From [non] policy to practice: staff’s perspectives on support and services for students of immigrant background in Icelandic universities

Hanna Ragnarsdóttir; Anh Dao Tran; Kriselle Lou Suson Jónsdóttir

doi:10.1080/14767724.2020.1831904

From [non] policy to practice: staff’s perspectives on support and services for students of immigrant background in Icelandic universities

Hanna Ragnarsdóttir^*, Anh Dao Tran, Kriselle Lou Suson Jónsdóttir

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

The aim of this qualitative study is to explore how staff at three Icelandic universities attend to the needs of students of immigrant background. The theoretical background includes critical multicultural studies which focus on analysing the position of minority groups in societies and education from a critical perspective [Parekh 2006. Rethinking Multiculturalism: Cultural Diversity and Political Theory. 2nd ed. New York: Palgrave Mcmillan]. Data were collected in interviews with 16 support staff and teachers at three Icelandic universities. Findings indicate that despite the lack of policies, many staff members use their life experience of working, teaching and personal connections with people of diverse background for teaching and for providing support for immigrant students.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	343-354
Number of pages	12
Journal	Globalisation, Societies and Education
Volume	19
Issue number	3
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1080/14767724.2020.1831904
Publication status	Published - 2021

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
This paper is part of a larger research project, Educational aspirations, opportunities and challenges for immigrants in university education in Iceland (EAO) (2016–2018) funded by the Icelandic Research Fund (Rannís). In addition to document analysis, data in the project were collected through focus groups and individual interviews with 41 immigrant students who were either enrolled at one of the three universities or dropped out after one year. The participating students had either lived in Iceland before beginning their studies, or they had chosen to study in Iceland. They had 21 different native languages and came from 23 different countries in Europe, Asia, and North and South America. The students had been living in Iceland for 2–18 years at the time of the study. In addition, interviews were conducted with key people in these universities, such as teachers and counsellors.

Publisher Copyright:
© 2020 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

Other keywords

higher education policies
Immigrant students in higher education
internationalisation
staff at Icelandic universities
support services

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10.1080/14767724.2020.1831904

Cite this

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title = "From [non] policy to practice: staff{\textquoteright}s perspectives on support and services for students of immigrant background in Icelandic universities",

abstract = "The aim of this qualitative study is to explore how staff at three Icelandic universities attend to the needs of students of immigrant background. The theoretical background includes critical multicultural studies which focus on analysing the position of minority groups in societies and education from a critical perspective [Parekh 2006. Rethinking Multiculturalism: Cultural Diversity and Political Theory. 2nd ed. New York: Palgrave Mcmillan]. Data were collected in interviews with 16 support staff and teachers at three Icelandic universities. Findings indicate that despite the lack of policies, many staff members use their life experience of working, teaching and personal connections with people of diverse background for teaching and for providing support for immigrant students.",

keywords = "higher education policies, Immigrant students in higher education, internationalisation, staff at Icelandic universities, support services",

author = "Hanna Ragnarsd{\'o}ttir and Tran, {Anh Dao} and J{\'o}nsd{\'o}ttir, {Kriselle Lou Suson}",

note = "Funding Information: This paper is part of a larger research project, Educational aspirations, opportunities and challenges for immigrants in university education in Iceland (EAO) (2016–2018) funded by the Icelandic Research Fund (Rann{\'i}s). In addition to document analysis, data in the project were collected through focus groups and individual interviews with 41 immigrant students who were either enrolled at one of the three universities or dropped out after one year. The participating students had either lived in Iceland before beginning their studies, or they had chosen to study in Iceland. They had 21 different native languages and came from 23 different countries in Europe, Asia, and North and South America. The students had been living in Iceland for 2–18 years at the time of the study. In addition, interviews were conducted with key people in these universities, such as teachers and counsellors. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2020 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.",

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N1 - Funding Information: This paper is part of a larger research project, Educational aspirations, opportunities and challenges for immigrants in university education in Iceland (EAO) (2016–2018) funded by the Icelandic Research Fund (Rannís). In addition to document analysis, data in the project were collected through focus groups and individual interviews with 41 immigrant students who were either enrolled at one of the three universities or dropped out after one year. The participating students had either lived in Iceland before beginning their studies, or they had chosen to study in Iceland. They had 21 different native languages and came from 23 different countries in Europe, Asia, and North and South America. The students had been living in Iceland for 2–18 years at the time of the study. In addition, interviews were conducted with key people in these universities, such as teachers and counsellors. Publisher Copyright: © 2020 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

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From [non] policy to practice: staff’s perspectives on support and services for students of immigrant background in Icelandic universities

Abstract

Bibliographical note

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