2001/2002 PCERII Funded Research Abstract

This study inquires into spatial practices and identity negotiation among secondary students with specific focus on the integration of immigrant students in public secondary schools. This research is situated in two prairie cities with growing ethnoculturally diverse school populations. Recognizing a relationship between schooling, spatial practices, and identity formation this study will inform policy and procedures regarding spatial practices and resulting levels of integration and participation of immigrant youth. Space in the context of this study refers to observable space, with measurable and boundable aspects, and to culturally coded space that is characterized by specific social activities. The study is based on the belief that students create spatial domains that consciously and unconsciously serve to define identities and to establish and maintain identity boundaries.

Ongoing Metropolis research inquires into settlement patterns and segregation/congregation of immigrant groups in urban public spaces. Public schools provide a microcosm of these same phenomena. Policies and procedures at the school board and local school levels regarding how space is used are likely to play a significant role in shaping levels of integration and participation among immigrant youth. One example of such policy is the allocation of ESL classrooms within the community and the school itself. Researchers will use the following methods to gather data at one school in Regina and one in Edmonton: a preliminary survey of participant populations, focus group discussions, student-produced mapped images, and still photos of school spaces, audiotaped interviews with students, teachers, administrators, and support staff, and researcher field notes and observations. Results will point to policy and procedural changes that will promote fuller integration and participation of immigrant students in public schooling.