

interventionsinthesekindsofschoolsbeingculturallysensitive,andalso“embeddedina

broadarrayofpreventioneffortsdesignedtoaddressriskfactorsattheindividual,family,

neighborhood,andschoollevels”(p.9).PalmerandAbbot(2018)buildonthisidea,by

highlightingthedistinctionbetweenbias-basedandinterpersonalbullying.Theyproposethat

thepromotionofmoreinclusiveattitudestowardawiderangeofsocialgroupsmaybeof

particularimportanceindiverseenvironments,sothat“practitionerscanreferstudentsto

thesediscussionswhendealingwithspecificincidentsofbias-basedbullying”(p.42).They

suggestthat“fosteringoverarchingidentitieswhilevaluingdifferenceandcreatinginclusive

norms”(p.4)hasthepotentialtoleadtoinstancesofbias-basedbullyingbeingmetwith

moreprosocialbystanderresponses.

6.3.ImplicationsbasedonKeyFinding2:

Lackoffreedomcombinedwithlanguagedifficultiescausemigrantadolescents’personal

andidentitydevelopmenttostallforaperiodaftermigration

ThisfindingdrawsuponTheme3:EmotionalDifficultiesandFeelingsofLoss,andTheme5:

NavigatingaMulticulturalBackground.

ThereisaneedforEPsworkingdirectlywithadolescentsandteachersto:

• Providepsychologicalsupportformigrantadolescentsanddirectinterventions

focusedonidentityformation.

• Challengethelow-settingofrecently-arrivedstudentsandsupportschoolsin

differentiationforEALstudents.

• Supportadolescentstoengageinhobbies,whichcanbringpersonalcontinuity,

explorationandanon-judgementalcontextforlanguage-learning.

93

• Deviseopportunitiesformigrantadolescentstosharepersonalnarrativesandlife

storiesintheclassroom.

• Developteachers’awarenessofandempathyforlanguagelearners’experiences.

Manymigrantadolescentsfounditdifficulttomakesenseoftheirexperiencesandorganise

theseintoastableidentity.Therewasoftenasenseoffluxanduncertaintyduringthe

interviews,withmanyyoungpeopledealingwiththeprocessofadaptingtoanewculturefor

thesecondtimeintheirlives,aswellasrespondingtoadditionalfactorssuchaspovertyand

discrimination.Constrainedfreedombasedonparentalstrictnessandunfamiliaritywiththeir

newenvironmentmeantthatopportunitiesforexplorationwerelimited.Language

difficultiesmeantthatadolescentsoftenstruggledtoseepastEnglishlanguageacquisitionto

broadergoalsandambitions.Teacherscanplayakeyrolehereinbroadeninghorizonsand

encouragingadolescentstothinkanddeveloptheirinterestsbeyondthesenarrow

constraints.

6.3.1.Providingpsychologicalsupportformigrantadolescentsanddirectinterventions

focusedonidentityformation

Thisresearchhighlightsthatforsomemigrantadolescents,theremaybeaneedforspecific

psychologicalsupportduringtheirearlymonthsinEngland.Manyspokeoftheirdeepsense

oflossandsadness,combinedwithaparentalnarrativethattheyshouldappreciatethe

opportunitiesgrantedtothembylifeinLondonandsucceedtorepaytheirfamily’ssacrifices.

Schools,supportedbyEPs,couldhelptosupportyoungpeoplebynormalisingthesedifficult

emotionsandprovidinganunderstandingandcompassionatecontextforstudentstoshare

andmakesenseoftheirexperiences.EPscouldalsobeinvolvedinthedeliveryofindividual

therapeuticworkwithinschools,facilitatinginterventionswithstaff,andprioritising

adolescentsforaccesstoChildandAdolescentMentalHealthServices,wherenecessary.

ThecurrentresearchalsosuggeststhatitisimportantforschoolsandEPstosupportmigrant

adolescentsintheiridentityformation.Thisshouldbebasedontheideathatpersonal

developmentandestablishingapositivepersonalidentityisimportantforadolescents,

regardlessofwhetherornottheyhaveacquiredfluencyinEnglish.Somepotentialwaysto

achievethisareprovidedbyBrittian(2012),basedonherworkwithAfricanAmerican

adolescents.Sheproposesthatwhilethemainsocialisationcontextforethnicminority

adolescentsisaroundfamilyandpeers,specificprogrammessuchas4-Hclubshavethe

potentialtoinfluenceyoungpeople’sbeliefsandvaluesand,basedonthis,fosterpositive

identityformation,drawingonpreviousresearchbyKroger(2007).RhodesandDuBois

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(2008)highlighthowyouthdevelopmentprogrammeshavethepotentialtoplayan

importantroleinsupportingadolescentsindevelopingapositiveidentity.Programmessuch

asFlex-ID,discussedbySacramento(2015),isanexamplethataimstopromotethebalanced

constructionofyoungpeople’sinterculturalidentities,throughhelpingstudentstolearnhow

tolivewitha“flexibleidentity”withthegoalofimprovingtheintegrationofstudentsfrom

migrantcommunitiesintotheeducationalsystemandsociety.ThereisapotentialforEPsto

workalongsideschoolstoimplementspecificinterventionsbasedonsomeofthese

principles.

6.3.2.Challengingthelow-settingofrecently-arrivedstudentsandsupportingschoolsin

differentiationforEALstudents

Thisresearchhighlightedthatmanyadolescentsfeltthattheyhadbeenplacedinlowsetsfor

themajorityofsubjectsduetotheirstatusasEALlearners.EPshavearoletoplayin

challengingthispracticewithinschools,andensuringthatschoolsaresupportedin

differentiatingworkatanappropriatelevelofcognitivedemandforrecently-arrivedpupils.

GuidancefromHerzog-Punzenberger(2016)highlightsthatacademicsettingcanhavea

disproportionatelynegativeimpactonmigrantadolescentsduringtheperiodinwhichthey

areattainingsecond-languagefluency.

Thecurrentresearchindicatesthatadolescentsfindithardtoplanfortheirfutureswhile

strugglingtogainproficiencyinEnglish.Theirpersonalandsocialdevelopmentseemstostall

foraperiodaftermigration.Participantsstruggledwithplanningforthefuture,andasthey

alsolackpracticalparentalsupportinthisarea,theymaybeparticularlystronglyswayedby

guidanceinthisareabyschools,eitherinapositiveornegativesense.ResearchbytheOECD

(2015)suggeststhatmigrantteenagersaredisproportionatelyguidedtowardsvocationaland

academicpathways,regardlessofacademicability.MehmedbegovicandBak(2017),

however,suggestthatspeakersofadditionallanguagesshouldbeencouragedtousethese

skillsintheircareerplanningratherthanseeingtheirlackofacademicfluencyinEnglishasa

deficit.EPscanplayakeyrolehereinareassuchaschallengingandsupportingbetter

practiceinschoolinareassuchasthelow-settingofrecently-arrivedpupils,supporting

teachersinhowtodifferentiatetasksforEALlearners,encouragingschoolstofind

opportunitiesforpupilstodemonstratetheirlearningintheirhomelanguage,and

questioningschoolsabouttheproportionofEALpupilsonvocationalpathways.EPscanalso

helptochangedominantdiscoursesbyhighlightingtheresiliencefactorsforthesechildren

andthelong-termbenefitsofbilingualism,bothcognitivelyandintermsofaspectssuchas

careerprospectswithinaglobaleconomy.

95

6.3.3.Supportingadolescentstoengageinhobbies,whichcanbringpersonalcontinuity

Inthecurrentstudy,theparticipantswhoappearedhappiestandmostwell-adjustedtolife

inLondonwerethosewhohadbeenabletoimmersethemselvesinahobbysuchassportor

musicuponmovingtotheUKinordertousethisasawaytodealwithemotionaldifficulties

andalsotointegrateandsocialisewithnewpeopleoutsideofanacademiccontext.Itis

importantforschoolstofacilitatearecreationalbridgeandanchorforidentitytoavoid

adolescentsfeeling“lost”intheirnewcontextaftermigration.Thiscouldbethough

provisionsuchasafter-schoolclubsandactivities:manyparticipantshighlyvaluedthese,due

totheirrestrictedfreedomoutsideofschoolandthefactthattheirparentswerenotaware

ofhowtoaccessclubsandservicesinthelocalcommunity.

6.3.4.Devisingopportunitiesformigrantadolescentstosharepersonalnarrativesandlife

storiesintheclassroom.

Therewasastrongsenseinthecurrentresearch,thatparticipantsfeltthatengaginginthe

conversationwithmewasthefirsttimetheyhadbeenabletoshareandreflectontheir

experiencesandhowthesehadimpacteduponthedevelopmentoftheirpersonalidentity.

Narrativeisafoundationalaspectofidentityformation,withErikson(1950,1968)arguing

thatthecreationofacoherentaccountofwhoweareandhowwecametobethatwayis

thecriticaldevelopmentaltaskofadolescence.Basedonthefeedbacktotheinterviews,

theremaybevalueingivingmigrantsaforumtotellandmakesenseoftheirindividual

stories,withinacontextofmultiplemovesduringchildhoodthatwerealloutsideoftheir

control.OneapproachtothisisAutographicalWriting,atechniquediscussedby

Mehmedbegovic(2012),whichisbasedonideathat“everychildneedstolearnthrough

educationfirstofallhowtoknow,understand,analyseandcriticallyapproachhisown

individualsituationwithinthehistoryofacommunityandasocialgroup,tobeabletosee

thebiggerpictureandgainunderstandingoftheselfwithinit”(p.69).Autobiographical

WritingisanapproachthatuseshomelanguagesaswellasEnglishinordertoprovidea

modelthatadolescentsthemselvescanusetoshapeanddefinetheirownnarratives.EPscan

beinvolvedherethroughsupervisingandsupportingschoolstaffwhoareengaginginthis

work.

Anotherinterventionthathasthepotentialtomakeapositiveimpactintheareaof

adolescentidentityformationiscalledtheTreeofLife(ToL).Thisinvolves“peopledrawing

theirown‘treeoflife’inwhichtheygettospeakoftheir‘roots,’theirskillsandknowledge,

theirhopesanddreams,aswellasthespecialpeopleintheirlives”(TheDulwichCentre,

96

2018).Lock(2016),anEPwhoevaluatedaToLintervention,suggeststhatasEPsworkwithin

avarietyofcontextsrelatedtochildrenandfamilies,itpositionsthemstronglytotakean

activeroleinapplyingpsychologyinnewandvariedwayssuchasthisinorderto“reduce

thindescriptionsanddominantnegativediscoursesofindividualsandgroups”(p.10).Lock’s

(2016)researchhasshownthatToLcanproducepositiveoutcomeswhenusedwithboth

childrenandadults,providinga“safeplacetomanagefeelingsandexperiences,tofeel

valued,respectedandunderstood”(p.10),whichhasthepotentialtoengagedifficult-to-

reachfamiliesandbridgethegapsthatcurrentlyexistbetweenindividualservicesand

communities.

6.3.5.Developingteachers’awarenessofandempathyforlanguagelearners’experiences

Someparticipantsraisedtheideathattheyfeltmanyteachersdidnotappeartoempathise

withtheirpositionassecondlanguagelearnersandtreatedtheminsteadaslow-achieving

studentsbasedonthegradestheyhadachieved.AsarguedbyDarvinandNorton(2014),

“teacherswhoaremorecriticallyinformedaboutmigrationandsocialclasscanprovidea

spacethatnotonlyenrichesthelanguageandliteracydevelopmentofmigrantstudentsbut

alsoempowerstransnationalidentities”(p.116).Byvaluingtheskillsandexperiencesthat

migrantstudentsbring,teacherscanbeavaluableforceinhelpingthesestudentstotake

ownershipofmorepowerfulidentities,asawaytonavigatethesocialworld.

EPscanplayakeyrolehereintrainingschoolstaffonissuesrelatedtoculturalandlinguistic

competence.Ceginskas(2010)inherstudyofmultilingualidentityarguesthatmorebilingual

orlanguage-awareteachersareneededinordertoachievethis,andthatteachingstudents

fromanentirelymonolingualposition“mayhavedetrimentalimpactonindividualswitha

multilingualbackground,whomayfeelasiftheirexperienceofmultipleidentificationsis

overlooked.Inparticular,withrespecttominorityandmigrantlanguages”(p.218).

6.4.ImplicationsbasedonKeyFinding3:

Intergenerationaldifficultiesarecommon.Theseareoftenunderpinnedbytheperceived

deceptioninvolvedintheinitialmovetotheUK,combinedwithadolescents’feelingthat

theirparentscannotsupporttheiracademicandsocialdevelopmenthere

ThisfindingdrawsuponTheme1:ConstrainedFreedomandHighPressure,andTheme2:

AspirationandConfidenceLoss.

ThereisaneedforEPsworkinginaconsultativemannerwithschoolsandfamiliesto:

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• Exploreattachmentandrelationshipswithinfamilieswhohaveenduredperiodsof

separation.

• Discussfamilynarrativesaroundmigrationandthereasonsforthis,astheseoften

differwidelybetweenadolescentsandparents.

• Supportparentstounderstandandhelptheirchildrenbothacademicallyandsocially

intheUK.

Itiscrucialtodevelopawarenesswithinschoolsoftheemotionaljourneythatadolescentsgo

throughduringtheirinitialweeksandmonthsintheUK,andhowthismayimpactupontheir

readinesstolearn.AdolescentandparentunderstandingsaboutthemovetotheUKwere

seentobeverydifferentbyparticipantsinthisstudy.Adolescentsfrequentlyheldadegree

ofresentmenttowardstheirparentsabouttheirmigration,andparticularlythedeception

thathadoftenbeeninvolvedintheirinitialmovetotheUK.Intra-familialissueswereamajor

recurringissue,andonethatitwouldbeusefulforEPstobeawareofduringcasework,

particularlywithrecently-arrivedfamilies.EPscanworktohelpestablishopen

communicationandmutualunderstandingwithinfamilies.Lackofcommunication,or

parents’desiretoprotecttheirchildrenbynotsharingimportantinformationwiththem,

appearedtoleadtoadolescentsfeelinganxiousandpowerless.

MortonandFrith’s(1995)InteractiveFactorsframeworkforcausalmodellingisamodelthat

hasthepotentialtobedrawnuponbyEPsasawayofconceptualisingthevarietyof

influencesimpactinguponmigrantchildren,andtheinteractionsbetweenthese.This

frameworkiscomposedofthreelevels:biological,cognitiveandbehavioural,whichcanbe

usedasawaytodeepenunderstandingofparticulardevelopmentalorpsychologicalissues.

Migrantfamilieswillbenefitmostfromsupportthatisbothculturallysensitiveand

coordinatedbetweenagencies.Underthecurrenttradedservicesmodel,itisalsoimportant

forEPstoensurethatreferralstoexternalprofessionalsarerepresentativeoftheschool

populationasawhole,andthatvulnerablegroups,suchasrefugeesandrecently-arrived

migrants,arenotunderrepresented.

6.4.1.Exploringattachmentandrelationshipswithinfamilieswhohaveenduredperiodsof

separation

Manyparticipantshadtodealwithfamilyseparation,asthemovetotheUKwasoftendone

instages,withfathersgenerallymovingfirstandchildrensometimesleftinthecareof

relatives,whichhasthepotentialtoimpactonattachment.Researchhasshownthat

separationfromparentsduringlatechildhoodandadolescencecanhaveprofoundeffects,

98

andthatattachmentisnotastaticentitythatisfixedininfancy,ashadpreviouslybeen

considered.

Participantsoftendescribedfeelingverylonelyandunhappy,andspokeaboutinitiallytrying

toconvincetheirparentstoreturntotheirpreviouscountryofresidence.EPscouldplaya

roleinsupportingschoolsinunderstandingmigrantstudents’experiencesfroma

psychologicalperspective.ApsychologicalmodelthatcouldbeemployedhereistheKübler-

Ross’(2005)model.Itappearsfromparticipants’accountsthattheymovedthroughaninitial

Denialstage,thenprogressingthroughAngerandDepressionandontoAcceptanceasthey

begantosettleintolifeinLondonandbecamemorereadytolearn.

Educationforparentsandadolescentsthemselvesontheprocessofsecondlanguage

acquisitionandthedurationoftimeneededtodevelopacademicfluencymayalsobeuseful,

asawayofensuringthatexpectationswithinfamiliesarereasonable,anddonotplace

unduepressureonadolescentstoachieveacademicallyonbehalfoftheirfamily.

6.4.2.Discussionoffamilynarrativesaroundmigration

Manyparticipantsspokeaboutthefactthattheyhadinitiallybeendeceivedabouttheir

movetotheUK,havingbeentoldtheywouldjustbevisitingforaholiday.Parentsoften

describedthisasawayofprotectingtheirchildren,butitoftenresultedinteenagers

resentingtheirparentsformisleadingthem.EPscoulduseconsultationapproachesto

explorethesedifferentnarrativesaroundmigration,andparticularlytoraisetheprofileof

thechild’svoicewithinthis,andtheimportanceofthemdevelopingaclearandcoherent

understandingoftheirmigrationjourneyaspartoftheiroveralllifenarrative.

6.4.3.Supportingparentstounderstandandhelptheirchildrenbothacademicallyand

socially

BasedonthedifficultymigrantparentsoftenhaveinunderstandingtheUKeducationsystem

andhowbesttosupporttheirchildren,thereisanonusoneducationalsettingstoreachout

tomigrantfamilies,andtoincreasethelevelofculturallyappropriatecontactandliaison

withminoritygroups.MohamedandThomas(2017)suggestthatthiscould“include

programmesforparentsparticipatinginschoolenterprises,orschoolforumstofoster

culturaldiversityandcommunication”,andhowmigrantparents“canbeinvolvedin

supportingchildreninschoolsbyassistingtheminclass,duringplayorlunchtimesorrunning

groupinterventionsbasedonlifestories”(p.260).Itisalsoimportantthattranslatorsare

alsoavailabletofacilitatecommunicationbetweenparentsandschoolstaff.

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Itwouldalsobevaluabletoencourageparentstocelebrateandplaceimportanceontheir

culturalheritageasabufferagainstdiscrimination,asresearchshowsthatyoungpeople

withoutastrongculturalidentitycanbeparticularlysusceptibletothenegativeimpactof

xenophobicabuse.Brittian(2012)suggeststhat“insocietieswheresomegroupsare

underrepresentedinpoliticalandsocialcontexts,identificationwithone’sminoritygroupis

moreprominent”(p.182).ShedrawsonresearchbyJuangandSyed(2008),whichindicates

thatidentifyingpositivelywiththeirminoritygroupgivesanadolescentasenseofgroup

affiliationandalsomaintainstheirpositiveidentity,aswellasresearchbyAshmore,Deaux

andMcLaughlin-Volpe(2004),whichsuggeststhatthiscanactasabufferagainst

discriminationexperienced.

6.5.RecommendationSummaryforSchoolsReceivingMigrantStudents

Thefollowingsectionsummarisessomeofthekeyfactorsforschoolstoconsider.

• Tofocusinitiallyonsupportingthestudenttofeelhappyandsecureintheschool

environment,byforexample:

o Usingapeer-buddysystem,matchingthestudentwithanotherwithasimilar

personalityandinterests.

o Providingakeyadultthatstudentscanspeaktoforbothemotionaland

practicalsupport.

o Bringingstudentsandfamiliesintobecomefamiliarwiththeschool

environmentandaskquestionsbeforelessonsstart.

o Recognisingadolescents’lackofchoiceregardingtheirmigration,andthat

theymayneedtimeandsupportinordertobecomereadytolearnand

integrateintotheschoolcommunity.

o Encouragingandsupportingadolescentsinpursuinghobbiesandinterests

outsideofacademicwork,suchasthroughafter-schoolclubs,whichbring

opportunitiesforexplorationandanon-judgementalcontextforlanguage

learning.

• Toavoidabilitygrouping,asthishasbeenshowntohavealowlevelofimpactin

general,andtonegativelyimpactuponminorityanddisadvantagedgroups(e.g.

JohnstonandWildy,2016).Ifabilitygroupingisemployed,homelanguagetesting

uponarrivalcombinedwithinformationfrompreviousschoolsshouldbeusedto

placestudentsinappropriateclasses.

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• ToemploybestpracticearoundtheteachingofEALstudentsinwhole-classteaching,

informedbyregularstafftraining,andcombinedwithspecialistteachingsupportfor

newerarrivals.

• ToprioritisemigrantstudentsforreferraltoexternalprofessionalssuchasEPs,if

expectedacademicorsocialandemotionalprogressisnotmadeintheirfirstyearin

theUK.

• ToinformparentsabouttheschoolroutineandfunctioningoftheEnglisheducation

systemandhowbesttosupporttheirchild.AtoolkitproducedbyMiddlesex

University(Rodriguez,D’Angelo,Ryan,andSales,2016)couldbeusedtosupportthis

processonanongoingbasis.

• Toprovideexamplesofsuccessandpotentialrolemodelswithinavarietyof

differentcommunities,particularlynewermigrantgroups,wherethesemaybemore

difficulttoidentify.

• Tostressthevalueandimportanceofstudents’firstlanguageandculturewithinthe

classroomandthelinguisticandculturalcapitalitrepresents.Thismaymean

eliminatinglanguagehierarchieswithinschoolsandalsoreducingEurocentricideas

byraisingtheprofileof,forexample,Spanish-speakingLatinAmericaandFrench-

speakingAfrica.

• Providingteacherswithtrainingtobuildtheirconfidenceinrespondingto

discriminationandxenophobiaintheclassroom.

6.6.FeedingbacktoSchoolandIRMO

Inordertoensurethatthisstudyhasanimpactatalocallevel,meetingshavebeenarranged

withbothIRMO,theLatinAmericanmigrantcharitythatsupportedthisresearch,andthe

secondaryschoolinwhichtheinterviewstookplace.Theaimofthesemeetingswillbeto

involvekeystaffatbothamanagerialandpractitionerlevelinidea-generationandaction

planningbasedonthefindingsofthecurrentresearch.Iwillemployaconsultationapproach,

drawnfrommyEducationalPsychologyprofessionalpractice,inordertousetheresources

withintheschoolandcharitytoplancontext-appropriateactionstobetaken.Throughout

thedata-analysisprocessandproductionofmythesisdraft,Ihaveremainedinclosecontact

101

witheachorganisation.AsmentionedinChapter3,duringthedraftingofmythesis,Ihave

alsoplannedanddeliveredaworkshopatIRMOforrecently-arrivedparentsonEnglish

languageacquisitionandtheemotionalexperienceofmigrationforchildrenandyoung

people,whichdrewuponsomeoftheinitialfindingsofthisresearch.

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Chapter7:EvaluationandCriticalReview

7.1.Introduction

SpencerandRitchie(2012)discusshowitispossibletoappraisequalitativeresearchbyits

rigour,itsresearchprocess,itscontributiontoknowledge,anditscredibilityintermsofdata

analysis,whichallinfluencethebelievabilityofitsconclusionsandclaims.Inthischapter,I

reflectontheresearchprocessasawhole,andconsidertheseissues.

7.2.RevisitingResearchAims

Theobjectiveofthecurrentresearchwastoexplorethelifeexperiencesofmigrant

adolescentsfromtheirperspective,usingqualitativemethods,andwithafocusonthe

influenceofmigrationonidentityformation.Ifeelthatitachievedthisaim,andthatithas

beenpossibletocapturetheviewsandexperiencesofmyparticipantsinafaithfuland

meaningfulmanner,whilealsodrawingbroaderconclusions.Theprocessofconducting

memberreflectioninterviewsalsoensuredthatmyanalysiswasfine-tunedtoensurethatit

accuratelyrepresentstheviewsandexperiencesofresearchparticipants.

7.3.CriticalReviewandLimitations

Itisalsoimportanttorecognisetherangeofshortcomingsandlimitationsofthecurrent

research.

7.3.1.Participants’languagefluency

AlthoughIspecifiedaminimumofthreeyearslivingpermanentlyinLondonasasampling

criteria,andIalsospeaksufficientSpanishtoclearupanymisunderstandings,therewasa

widerangeoffluencylevelsevidentamongmyparticipants.Forexample,Claudio,Kesi,Hana

andKeminaspokefluentEnglish,whereasBruno,Karmen,Marc,Samuel,andKristian

experienceddifficultyatcertaintimesduringtheirinterviewsincommunicatingtheirideas

clearly.

7.3.2.Developmentalreadinesstoengagewiththeresearchtopic

Therewasawidevarietyinboththelengthandthenatureofindividualinterviews.Some

lastedwelloveranhour,withparticipantsshowingakeeninterestinandabilitytoengage

withtheinterviewguideandtoreflectontheirexperiencesandhowthesehaveinfluenced

theiridentityformationandhowtheyseethemselvesasyoungadults.Othersfoundthis

processmorechallengingtoengagewith,andinterviewsremainedonmoreofasuperficial

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level,focusingonthedescriptionofexperiencesratherthantheirpersonalreflectionson

theseandtheirimpact.Intheseinterviews,Ididnotfeelthatparticipantswereengagedin

theprocessofactiveself-constructionthatIhadaimedtoachieve.Thiswasparticularlytrue

ofsomeoftheboys,andthislinkstopreviousresearchonboysenteringErikson’sEgo

Identityvs.RoleConfusionstagelaterthangirls(Klimstra,Hale,Raaijmakers,Branje,and

Meeus,2010).IfparticipantswerestillwithintheearlierpsychosocialstageofIndustryvs.

Inferiority,itisplausiblethattheywouldhaveexperiencedparticulardifficultywiththeparts

oftheinterviewguidethatwerebasedoninvitingparticipantstoreflectonhowtheir

personalexperienceshaveshapedtheirworldview,identityandhowtheyseethemselves.

Oneparticipant,Samuel,tendedtodenythathisexperienceofmigrationorissuesaround

languageandculturehadanyimpactonhispersonalidentity,andconsequentlyhisabilityto

meaningfullyrespondtosomeaspectsoftheinterviewguidewaslimited.

7.4.ResearchStrengths

7.4.1.Communityrelationships

Onemainpositiveofthisresearchwasthestrengthofrelationshipsdevelopedthroughout

theevolutionoftheproject,fromtwoandahalfyearsagountilnow.Myrelationshipwith

IRMO,amigrantsupportcharity,haslastedforthedurationofthisprocess,involvingregular

meetingstodiscussmyresearchapproachand,forexample,shareinitialfindings.The

existingrelationshipbetweenIRMO’sdirectorandtheEALmentorattheschoolwherethe

interviewstookplace,whoisalsoamemberoftheLatinAmericancommunity,ensuredthat

theparticipantsthemselvesappearedtotrustmefromtheoutset.Thisseemedtoincrease

theirwillingnesstoengagewithandspeakopenlywithmeonapotentiallysensitivetopic.I

hadspenttimeinitiallydiscussingmyresearchwiththeschool’sEALmentorinorderto

developherengagementwithandunderstandingoftheresearchproject,sothatthiscould

bepassedontopotentialparticipants.

7.4.2.Researchtools

Overall,theuseofcollaborative,visually-basedapproachestotheinterviewsthemselves

provedaneffectivewayofexploringmyresearchquestionswithadolescentparticipants.The

useofdrawing,photographsandotherstimulisuchasquotesgaveparticipantsthefeeling

thattheywereengaginginaseriesofinterestingactivities,ratherthanastraightforward

one-to-oneinterview,andIreflectedthatthisvarietyinapproachwasparticularlyeffective

inmaintainingenergyandengagementthroughouttheinterviews.Participantsthemselves

alsoreflectedverypositivelyontheroleoftheinterviewsinhelpingthemtomakesenseof

theirownexperiences.DirectquotesonthisareincludedinChapter4.

104

7.5.ResearcherConclusions:DemonstratingReflexivity

AsWillig(2001)highlights,withinqualitativeresearchitisimportanttorecognisetheroleof

theresearcherandandhowtheirbeliefs,values,experiencesandinterestshaveinfluenced

theresearch.TheideaofreflexivityisalsoaddressedinChapter1andChapter4,andinthis

sectionitwillbeexaminedwithaspecificfocusonthedatacollectionandanalysisprocess.

Itislikelythatadifferentresearchermayhaveelicitedadifferentdatasetthrougheitherhow

theywereperceivedbyparticipantsorhowtheydirectedquestionsduringtheinterviews

themselves.Inoted,uponreflectiononmydata,thatissuesofsexualidentity,romantic

relationshipsandreligionwerealmostentirelyabsentfrommynineinterviews.Iconcluded

thatparticipantsmayhaveconsideredthesetopicsunsuitablefordiscussionwithan

unfamiliaradult,andassuch,theimportanceofthesetopicsmaybeunderrepresentedinthe

dataIhavecollected.

Duringmyanalysis,Ialsonotedhowperhapsmyownpoliticalandsocialviewsmayhave

influencedparticipantsduringtheinterviews.BydemonstratingthatIpersonallyidentity

withthelabel“migrant”,andbasedonmychoiceofresearchtopic,evidentinterestinthe

experiencesofrecently-arrivedmigrantsinschoolsandabilitytospeakSpanish,itislikely

thatparticipantsmayhaveinferredmybeliefinmulticulturalismandoppositiontotheUK’s

decisiontoleavetheEU.“Brexit”becameafrequenttopicofdiscussion,despitenotbeing

initiallyraisedbyme,orincludedintheinterviewguide.Theremaythenhavebeena

tendencyforparticipantstoparticularlyemphasisethenegativeconsequencesof“Brexit”in

relationtoracismandxenophobiaasawayofappealingtomyinterests.Thismayalsohave

beenthecaseduringtheanalysis,wherecreatingacompellingstorythroughamplifying

thesenegativeexperiencesmayhavefitunconsciouslywithmyviewsontheEUreferendum

andtheimpactofcurrentgovernmentpolicyaroundmigration.Effortsweremadetoreduce

theimpactofthisprocessbyengaginginsupervision,andinter-coderreliabilitychecks.

7.6.ReflectionsonTheoreticalFramework

Erikson’spsychosocialtheoryprovidedausefullensforinterpretingmyfindings,allowingme

toplacetheminthecontextofanestablisheddevelopmentaltheory.Thiswasparticularly

helpful,forexample,ininterpretinghowreducedfreedomduringadolescence,lackof

masteryoftheEnglishlanguageandexperiencingdiscriminationmightimpactontheidentity

developmentofmigrantadolescents.ThesewerealltopicsthatEriksonaddressedeither

directlyorindirectlyinhiswork,andwithouthistheoryitwouldnothavebeenpossibleto

105

placethesevariousfindingswithinatheoreticalcontextregardingtheirimpactonidentity

formation.

Inotherareas,suchasinterpretingtheimpactofmigrationonidentityformationintermsof

familydivisionandothertraumaticexperiences,andalsoinnavigatingamulticultural

background,Erikson’sworkwaslesshelpful,asduetothelargelymono-culturalsampleon

whichhistheorywasbuilt,hedidnotaddressthesetopicsdirectly.Here,theoryfrom

narrativepsychologyandmorerecentworkonethnicandbiculturalidentityformationfrom

researcherssuchasPhinneyetal.(2001)wasdrawnupontointerpretfindings.Theuseof

Erikson’sbroadtheoreticalframeworkwhichdidnotnarrowdownidentityintocomponent

partssuchasethnicidentity,nationalidentityorculturalidentityinframingmyresearchand

interviewguide,meantthatparticipantswerefreetofocusupontheaspectswhichwere

mostsalienttothemandignoreothers.Thiscamewiththedisadvantageofnotbeingableto

commentindetailoneachofthesefactors,whichareparticularlypertinenttomigrant

adolescents.Thereisariskthatthroughtakingthismoreuniversalapproach,and

interpretingparticipants’experiencesthroughthelensofatheorywhichisnotbasedona

diversesample,thatsomerichnessintheirparticularexperiencesislost.Inaddition,dueto

interviewsonlytakingplaceatoneparticularpointintime,andthesmallsamplesize,itwas

notpossibletodrawonthedevelopmentalnatureofErikson’stheorytodescribechangesin

identificationacrossadolescenceatanindividuallevel,ortomakemeaningfulcomparisons

acrossyoungerandolderparticipants.

ThisresearchcontributestotheoryintheareaofidentityformationfromanEriksonian

perspectivebyarticulatingthemannerinwhichmigrationcandisrupttheprocessofidentity

formationby,forexample,reducingopportunitiesforexplorationandplacingadolescents

withinanunfamiliarenvironmentwheretheirlackoflanguageskillsprovidesabarrierto

successfullycompletingthekeydevelopmentaltasksofadolescence.Inparticular,itappears

thatmigrantadolescentsdonothavethesameopportunitiesasothersforapsychosocial

moratorium,aperiodofreducedresponsibilitytoconsidertheirfuturegoals,asErikson

consideredwhenestablishinghisoriginaltheory.Instead,theytendtoremainfocusedon

gainingcompetencyinthebasicliteracyskillsthatnon-migrantadolescentswillgenerally

havemasteredduringlatechildhood,inErikson’sIndustryversusInferioritydevelopmental

state.

Withoutthismoratorium,Marcia(1994)proposesthatanindividualwilleitherdevelopa

foreclosedidentity,withoutexploration,oradiffuseidentity,inwhichanadolescentis

106

unwillingtomakeanycommitment,basedonfeelingthattheyhavenothadtheopportunity

foranyperiodofexplorationorchoice-making.Bothareassociatedwithnegative

psychologicaloutcomes(e.g.Cakir2014),andMarciahighlightsinparticularhowalthougha

“foreclosed”individualmayappeartohavethebenefitsofastrongidentity,thisstrengthis

lessabletocopewithexternalforcesandeventsinaperson’slife.Basedonthisfinding,itis

particularlyimportantthatschoolsprovideopportunitiesforexplorationandthe

considerationofarangeofpossiblelifepathsformigrantadolescentstudents,andavoid

reducingopportunitiesthrougheitherablinkeredprioritisationonEnglishlanguagelearning,

ortheplacementofrecently-arrivedstudentsinsubjectsthataredeemedtoprovideless

short-termacademicchallenge,butmayalsolimitacademicandcareerchoiceinthemedium

term.AlthoughanabsoluteprioritisationofEnglishlanguageacquisitionaboveallelsemay

beappropriateforyoungerchildrenandadults,duringadolescence,thereexistsa

developmentalneedforexploration,intermsofindependentlyseekingandexperimenting

withalternativeswithinanadolescents’environment.

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Chapter8:ConclusionsandContributiontoKnowledge

8.1.Conclusions

ThecurrentresearchprovidesanunderstandingoftheexperiencesofstudentsofLatin

AmericanheritageinLondon,anunder-researchedmigrantgroup,inthecontextofapost-

EUreferendumsocietalcontext.Verylittlewasknownacademicallyabouttheexperiencesof

thisgrouppriortomyresearchbeingconducted.Assuch,thisthesisprovidesacontribution

toknowledgeinthisareabyarticulatingthekeythemesthatunderpintheexperiencesof

recently-arrivedLatinAmericanmigrantsandtheimplicationsoftheseforeducation

professionals.Previousresearchhadidentifiedthatmigrationhasthepotentialtodisruptthe

processofadolescentidentityformation,andtheoriginalcontributionofmyresearchisin

termsofarticulatingthemechanismbywhichthistakesplacebydrawingontheperspectives

ofadolescentmigrantsthemselves.

Followingmypilotstudy,whichexploredparents’experiences,myinitialthinkingwasthat

uncertaintyinnationalidentitywasaprincipalcontributingfactortoidentityformation

difficultiesinmigrantadolescents.However,ashighlightedinChapter5,amuchmore

complexpictureemerged,withissuesofnationalidentityconflictgivenquitealowlevelof

prioritybyresearchparticipants.Instead,factorssuchasanti-migrantdiscrimination

experienced,lackoffreedom,experienceoflossandfamilyseparation,anddifficulties

navigatingculturalandlinguisticdifferencesunderpinnedthechallengeofsuccessfulidentity

formationformigrantadolescents.

Myargumentisthatschoolsandtheeducationsystematlargeneedtobeawareofthe

potentiallydisruptiveinfluenceofmigrationonadolescentidentityformation,andbe

responsivetoandactivelychallengebothglobalandlocalnegativediscoursesaround

migration,inordertoallowmigrantadolescentstodeveloppositivebiculturaland

transculturalidentitiesintheUK.Theideaof“undertheradar”discriminationisonethat

emergedstronglyduringthecurrentresearch–prejudiceandnegativestereotypingbased

particularlyonaccentandrecencyofarrivaltotheUK,ratherthanonethnicity,heritage,or

countryofbirth.

Teacherswillneedsupportinthisarea,andcurrentresearchshowsthatracistand

xenophobicabuseisincreasinginUKschools(Busby,2017)aswellasinwidersociety,and

thatmanyteachersdonotcurrentlyfeelwell-preparedandcompetentindealingwiththese

108

issues(ShowRacismtheRedCard,2016).EPsarewell-placedtoprovideimportantsupport

toschoolsinthisarea.

Thereisalsoaneedforaconsistentinductionandassessmentapproachfornewly-arrived

studentsacrossLondonboroughs,identifyingpsychologicalandlearningneeds,aswellas

strengthsandinterestsuponarrival.Thecurrentresearch,buildingonpriorresearchby

Yampolsky,Amiot,andSablonnière(2013),illustratesthatjustbeingofmulticulturalheritage

doesnotmeananindividualaccruesanybenefitsfromaccesstomultiplecultures,andthatit

caninfactbeproblematicpsychologically.Toachieveintegrationofmultiplecultures,the

processofidentityformationmustbenavigatedcarefullyandwithsupportwithinan

environmentthatenablesthis.Specificinterventionsmayneedtobeputinplaceformigrant

adolescents,withtheaimofpromotingthebalancedconstructionofyoungpeople’s

interculturalidentities.

Thereisapictureofuntappedpotentialinrecently-arrivedmigrants,bothfroma

psychologicalandanacademicperspective,withthepossibilityforinitialdifficulties,but

benefitsinthelongerterm,providedappropriatesupportisprovided.Itisimportantfor

parentsandmigrantfamiliestoworktogetherinordertoachievethis,butmyresearchhas

demonstratedthatmanyadolescentsperceivethattheirparentsdonothaveagood

understandingoftheirexperiencesorhowbesttosupportthem,bothfromapsychological

andanacademicperspective.Directparentalorcommunityinvolvementinsideschoolscan

helptoestablishcontinuityacrossthevariousaspectsofanadolescent’slifeandensurethat

parentsareinformedabouthowbesttosupporttheirchildrenintheUK.

8.2.DirectionsforFutureResearch

Thecurrentresearchhighlightstheinfluencethattheexperienceofinternationalmigration

hasontheprocessofidentityformationamongadolescents.Aquantitativeapproachto

exploringsomeoftheissuesraisedinthisresearchcouldbeofvalue.Thiscould,forexample,

usestandardisedmeasurementsofidentityformationsuchastheExtendedObjective

MeasureofEgoIdentityStatus(GrotevantandAdams,1984)toeitherproveordisprovemy

hypothesisthatmigrationinadolescencereducesopportunitiesforexplorationand

moratoriuminLatinAmericanmigrantsandthatthishasthepotentialtohaveanegative

impactonpsychologicalwellbeing.

Itmayalsobeusefultoexplorefurthertheprevalenceofracismandxenophobiainschools,

particularlywithinmulticulturalenvironmentsintheUK,andtoexamineteachers’feelingsof

109

competenceinrespondingtothistypeofbehaviourwithinacomplexmulticultural

environment.

AsBrittian(2012)suggests,“studiesthatexaminethepresenceofidentityfromasingletime

pointareaddressinganinstanceofidentityandnotthedevelopmentofidentity”(p.190).As

such,alongitudinalapproachwouldbeusefulaspartofaconceptualisationofidentityasa

developmentalprocess,evolvingwithinagivensocietalcontext.Itmaybepossibletofollow

upwithcertainparticipantsinvolvedinthisstudyinordertotracktheiridentitydevelopment

overtime.

Myresearchtools,outlinedinChapter4,couldalsobeemployedtoexplorethemigration

experiencesofsecondaryschoolstudentsfromothercommunities,inordertoidentify

significantdifferencesorsimilaritiesacrossvariouscommunities.

110

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Appendices

AppendixA:InterviewGuide

IntroductiontoProject

Thankyouforagreeingtospeakwithme.Iappreciateyourtime.Thisinterviewwilltake

aboutonehour,butyoumaystoptheinterviewatanypoint.Firstofall,toexplainagainthe

aimsofthisresearchprojectandwhyIamspeakingtoyoutoday:

Thereiscurrentlyalackofresearchandunderstandingoftheexperiencesofmigrant

teenagersintheU.K.andespeciallyhowmovingtoanewcountrymakesadifferencetohow

youngpeopleseethemselvesandmakesenseoftheirworld.

IamaTraineeEP,andIworkinschoolswithchildrenandyoungpeopleandI’mvery

interestedinfindingoutaboutyourexperiencessothatIcanworkwithschoolstohelptheir

studentstohaveapositiveandenjoyabletimeinschoolandreachtheirpotentialaslearners.

IntroductiontoInterview

Iwouldliketohaveadiscussionwithyouoverthenexthourorso.Thepurposeofthis

conversationistotalkaboutyourpersonalexperiencesofmigrationanditsimpact.

I’dliketoremindyouthatthisconversationwillbeaudio-recorded.Thiswillhelpmetogive

youmyfullattentionnowandreturntoourconversationlatertomakesurethatIrepresent

yourviewsaccurately.Theinterviewisconfidential,youwillnotbeidentifiedfromthe

individualinterview,andonlymyselfandmysupervisorswillhaveaccesstothisrecording,

whichIwillalsotypeupwhilelisteningbacktoit.Iwillalsobewritingareportbasedonthe

thingsIfindout,andyouwillreceiveashortversionofthisifyouwantit.

Ifyouwantmetostopatanytime,justletmeknow.Isthisokaywithyou?

1.PhotoSharing

PhotoSharing:Theinterviewerwillinitiallydemonstratethemselveswithapersonalexample

ofaphototakenbeforeandaftertheirmigration.Theinterviewerwillthenaskthe

participanttoplacetwophotosofthemselvessidebyside,onefrombeforeandafterthey

130

movedtotheU.K.Iftheparticipanthasnottakenphotostotheinterview,theywillbeasked

torecalltwospecificmemories.

QuestionPrompts:

• Tellmeabouthowyoufeltateachofthesemoments.

o WhatdoyoufeelyouhavegainedbasedonyourmovetotheU.K.?

o Whatdoyoufeelyouhavelostbasedonyourmove?

• Howhaveyouchangedpersonallybetweenthesetwomoments?

2.IdentityandWellbeing

Inthispartoftheinterview,theinterviewerwillexplorehowidentityissuesimpacton

participants’wellbeingandmentalhealth.Theinterviewerwillpresenttheparticipantwith

anA3pieceofpaperwiththechild’snameatthecentreandfourconcentriccirclesaroundit.

Participantswillbeaskedtothinkofallthepeopleandthingsthatinfluencehowtheyfeel

aboutthemselves,andplacethemwithinthecirclesbelow.Theywillbeatthecentreandthe

aspectsthataremostimportantwillbeplacedinthecloserconcentriccircles,withthoseless

importantpositionedfurtheraway.

QuestionPrompts

• Whyisthisimportant?

o Howdoesthiscontributetoyouridentity/senseofwhoyouare?

o Doanyofthesepeopleactasarolemodelforyou?

o Participantsmaybeaskedtovisuallyrepresenthowtheyfeelonascale

betweendifferentaspectsoftheiridentity,forexampleintermsof

Britishness,homecountry/parents’homecountryidentity,religionetc.

3.MovingtoLondon

QuestionPrompts:

• TellmeaboutwhenyoufirstheardthatyouweremovingtoLondon.

o Whataresomeofyourfirstmemoriesofthecity?

o Didyouhaveanysayinyourparents’decisiontomove?

• Whatisthemainchangethatthismovehasbroughtaboutforyoupersonally?

o Hastherebeenanyoneoranythingthathasbeenhelpfulindealingwith

these?

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• HowdiditfeeltostartschoolintheU.K.?

o Whatwereyourhopesforthefuture,onceyoustartedschool?

o Howdoyoufeelasastudentofamigrant/Latin/Spanishspeaking

backgroundinyourschool?

o Arethereanyparticularissuesexperiencedbystudentswhoshareyour

backgroundwhichyoufeelaredifferenttootherminoritygroups?

4.LanguageLearning

Thispartoftheinterviewwillexplorechildren’sexperiencesofEnglishlanguagelearningand

howtheseimpactontheiridentityformation.

QuestionPrompts

§ HowwastheexperienceoflearningEnglishforyou?

o HowisitdifferenttoexpressyourselfinEnglishcomparedtoyourSpanish?

o Whatdoyoulose/gainwhenmovingfromonelanguagetoanother?

o WhatwashelpfulorunhelpfulinthisprocessoflearningEnglish?

5.HowISeeMyselfandHowOthersSeeMe.

Theinterviewerwillprompttheparticipanttomaketwodrawings,onerepresenting‘HowI

SeeMyself’andtheotherrepresenting‘HowOthersSeeMe.’Thisisanactivityadaptedfrom

Awan(2007).

QuestionPrompts

• Canyouthinkofsomewordstodescribehowyouseeyourself?

• Canyouthinkofsomewordstodescribehowothersseeyou?

6.ResponsetoQuotes

ParticipantswillbepresentedwiththefollowingquotesonindividualsheetsofA4card,and

askedtosayhowtheyfeelabouteachone,inordertoexplorefurthertheirthoughtson

‘Latino/LatinAmerican’identityandtheiridentityas‘migrants’morebroadly.

“HeisPeruvian,butnowhesaysheisSpanish.WhenIaskifheisPeruvian,hesays,no,Iam

Spanish.Hesays-'mypapers...showmeanypapersIhavefromPeru.Idon'thaveaPeruvian

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passport,soIamSpanish.'WhenweleftPeruhewasthreeandnowheisalmostthirteen

yearsold,sohehasbeenawayfromPeruforalmost10years.AndwhenIspeakaboutgoing

toPeru,hesays'No'.”

APeruvianmotherinBrixton,speakingaboutherson(Thisquotewastakenfromthepilot

phaseofthisresearchproject).

“Iwanttoliveinacitywhereimmigrationisseenasasourceofstrength.”

AFrenchartistwhonowlivesinEngland.

IthinkmyLatinoculturehasequippedmewithadifferentpointofviewthantherestofmy

counterparts,andseeingthingsfromadifferentanglehashelpedmealot.Ifeelveryproud

ofmyculture,ofmyLatinoheritage.

Colombianauthor/journalist,wholivesintheUnitedStates.

7.WiderThoughts

• Inyourview,whoaretheimportantpeoplethatneedtounderstandtheissues,and

thatIshouldsharemyfindingsandreportwith?

• Isthereamessagethatyouwouldlikemetobeabletosharewith,forexample,your

parents,yourteachersorthePrimeMinister?

Participantswillthenbeaskediftheyhaveanyotherexperiencesorthoughtsthatthey

wouldliketosharebeforefinishingtheinterview.

PostInterviewDebrief

Reiteratethenatureoftheprojectandtheirrighttowithdrawconsent.Letparticipantsknow

thatiftheyhaveanythingtheywouldliketofollowupon,theycanarrangeafollowup

meetingwithmeinthemonthfollowingtheinterviewbyspeakingtoakeypersoninschool.

133

AppendixB:ParticipantInformationSheet

134

ThisParticipantInformationSheethasbeenadaptedfromoneusedbyMcLean(2016).

135

AppendixC:ParticipantandParentConsentForm

136

TheseConsentFormshavebeenadaptedfromthoseusedbyMohamed(2012).

137

AppendixD:InterviewCodes Atlas.ti,thecomputerprogrammeusedfordataanalysis,didnotallowfortheexportofa

fulltranscriptwithassociatedcodes.Instead,codes,withtheassociatedexcerptsfromone

ofthetranscriptsisincludedinAppendixD.“Coding”referstothecode,and“Content”

referstotheexcerptfromthetranscriptwhichwascoded.Thefulltranscriptofthis

interviewisincludedinAppendixF.

47 Quotations: 1:1

Codings: ○ Fear of the English language.

Content: I was really scared. Because of the language

1:3

Codings: ○ Fear of the English language.

Content: It was ‘cos of the language and I was kinda pretty old and I knew I was gonna have to do my exams, so yeah

1:4

Codings: ○ Loss of confidence based on language.

Content: I think… emm, I lost my confidence. Because it’s a new language and the accent. Like, the accent. `

1:5

Codings: ○ Change perceived as the gathering of experience.

Content: Hmm, I don’t think I’ve changed. It’s just that I get more knowledge from my experiences. Like, the experience of moving from one country to another. Like, you learn more stuff

1:6

Codings: ○ Educational achievement as a route to social acceptance.

138

Content: If you’re not good in school, people are going to see you in some kind of way, and that will make you as well. That way, that’s going to make you feel a type of way about yourself

1:7

Codings: ○ Educational achievement as a route to social acceptance.

Content: ecause, you need education because if you’re not good in your education, then people are going to say ‘oh, you’re dumb, you need to start studying more’ and people will tell you stuff about yourself that you wouldn’t like to hear, and yeah

1:8

Codings: ○ Authority and guidance from family.

Content: My family won’t lie about me. If they see that I’m doing bad, then they will tell me straight away. They’ll be like ‘you need to fix up.’ They’re the ones that encourage me to do stuff and of course I need them to tell me what I have to do and what I don’t have to do.

1:9

Codings: ○ Language mix within the family.

Content: With my Mum and my grandparents in Spanish, and my cousins in English

1:10

Codings: ○ Friends as an influence on identity and behaviour.

Content: Your friends will influence you. It depends on what kind of friends you have, If you have bad friends they will make you do bad stuff and make you change how you are. I know this seems typical of a young child to just change because of their friends. But I think it’s true because, people change depending on who they hang around with. If they’re good people they will help you and support you, but if they’re the wrong people they will make you feel less. Yeah like they will make you feel not worth it and stuff and make you do things you don’t want to do.

1:11

Codings: ○ Friends as an influence on identity and behaviour.

Content: When I came to St. Gabriel’s I decided to have a smaller circle of friends. And it has done me good because my friends are the ones who encourage me to do revision… they do revision with me every day. Yeah.

1:12

139

Codings: ○ Friends as an influence on identity and behaviour.

Content: It was really hard. Because in primary school, in Y5, I got put in the worst class. So I think I decided to hang around with them and that made me become a rude person, in a way.

1:13

Codings: ○ Teachers as an influence on identity and aspirations.

Content: ometimes it depends on the teacher. If you have a rude teacher and doesn’t do anything and you just see them sitting down and (inaudible) like that you might think ‘the teacher is really lazy, maybe when I’m older I want to be like her and do nothing.’ But then, if you have good teachers they will influence you to work hard and achieve something.

1:14

Codings: ○ Teachers role in broadening horizons.

Content: But your teachers, they will always make sure that they will put you in something after school that will help you.

1:15

Codings: ○ Experience of dividing and uniting family unit.

Content: I think I’m much happier with my Mum. I was upset to be leaving my friends and family… well, my uncle and aunty, but I was happy because I missed my grandparents and I wanted something better for my Mum.

1:16

Codings: ○ Experience of dividing and uniting family unit.

Content: I was really happy. I saw my grandparents, and it was really nice. We watched movies and it was nice. I thought that they would forget about me, but they didn’t, so I was happy.

1:17

Codings: ○ Parental strictness restricting adolescent freedom.

Content: o, I didn’t have any choice. My Mum is really strict, so you don’t have any say in the house. So until you’re 16, 17, you don’t have any say in the house. That’s Latino parents – they’re very strict.

1:18

140

Codings: ○ Peer support seen as a positive.

Content: I think it was more the support of the little girl that was helping me, and my teachers, because they were helping me as well.

1:19

Codings: ○ Withdrawal English lessons seen as a positive.

Content: Yeah it was a positive thing. Yeah, because there were more Spanish people who didn’t know how to speak English with me, so I was comfortable.

1:20

Codings: ○ Fear of the English language.

Content: I was really scared. I was freaking out inside. I was really scared to go to school

1:21

Codings: ○ Loss of confidence based on language.

Content: I’m still like that now (laughs). So I don’t think I’m going to overcome this fear because I’m still scared. I was just upstairs and I was thinking ‘oh my God, the interview is going to go wrong and oh no I can’t do this I can’t do this.’ Yeah.

1:22

Codings: ○ Slight tension between English and Spanish-speaking peer groups.

Content: Most of my friends speak English. Some of them speak Spanish, but I don’t really hang around with the Spanish people in my school. Maybe it’s cos I never see them. And when I do see them I’m like ‘hello’ and they’re like ‘hello.’ I don’t really see them in the playground.

1:23

Codings: ○ Feeling of isolation from Latino community.

Content: Sometimes when I’m going past and I see someone coming I’m like ‘hello’ but I’m still shy even though I speak Spanish and they speak Spanish, I’m still shy to approach them.

1:24

Codings: ○ Loss of confidence based on language.

141

Content: Even with my own people, I’m still shy!

1:25

Codings: ○ Self-consciousness speaking in English.

Content: Oh because in Spanish I speak quicker. So it’s quicker to get to the point. In Spanish it’s easier because I know most of the words. In English it’s hard because sometimes you have to think about ‘what am I going to say and is it going to sound right and do I know how to pronounce it’ because if I don’t know how to pronounce it I will stay quiet and I won’t say anything.

1:26

Codings: ○ Perception of unrealistic expectations in English language learning.

Content: People say ‘oh, you’ve been here so many years you should know all the words by now.’ But sometimes they don’t even know it themselves and I think it’s hard whether you speak Spanish or not… you still have to figure out the words you’re going to use.

1:27

Codings: ○ Advantages seen in learning English.

Content: Well, before I used to like it because my Mum didn’t understand. My Mum didn’t understand English so when she used to tell me what to do I used to complain in English. But now yeah, it’s fine. And I think English has helped me because you need English anywhere. If you were to apply for a job and you speak two languages, I think they will want you more than the person who only speaks one language… nowadays there’s different cultures, different languages so I think it will help you out if you speak two rather than one.

1:28

Codings: ○ Peer support seen as a positive.

Content: Umm, my friends. Well, the only girl I was friends with. For four months I only had one friend because she was the only one who spoke Spanish. In my year. In the other years I was too scared to approach the people who spoke Spanish. So I think that friend because when we had to do something, she would explain what every word means so yeah, that helped me. And, I think that’s it basically.

1:29

Codings: ○ Pressure to learn English seen as detrimental.

Content:

142

think something that didn’t help was when teachers used to put a lot of pressure on me to learn English soon. Like, oh, you need to go home and study English because you have your SATS next year. Yeah so I think the pressure that teachers put on you. That wasn’t really helpful.

1:30

Codings: ○ Pride in the achievement of learning English.

Content: Umm, if I was to draw that… (drawing/laughing). I think I would say that I was brave enough to climb the mountain. Because you need bravery and to take the risk to just move to a different country and a different language so it’s like I climbed the mountain and I finally made it. Yeah.

1:31

Codings: ○ Educational achievement as a route to social acceptance. ○ Pride in the achievement of learning English.

Content: think it was this year. When I started to do my mock exams and I got good grades I was like, I’ve made it.

1:32

Codings: ○ Family seen as more important than friends.

Content: There’s times when you misbehave but at least I don’t make my Mum sad or disappointed about me, so… I’m happy. As long as my Mum is happy and my family is happy then it’s alright because friends you can have them anywhere and everywhere. I don’t need to have friends in school. Most important is my family.

1:33

Codings: ○ Accent seen as the key marker of difference and target of ridicule.

Content: Or sometimes people feel like they have to comment about things that you do or your accent. Like, my accent. Everyone talks about my accent. Everyone. My teacher’s don’t say it in a rude way but there’s people in my school, especially the Year 11s who always have to say something about my accent. They know I don’t like it, but they still do.

1:34

Codings: ○ Discriminaton disguised as jokes and banter.

Content: . So, even though it’s a joke, ‘banter’ as they say it, sometimes they say it too, too rude and it’s not a joke.

143

1:35

Codings: ○ Discriminaton disguised as jokes and banter.

Content: Oh my gosh, if I told you the things that they say… oh you need to go back to your country, you need to get out. That’s what they tell me. I’m like, that’s rude and they’re like ‘it’s a joke, it’s a joke’ But as much as it’s a joke, I wish they didn’t say it because it’s rude.

1:36

Codings: ○ Importance seen in maintaining a positive image in public and being seen as fitting in.

Content: When I’m out in the world I don’t want to be the type of person where people are saying ‘what is that girl doing?’ So when I’m out, I’m being a very nice girl – helpful and polite so I think that people outside of school think that I’m a nice girl and that they’re comfortable with me because I’m a kind person. So yeah, I don’t judge people outside of school and things like that, so I think everyone outside of school has a positive opinion.

1:37

Codings: ○ Conflict seen between Spanish and Latin American identity.

Content: oung people that come from their country in South American to Spain, or just go to the UK but with a Spanish passport… they think that their papers define where they’re from. But I don’t think that’s good because you should always tell people where you were born. It’s the place that you’re from. I don’t really like when people that were born in Colombia, or Ecuador or Peru are telling people ‘yeah I’m Spanish, I was there, so I’m Spanish.’ No, you’re not from Spain, you are from the place you were born. So yeah, I think this is very true, that it’s really true.

1:38

Codings: ○ Conflict seen between Spanish and Latin American identity.

Content: In South America, countries are not that rich. They’re not as advanced as there countries, so maybe that’s why they’re ashamed to say that they’re from that place. Yeah, so that’s what I think. And I feel sorry for the mother because her kids shouldn’t be trying to hide the place that they come from. You should always be proud of where you’re from.

1:39

Codings: ○ Discrimination and anti-migrant sentiment seen as hidden.

Content: Because, people think that immigrants they come here to take our jobs and even though the English people say ‘oh, we don’t say that.’ It’s true that they do. Deep inside they do say that and sometimes when you watch the news, the message, the moral is that immigrants are coming to take our jobs

144

1:40

Codings: ○ Media seen as creating anti-migrant feeling.

Content: And the media has an influence, so if the media say something and it’s in the news, people will be influenced by it and spread the word and it gets to us, people saying ‘oh they’re gonna come and take our jobs. And they don’t see the things that we do as well. We also help the country to develop, but they just don’t see it that way.

1:41

Codings: ○ Media seen as creating anti-migrant feeling.

Content: I think it’s just the media. Nobody though about it until they started saying it in the media. Donald Trump is now saying that immigration is a big problem and that we need to stop that, so that also influences people.

1:42

Codings: ○ Sense of pride in Latino identity.

Content: Hmmm, that’s a good one because yeah, it’s a different culture like, completely different so the things that we do, eat, watch are good… we don’t have to be ashamed of ourselves and we can influence people when they see us. They can learn about us in the same way that we learn about them. So I think it’s good. It’s true that you see things from a different point of view being Latina

1:43

Codings: ○ Parental strictness restricting adolescent freedom.

Content: as parents in Europe they give their children more liberties and in SA there is no liberties for children. Here they trust the children more, but in SA there is no trust – you have to be at home straight away after school. Yeah.

1:44

Codings: ○ Sense of pride in Latino identity.

Content: No, I’m just happy that she’s proud of her culture, because a lot of Latinos now try to hide their culture and act like it’s ok, I’m not from that country I’m from England now. I’m living in England and I’m going to act like I have no heritage, no background. That’s mostly teenagers, nowadays.

1:45

Codings:

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○ Pressure to learn English seen as detrimental.

Content: Don’t put too much pressure on us. Don’t pressure us. Because putting pressure on us will just stress us out and if you put a lot of pressure there’s gonna be a point where someone’s gonna cry and just say ‘I can’t do this anymore.’ Yeah, too much pressure, I dunno, it’s just too much.

1:46

Codings: ○ Additional translation tasks for parents adding to sense of pressure.

Content: It’s basically because parents also ask you to go and translate for them and be like ‘yeah you need to translate this, you need to help me do this and that.’ Don’t pressure us because school is already a lot of pressure so please relax.

1:47

Codings: ○ Media seen as creating anti-migrant feeling.

Content: Don’t only show negative things about us, South Americans. Or yeah, don’t put negative stuff in people’s heads because we don’t only do negative stuff. We do positive stuff. But it’s never, never on the news. Yeah.

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AppendixE:OriginalCodingtoTheme4:DiscriminationandDifference

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throughaprocessofthematicanalysis,toformTheme4:Discriminationand

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localcommunity,theimpactoftheEUreferendum,thecentralityofaccent,and

theimportanceofhavinganunderstandingpeer-groupcontextingivingconfidence

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Theme4andfivesubthemes.Theseweredefinedbasedonclusteringthe16codesdescribedabove

Theme4:DiscriminationandDifference

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2.Experience ofdirect

discriminationornegative

stereotypinginschool

3.Experience ofdiscriminationor

negativestereotypingin

thewidercommunity

4.Accentandrecency ofarrival

arethekeymarkersofdifference

5.Importanceofan

understandingpeer-groupin

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AppendixF:FullInterviewTranscript1 2 JG: OK. Emm, alright. So there’s a few different activities, some of them will be just writing, some of them… 3 4 (Introduction activity on researcher’s migration experience – not transcribed.) 5 6 So what I’d like you to do…. I’d like you to think of two moments. One moment before you moved to the U.K. 7 and one after. Imagine those moments in your head. And I’ll give you a second to think of those. 8 9 KX: OK 10 11 JG: Do you have them in your head? 12 13 KX: Yeah, yeah, yeah 14 15 JG: Alright 16 17 KX: So should I talk about it? 18 19 JG: Yeah, well, so tell me about the first moment anyway. The first moment before you moved. Tell me how you 20 felt at that moment. 21 22 KX: I was really scared. Because of the language. I remember myself in the airport and I was crying a lot because 23 I was leaving all my family behind. My cousins, my aunties, my friends, so all of them came to see me at the 24 airport. And I was really sad. I was sad, but at the same time in my belly I was, I dunno, I was feeling sick. It 25 wasn’t sick, but it was sick scared. You know when you don’t want to do something, but you have to do it? It 26 was ‘cos of the language and I was kinda pretty old and I knew I was gonna have to do my exams, so yeah. 27 28 One moment now would be yesterday. Because yesterday I applied for my work experience and I got accepted in 29 St. Thomas’ Hospital. Yeah, everything’s good and I got good marks in my mock exams… yeah, that’s the two 30 moments. 31 32 JG: So, the second one was a positive moment, moving from being quite scared to feeling like you are more 33 settled here? 34 35 KX: Yeah 36 37 JG: OK. And what do you feel you’ve gained from your move to the U.K.? What are some of the things on the 38 positive side? 39 40 KX: Emm… I learned how to speak English. I’ve got loads of friends in school. So, that’s a positive because 41 those are the main languages that you need. It’s more experiences as well and stuff, you have more knowledge 42 about everything. Emm… and gained more friends. Which is good because you have people to support you. 43 Many more adults to support you, so that you can do anything and yeah… 44

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45 JG: And are there important things that you feel like you’ve lost in making that move? 46 47 KX: I think… emm, I lost my confidence. Because it’s a new language and the accent. Like, the accent. ` 48 49 JG: And yeah, I have a little activity to look at that a bit more later in the interview… 50 51 And how do you think that you’ve changed personally between those two moments? 52 53 KX: How I’ve changed? 54 55 JG: Hmm, if at all. 56 57 KX: Hmm, I don’t think I’ve changed. It’s just that I get more knowledge from my experiences. Like, the 58 experience of moving from one country to another. Like, you learn more stuff about… like sometimes you have 59 to do stuff even if you don’t want to. You have to take the risk. 60 61 JG: Hmm, ok. And that kind of sets you up? (Nod). Alright, the next thing I have is… I want us to look at this 62 piece of paper. Can you just write your name in the centre? OK, perfect. 63 64 And, is that name short for a longer name or… 65 66 KX: No, that’s my name. 67 68 JG: I haven’t heard it before. Is it a common name in Ecuador? 69 70 KX: No, I don’t think so (laughs). 71 72 JG: I’ve never seen it, but I’ve never been to Ecuador. I’ve been to Mexico and Colombia. I have the most 73 normal name. 74 75 OK, so what this activity is about is I’ve got you in the centre and I’ve got four different levels, closer and further 76 away from you. I want you to think about some of the most important people or things that make up how you feel 77 about yourself. It can be anything. Like, it could be all people or things, or whatever comes to mind as the most 78 important parts of how you feel about yourself. With the most important close to your name, and as they get less 79 important, further away. Does that make sense? 80 81 KX: Yeah 82 83 JG: Would you rather tell me and for me to write (nods), or… 84 85 KX: I think what makes me is my family, education, because education… If you’re not good in school, people 86 are going to see you in some kind of way, and that will make you as well. That way, that’s going to make you 87 feel a type of way about yourself. It goes, family, education. 88 89

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JG: And do family and education go on the same level, or is one more important than the other? 90 91 KX: No, it’s as important as my family. 92 93 JG: OK, and can you explain what you said about people seeing you in a certain way because… 94 95 KX: Because, you need education because if you’re not good in your education, then people are going to say ‘oh, 96 you’re dumb, you need to start studying more’ and people will tell you stuff about yourself that you wouldn’t like 97 to hear, and yeah… 98 99 JG: So it’s a way that people make judgements about you? 100 101 KX: Yeah 102 103 JG: OK. And how do your family influence how you feel about yourself? 104 105 KX: My family because they’re always… they will never lie to you about how they feel about you. That’s my 106 opinion. My family won’t lie about me. If they see that I’m doing bad, then they will tell me straight away. 107 They’ll be like ‘you need to fix up.’ They’re the ones that encourage me to do stuff and of course I need them to 108 tell me what I have to do and what I don’t have to do. 109 110 JG: How do you say ‘fix up’ in Spanish? It seems like a very English phrase! (laughs). 111 112 KX: Fix up? Umm… I don’t know. Sometimes I struggle with my Spanish now. 113 114 JG: And do you speak to your parents and your family only in Spanish, or… 115 116 KX: With my Mum and my grandparents in Spanish, and my cousins in English. 117 118 10:00 119 JG: Alright. Are they the only ones you think should go in there, or is there any others. 120 121 KX: I think those are the only ones. 122 123 JG: So then, is there anything that’s a little less important? 124 125 KX: Emm, I think it’s the people I hang around with. Friends, maybe. 126 127 JG: We can say both, so friends and people you hang around with (writing) 128 OK. And tell me about your friends. 129 130 KX: Your friends will influence you. It depends on what kind of friends you have, If you have bad friends they 131 will make you do bad stuff and make you change how you are. I know this seems typical of a young child to just 132 change because of their friends. But I think it’s true because, people change depending on who they hang around 133 with. If they’re good people they will help you and support you, but if they’re the wrong people they will make 134

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you feel less. Yeah like they will make you feel not worth it and stuff and make you do things you don’t want to 135 do. 136 137 JG: And how was that process of making friends for you? Did you go to a school in London before St. G’s or 138 straight to St. G’s? 139 140 KX: Yeah, primary school. 141 142 JG: How many years did you spend in primary school? 143 144 KX: Emm… two. 145 146 JG: So in year 5? 147 148 KX: Yeah. 149 150 JG: And how was that process then, of finding the right people to hang around with? 151 152 KX: It was really hard. Because in primary school, in Y5, I got put in the worst class. So I think I decided to hang 153 around with them and that made me become a rude person, in a way. When I came to St. G’s I decided to have a 154 smaller circle of friends. And it has done me good because my friends are the ones who encourage me to do 155 revision… they do revision with me every day. Yeah. 156 157 JG: So, you changed between 5 and 6, and 7. So what year are you in now? 158 159 KX: Year 10. 160 161 JG: Is there any others that you would like to put in there, or as a little less important? 162 163 KX: Less important… Hmm… Less important… I don’t know… I think my teachers. Because, teachers are like 164 your friends as well. But you don’t really hang around with them all the time. So it does influence how you are 165 more than your friends. Because, with your friends, you talk to them every day and you hang around with them 166 every day, but with your teachers, just lessons. Sometimes it depends on the teacher. If you have a rude teacher 167 and doesn’t do anything and you just see them sitting down and (inaudible) like that you might think ‘the teacher 168 is really lazy, maybe when I’m older I want to be like her and do nothing.’ But then, if you have good teachers 169 they will influence you to work hard and achieve something. 170 171 JG: OK, and is there anything else that we could put down? Things that have a bit of an influence on you and 172 how you see yourself, but not so much. 173 174 KX: Hmmm, I can’t think of anything. Yeah, I can’t think of anything. 175 176 JG: And is there anything else you’d like to say about this activity before we move on? 177 178

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KX: No, but ummm, just with teachers, they also make you do after school clubs. Even your parents don’t make 179 you do things after school. That will also influence you in who you are, or what you do. If your parents tell you 180 to go straight home, then you don’t have the chance to do anything bad or anything that comes into your mind. 181 But your teachers, they will always make sure that they will put you in something after school that will help you. 182 183 JG: And what are you involved in, extracurricular? 184 185 KX: Emm… I have English intervention, Maths intervention, Triple Science intervention. I do homework club 186 sometimes. I do fitness club, I do concert band. And I do cadets. 187 188 15:00 189 JG: That sounds like quite a bit, like you’re busy most evenings. OK, shall we move on from this activity? 190 (nod). In this part of the interview I’m going to ask you about your process of moving to London. So, first 191 of all, can you tell me about when you first heard that you were going to be moving to the U.K.? Do you 192 remember that moment? 193 194 KX: I was happy, because I didn’t really enjoy myself… I enjoyed myself a lot in Barcelona because it was a 195 really nice place and I had a lot of friends but at the same time, I love being with my family. I think family comes 196 before friends. And my grandparents were living in the U.K. with my Mum. I knew that my Mum couldn’t raise 197 me and my sister by herself because she worked all day. And I didn’t want my little sister to grow up in a place 198 where she doesn’t have a Mum to be there. I know, I used to take care of her, but it was just hard to come from 199 school straight away and run to see my sister and stuff like that. I think I’m much happier with my Mum. I was 200 upset to be leaving my friends and family… well, my uncle and aunty, but I was happy because I missed my 201 grandparents and I wanted something better for my Mum. 202 203 JG: How long had you been in Barcelona? 204 205 KX: 3 years. 206 207 JG: OK, and what are some of your first memories of here? Did you always live in Lambeth or South London? 208 209 KX: Lambeth, yeah. 210 211 JG: So what are some of your first memories of this area? 212 213 KX: I think I loved it. Because, it was during winter and it snowed on that day and it was the first time. Well, not 214 the first time, the second time that I saw snow. I was really happy. I saw my grandparents, and it was really nice. 215 We watched movies and it was nice. I thought that they would forget about me, but they didn’t, so I was happy. 216 217 JG: So you felt kind of welcomed here? 218 219 KX: Yeah 220 221 JG: And did you have any say in your decision to move? Did you have any choice? 222 223

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KX: No, I didn’t have any choice. My Mum is really strict, so you don’t have any say in the house. So until 224 you’re 16, 17, you don’t have any say in the house. That’s Latino parents – they’re very strict. 225 226 JG: So you do what you’re told and get on with it. But it sounds like, luckily, you were ok with what was going 227 to be happening. 228 229 Emm, and what do you think is the main change that moving here has brought about for you? 230 231 KX: The climate, and the language. That’s the big change. Because in Barcelona it can be a bit cold, but not cold 232 like here, so I was a bit shocked with the weather. It was never sunny. 233 234 JG: So the next question is about what helps you with some of those things. So, with the weather, not much can 235 help you I suppose (laughs) but with the language, has there been anyone or anything that’s been helpful in 236 dealing with that difficulty? 237 238 KX: When I came to London, I applied for a school and I did the application form as soon as I came, and a 239 school came up really fast. And when I was there, people were really nice. We were young, there was no need for 240 anyone to be rude to you. So, I had to buddy up with someone that was Colombian. So, she helped me and I had 241 extra lessons in English. I think it was more the support of the little girl that was helping me, and my teachers, 242 because they were helping me as well. 243 244 JG: And did you get taken out for extra lessons, or how did that work? 245 246 KX: Yeah, I got taken out. Or sometimes the teacher used to put a translation underneath so that I knew what… 247 248 JG: What you were supposed to do? 249 250 KX: Yeah 251 252 JG: And how did you feel about getting taken out for extra language lessons? Was it a positive or… 253 254 KX: Yeah it was a positive thing. Yeah, because there were more Spanish people who didn’t know how to speak 255 English with me, so I was comfortable. 256 257 20:05 258 259 JG: OK, because you weren’t the only… 260 261 KX: Yeah, I weren’t the only one. 262 263 JG: OK, so in general, how was that experience of learning English? Can you try to rewind back 5 years and tell 264 me about some of the stages that you feel you went through in that time. From the first moment where you were 265 really scared. 266 267

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KX: I was really scared. I was freaking out inside. I was really scared to go to school and what I used to do the 268 most was put CBeebies on the TV. It used to help a lot. Believe me, it helps. (laughs). It helped a lot. I think 269 Cbeebies helped me. I think the other thing that helped me the most is going to the library, taking out books and 270 translating it. And sometimes my Mum… my Mum is really strict. So, she used to print out pages of verbs and 271 things like that and she used to put a translation next to it and make me learn it. Any every day I had to do a page. 272 And watching Cbeebies while memorising all these words, that helped, yeah. 273 274 JG: And how long do you think it took you for that feeling of being really scared to leave? By the end of primary 275 school was that starting to fade, or did you still feel like that? 276 277 KX: I’m still like that now (laughs). So I don’t think I’m going to overcome this fear because I’m still scared. I 278 was just upstairs and I was thinking ‘oh my God, the interview is going to go wrong and oh no I can’t do this I 279 can’t do this.’ Yeah. 280 281 JG: Because when I hear you speak I can tell the London accent (nods). So you’ve obviously started to lose 282 maybe some of the accent that you had when you arrived and started to take on a bit more of how people speak 283 around here, no? (laughs). So when do you think that started to happen? 284 285 KX: When I moved from primary school to secondary school. Because that was a big change. Even though I 286 didn’t speak the language that well, that was a big change. Because everyone’s a bit older now and you spend 287 more time with your friends. My friends are nice (laughs), but they’re just really funny and I think they influence 288 the way I speak. 289 290 JG: And do most of your friends speak Spanish as well, or speak English and different languages, or only 291 English? 292 293 KX: Most of my friends speak English. Some of them speak Spanish, but I don’t really hang around with the 294 Spanish people in my school. Maybe it’s cos I never see them. And when I do see them I’m like ‘hello’ and 295 they’re like ‘hello.’ I don’t really see them in the playground. 296 297 JG: And why do you think that is? 298 299 KX: I don’t know, maybe it’s because of the weather (laughs) 300 301 JG: Explain that to me. 302 303 KX: It’s cold 304 305 JG: OK, so you go outside, but you think that they stay more inside? 306 307 KX: Yeah definitely. More inside. Like when sometimes I walk past on the corridor they’re all in this room or 308 the other room and most of the Spanish people just hang around in the room. Sometimes when I’m going past 309 and I see someone coming I’m like ‘hello’ but I’m still shy even though I speak Spanish and they speak Spanish, 310 I’m still shy to approach them. 311 312

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JG: OK 313 314 KX: Even with my own people, I’m still shy! 315 316 JG: OK, so at the moment, do you feel more confident in English or in Spanish? 317 318 KX: Umm, I don’t know, I think in Spanish better. 319 320 JG: Is it then maybe with the switching from English to Spanish with these people then, that you feel a bit more 321 conscious? 322 323 KX: With the people I think I’m more confident. 324 325 JG: Which people? 326 327 KX: Like, the Spanish people. 328 329 JG: OK 330 331 KX: But then with my friends, because no one speaks Spanish among my friends, so I can’t really switch up the 332 language when I’m talking to them because they won’t understand. 333 334 JG: OK, so how is it different expressing yourself in English, compared to expressing yourself in Spanish? 335 336 KX: Oh because in Spanish I speak quicker. So it’s quicker to get to the point. In Spanish it’s easier because I 337 know most of the words. In English it’s hard because sometimes you have to think about ‘what am I going to say 338 and is it going to sound right and do I know how to pronounce it’ because if I don’t know how to pronounce it I 339 will stay quiet and I won’t say anything. 340 341 JG: And is there anything then, that you think you lose when you speak in English, that you would have been 342 able to communicate in Spanish? 343 344 25:05 345 KX: If I was speaking in Spanish, I would express myself in more detail. But in English, more basic simple 346 explanation about myself and how I feel. Because sometimes you have to figure out the right words. People say 347 ‘oh, you’ve been here so many years you should know all the words by now.’ But sometimes they don’t even 348 know it themselves and I think it’s hard whether you speak Spanish or not… you still have to figure out the 349 words you’re going to use. 350 351 JG: Yeah, and it is also a long process to acquire another language. 352 353 And is there anything that you gain in speaking English? Maybe something that you like about speaking in 354 English compared to speaking in Spanish. 355 356

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KX: Well, before I used to like it because my Mum didn’t understand. My Mum didn’t understand English so 357 when she used to tell me what to do I used to complain in English. But now yeah, it’s fine. And I think English 358 has helped me because you need English anywhere. If you were to apply for a job and you speak two languages, 359 I think they will want you more than the person who only speaks one language… nowadays there’s different 360 cultures, different languages so I think it will help you out if you speak two rather than one. 361 362 JG: Yeah, and there’s more contact between different parts of the world in general. So, what was most helpful? 363 You mentioned Cbeebies, the library and your mother, but was there anything else that helped in that process of 364 learning English? 365 366 KX: Umm, my friends. Well, the only girl I was friends with. For four months I only had one friend because she 367 was the only one who spoke Spanish. In my year. In the other years I was too scared to approach the people who 368 spoke Spanish. So I think that friend because when we had to do something, she would explain what every word 369 means so yeah, that helped me. And, I think that’s it basically. 370 371 JG: Was there anything that was unhelpful? So something that people said you have to do if you want to learn 372 English, but you thought, nah, that’s not helping me. 373 374 KX: I think something that didn’t help was when teachers used to put a lot of pressure on me to learn English 375 soon. Like, oh, you need to go home and study English because you have your SATS next year. Yeah so I think 376 the pressure that teachers put on you. That wasn’t really helpful. 377 378 28:20 379 JG: Alright so the next activity I have is a drawing one. How do you feel about that? 380 381 KX: I don’t mind, I like drawing. I like it, but I’m not good at drawing. 382 383 JG: And with this it’s more about the ideas and the discussion, rather than the quality of the drawing itself, but it 384 kind of links to something that you said at the start about how you see yourself and how others see you. So, I 385 want you to make two sketch drawings. On one, will be… we’ll leave that for now but it will be about how 386 others see you. But, first of all, how you see yourself. This drawing is going to be about how you see yourself. So 387 I’ll give you a few minutes just to sketch it out and then we can talk about it. 388 389 KX: Umm, if I was to draw that… (drawing/laughing). I think I would say that I was brave enough to climb the 390 mountain. Because you need bravery and to take the risk to just move to a different country and a different 391 language so it’s like I climbed the mountain and I finally made it. Yeah. 392 393 JG: And when did you realise that you’d made it. Was there a time during those years when you felt like ok, now 394 I’ve made it? 395 396 30:00 397 KX: I think when my English was more fluent. 398 399 JG: And how long did that take, or can you remember any moment where you felt like, ok, if I can do this, then 400 now I’ve made it. 401

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402 KX: I think it was this year. When I started to do my mock exams and I got good grades I was like, I’ve made it. 403 404 JG: OK, so the mock exams was the moment. Is there anything else you’d like to tell me about how you see 405 yourself? 406 407 KX: I see myself as a happy person so… because I’m happy about myself and how I turned out to be. Because 408 my Mum raised me well. I don’t do bad stuff. There’s times when you misbehave but at least I don’t make my 409 Mum sad or disappointed about me, so… I’m happy. As long as my Mum is happy and my family is happy then 410 it’s alright because friends you can have them anywhere and everywhere. I don’t need to have friends in school. 411 Most important is my family. 412 413 JG: OK, and is there anything else you would like to add to this? 414 415 KX: No, I think it’s done. 416 417 JG: So the next one is how you feel other people see you. And there might be different drawings for different 418 groups of people, or one in general. 419 420 KX: (drawing). I think this would be it basically. That sums up my school basically. 421 422 JG: OK, explain this. 423 424 KX: So there are all these people who feel like they have to comment about things you say or you do. Or 425 sometimes people feel like they have to comment about things that you do or your accent. Like, my accent. 426 Everyone talks about my accent. Everyone. My teacher’s don’t say it in a rude way but there’s people in my 427 school, especially the Year 11s who always have to say something about my accent. They know I don’t like it, 428 but they still do. There’s always people putting me down. In a type of way. Sometimes I do good in my exams 429 and school, but sometimes I don’t do good and you don’t need people to be commenting about how you do. If 430 you’ve done something wrong then, you’ve done it. Get over it. But there’s always people that are going to have 431 to bring it up again and again. And now I dyed my hair. So I know there are people that are going to be talking 432 about my hair. So, even though it’s a joke, ‘banter’ as they say it, sometimes they say it too, too rude and it’s not 433 a joke. 434 435 JG: So, tell me about some of the things people say about accent. 436 437 KX: Oh my gosh, if I told you the things that they say… oh you need to go back to your country, you need to get 438 out. That’s what they tell me. I’m like, that’s rude and they’re like ‘it’s a joke, it’s a joke’ But as much as it’s a 439 joke, I wish they didn’t say it because it’s rude. 440 441 JG: And is there a difference between school and outside school? In the world that isn’t within these walls. Do 442 you think that if you were to make another drawing for that, would it be similar or would it be different? 443 444 KX: I think, emmm… 445 446

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JG: So it could be London as a whole, or England as a whole, or just Lambeth. 447 448 KX: Oh my gosh, I can’t even draw stick men. I think, people. When I’m out in the world I don’t want to be the 449 type of person where people are saying ‘what is that girl doing?’ So when I’m out, I’m being a very nice girl – 450 helpful and polite so I think that people outside of school think that I’m a nice girl and that they’re comfortable 451 with me because I’m a kind person. So yeah, I don’t judge people outside of school and things like that, so I 452 think everyone outside of school has a positive opinion. 453 454 35:35 455 JG: OK, and it seems that you work a little bit to make sure that that happens. 456 457 KX: Yeah 458 459 JG: Alright then. Is there anything else then, that you’d like to add to this one before we move on? 460 461 KX: No, nothing. 462 463 35:51 464 JG: OK, so we’ve reached the last activity now. So this one uses quotes. So I have some different quotes that I 465 want to show you and just get your opinion on. So I’m not going to introduce them too much. But, underneath it 466 tells you who said them. So, I want to get your thoughts on them. So, the first one, came from the research that I 467 did last year… (explanation, not trancribed) 468 469 KX: (Reads to herself). Ohhhh, that is a big problems now. Because, I don’t know why, but young people that 470 come from their country in South America to Spain, or just go to the U.K. but with a Spanish passport… they 471 think that their papers define where they’re from. But I don’t think that’s good because you should always tell 472 people where you were born. It’s the place that you’re from. I don’t really like when people that were born in 473 Colombia, or Ecuador or Peru are telling people ‘yeah I’m Spanish, I was there, so I’m Spanish.’ No, you’re not 474 from Spain, you are from the place you were born. So yeah, I think this is very true, that it’s really true. 475 476 JG: And why do you think that some people do that? 477 478 KX: Sometimes, people are ashamed of where they’re from. In South America, countries are not that rich. 479 They’re not as advanced as these countries, so maybe that’s why they’re ashamed to say that they’re from that 480 place. Yeah, so that’s what I think. And I feel sorry for the mother because her kids shouldn’t be trying to hide 481 the place that they come from. You should always be proud of where you’re from. 482 483 JG: And the reason that I wanted to show that to some children and teenagers was to see… parents and children 484 can have very different ways of seeing the world, so I wanted to show it to some younger people, to see… does 485 this happen or not. 486 487 (Introduces next quote). 488 489 40:00 490

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KX: That actually explains my situation now. Because, people think that immigrants they come here to take our 491 jobs and even though the English people say ‘oh, we don’t say that.’ It’s true that they do. Deep inside they do 492 say that and sometimes when you watch the news, the message, the moral is that immigrants are coming to take 493 our jobs. And the media has an influence, so if the media says something and it’s in the news, people will be 494 influenced by it and spread the word and it gets to us, people saying ‘oh they’re gonna come and take our jobs. 495 And they don’t see the things that we do as well. We also help the country to develop, but they just don’t see it 496 that way. 497 498 JG: Is there moments when you felt that this kind of message was at its strongest? Maybe when you felt that 499 people were making these kind of comments often or… 500 501 KX: People need to see that immigrants are a source of strength. I think that’s what they need to get into their 502 minds. Because at the moment… 503 504 JG: If we made a scale at moment with ‘source of strength’ as 10 and what you said about ‘taking our jobs’ etc. 505 at zero, where do you think we are right now? From your perspective? 506 507 (confusion about the scale) (then placed herself low on scale). 508 509 And why do you think this is? 510 511 KX: I think it’s just the media. Nobody thought about it until they started saying it in the media. Donald Trump is 512 now saying that immigration is a big problem and that we need to stop that, so that also influences people. 513 514 JG: OK, and in terms of your identity. What word would you use to describe the broader group that you come 515 from? In the U.S., they often say ‘Latino’ but maybe less here? 516 517 KX: No, we always say Latino, that’s what we say. 518 519 JG: Emm, and we have one more quote – this is from a Colombian author. 520 521 (reading) 522 523 KX: Hmmm, that’s a good one because yeah, it’s a different culture like, completely different so the things that 524 we do, eat, watch are good… we don’t have to be ashamed of ourselves and we can influence people when they 525 see us. They can learn about us in the same way that we learn about them. So I think it’s good. It’s true that you 526 see things from a different point of view being Latina, as parents in Europe they give their children more liberties 527 and in SA there is no liberties for children. Here they trust the children more, but in SA there is no trust – you 528 have to be at home straight away after school. Yeah. 529 530 JG: And do you think that’s true for all, for both boys and girls? 531 532 KX: Boys and girls, yeah. 533 534 JG: OK, did you have any other thoughts on this? 535

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536 KX: No, I’m just happy that she’s proud of her culture, because a lot of Latinos now try to hide their culture and 537 act like it’s ok, I’m not from that country I’m from England now. I’m living in England and I’m going to act like 538 I have no heritage, no background. That’s mostly teenagers, nowadays. 539 540 JG: OK, the last thing that I wanted to ask is… (explanation, not transcribed) 541 542 I wanted to ask if there is a key message that you would like to share, first with your teachers from your 543 perspective. Something that’s important. 544 545 KX: Don’t put too much pressure on us. Don’t pressure us. Because putting pressure on us will just stress us out 546 and if you put a lot of pressure there’s gonna be a point where someone’s gonna cry and just say ‘I can’t do this 547 anymore.’ Yeah, too much pressure, I dunno, it’s just too much. 548 549 JG: So it could be more positive maybe… 550 551 What about for your parents? 552 553 KX: Trust us more. Give us more liberties, please. And don’t put so much pressure. Because parents also put too 554 much pressure on on. It’s basically because parents also ask you to go and translate for them and be like ‘yeah 555 you need to translate this, you need to help me do this and that.’ Don’t pressure us because school is already a lot 556 of pressure so please relax. 557 558 JG: And what about for the Prime Minister, Theresa May? 559 560 KX: Theresa May… I wouldn’t even know what to say to her – I don’t know. Hmm.. I’m not sure. 561 562 JG: So you, as a migrant or as someone from Latin America, if you had to tell her something about that 563 experience, what would it be? 564 565 KX: It was really scary. Really, really scary. It’s not an easy thing. Please, please, please, help the Latinos 566 because it’s really hard. It’s really hard to apply for housing and stuff like that. So, please help us. 567 568 JG: So if you could give a message to the media, what would it be? 569 570 KX: Don’t only show negative things about us, South Americans. Or yeah, don’t put negative stuff in people’s 571 heads because we don’t only do negative stuff. We do positive stuff. But it’s never, never on the news. Yeah. 572 573 JG: So I’ve finished now… is there anything else that you’d like to share, that is important to you but that we 574 haven’t covered? 575 576 KX: I just wanted to say good luck and you’re very nice. 577 578 JG: Thank you. 579 580

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(Explains the purpose of the research and confirms consent and the possibility of the participant following up the 581 interview.)582

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AppendixI:EthicalApprovalLetter