Social transformation and refugee learning in two UK communities.

英国两个社区的社会转型和难民学习。

• 批准号: 2602268
• 金额: --
• 依托单位: University of East Anglia
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Studentship
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2021 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=studentship-2602268
• 关键词: Social; transformation; refugee; learning; two

The aim of this project is to explore refugees' experiences of learning in two UK NGOs and how these relate to social transformation. Anti-migration has become a central theme of populist politics in the UK, accompanied by increasing hostility towards those who speak languages other than English. This has deep implications for social cohesion in the future. With factors like the climate emergency and global economic challenges exacerbated by Covid-19, it is likely that displaced people will continueto want to resettle in the UK. Alongside these tensions, there have also been enormous impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on vulnerable refugees living in the UK. Despite these ongoing social challenges, there are numerous organisations who offer a welcoming environment for refugees, including free access to safe community learning. It is important to consider what refugees' experiences of learning are, how far they are active agents in the process and how this relates to social transformation. Study of the learning experiences of refugees that considers their perspectives is crucial to shape future learning programmes and policy.Much political rhetoric asserts that migrants should learn English if they want to stay in the UK and has a top-down focus towards integration. Despite this rhetoric, funding for English classes has been continually cut and refugees in the UK are often unable to access them. Charity organisations are offering free English classes, usually facilitated by volunteers, as well as informal learning opportunities. Contrasting with government rhetoric, organisations supporting refugees often attempt to facilitate 'bottom-up' learning, utilising participatory approaches with the goal of positive social transformation and empowerment.There has been little study of this transformation in organisations or wider communities, how it relates to informal learning and whether it is led by refugees themselves. There is also social transformation that occurs outside of organisations' and refugees' control. This study will additionally consider the impact of the recent Covid-19 pandemic on refugee learning, as well as new societal developments that impact communities.Scotland and England have different approaches to adult education and integration for refugees. For this reason, the cases chosen for study will be community organisations offering free English classes and support for refugees in Norwich and Glasgow, two contrasting communities in the UK. Scotland has a published strategy for refugee integration, and attempts to welcome them to communities, in contrast to Westminster's 'Hostile Environment' approach. The differing policy will give important insights and compare two communities in the UK that are usually considered as separate entities.The research will investigate the main research question:What are refugees' experiences of learning in the UK and how do these relate to socialtransformation in organisations and communities?This will be investigated alongside two sub research questions considering how refugees' learning experiences challenge the policy discourses surrounding education for integration and how societal changes are influencing refugee learning within organisations. The data will be collected in two stages in each organisation. First an ethnographic approach will observe and explore refugee learning. Next, Participatory Action Research will be used to develop a resource for organisations with refugee participants, guided by their experiences. This will be important for both organisations and policy makers, pointing to future directions that are informed and shaped by the life-wide learning experiences of refugees themselves. The ongoing Covid-19 pandemic means that the research will also give important insights into the emerging field of digital participatory research methods, which needs further researchand attention.

这个项目的目的是探讨难民在两个英国非政府组织学习的经历，以及这些经历与社会转型的关系。反移民已成为英国民粹主义政治的一个中心主题，与此同时，对非英语国家的敌意也日益加剧。这对未来的社会凝聚力有着深远的影响。由于新冠疫情加剧了气候紧急情况和全球经济挑战等因素，流离失所的人很可能会继续希望在英国重新定居。除了这些紧张局势，新冠肺炎大流行也对生活在英国的弱势难民产生了巨大影响。尽管存在这些持续的社会挑战，但仍有许多组织为难民提供了一个友好的环境，包括免费获得安全的社区学习机会。重要的是要考虑难民的学习经历是什么，他们在这一进程中发挥了多大的积极作用，以及这与社会变革有什么关系。研究难民的学习经验，考虑他们的观点，这对制定未来的学习方案和政策至关重要。许多政治言论声称，移民如果想留在英国，就应该学习英语，并自上而下地关注融合。尽管有这样的说辞，但英语课程的资金一直在削减，英国的难民往往无法上英语课。慈善组织提供免费的英语课程，通常由志愿者提供，以及非正式的学习机会。与政府的说辞相反，支持难民的组织往往试图促进“自下而上”的学习，利用参与性方法，以实现积极的社会转型和赋权。很少有人研究组织或更广泛社区的这种转变，以及它与非正式学习的关系，以及这种转变是否由难民自己主导。社会转型也在组织和难民的控制之外发生。本研究还将考虑最近的Covid-19大流行对难民学习的影响，以及影响社区的新的社会发展。苏格兰和英格兰对难民的成人教育和融入有不同的做法。出于这个原因，选择的研究案例将是在诺维奇和格拉斯哥两个截然不同的英国社区，为难民提供免费英语课程和支持的社区组织。苏格兰公布了难民融合战略，并试图欢迎他们进入社区，这与威斯敏斯特的“敌对环境”方法形成鲜明对比。不同的政策将提供重要的见解，并比较英国两个通常被视为独立实体的社区。该研究将调查主要的研究问题：难民在英国的学习经历是什么？这些经历与组织和社区的社会转型有何关系？这将与两个子研究问题一起调查，考虑到难民的学习经历如何挑战围绕融合教育的政策话语，以及社会变化如何影响组织内的难民学习。每个机构将分两个阶段收集数据。首先，民族志方法将观察和探索难民学习。接下来，参与式行动研究将被用来为有难民参与者的组织开发一种资源，以他们的经验为指导。这对组织和政策制定者都很重要，指出了未来的方向，这些方向是由难民自己的终身学习经验所决定的。正在进行的新冠肺炎大流行意味着，该研究还将为数字参与式研究方法这一新兴领域提供重要见解，这需要进一步研究和关注。