The pedagogical relationship lost in translation? Insights from a segregated Ukrainian refugee school in Norway
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21725790 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Inga Storen (0009-0007-8615-1190, NLA University College, corresponding author), Wills Kalisha (0000-0002-2085-018X, NLA University College) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Publication date | 2025-12-18 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | European Journal of Educational Research (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1474-9041 • E-ISSN: 2165-8714 |
| Publisher | SAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US) |
| DOI | 10.1177/14749041251404521 |
| OpenAlex | W4417480220 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
| References cited | 29 |
Despite Norway’s long-standing tradition of integrating refugee children into mainstream schools, local authorities in Western Norway decided to establish a separate school for the hundreds of children arriving from Ukraine. Informally referred to as the “Ukraine school,” this school was staffed by a dedicated team of teachers, teaching assistants, special educators, a nurse, and a psychologist, several of whom spoke Ukrainian or Russian. In this paper, we examine some of the implications of this unique, segregated approach to refugee education, with a particular focus on the constraints and possibilities of cultivating pedagogical relationships. Grounded in a phenomenological framework, our analysis draws on the lived experiences of six teachers, alongside researcher observations conducted in classrooms and playgrounds during the spring of 2024. As understood in continental philosophy, the pedagogical relationship is dialogical, spontaneous, and situated, requiring teachers to engage authentically and responsively with the child in the moment. This study reveals the constraints on pedagogical relationships that arise when teachers and children are unable to communicate directly through a shared language. The immediacy and spontaneity of their interactions were lost in the translation process, which not only hindered the emergence of “teachable moments” but also curtailed teachers’ capacity to foster meaningful pedagogical engagement
Displaced person · Focus group · Immediacy · International education · Interpretative phenomenological analysis · Mainstream · Refugee · Ukrainian · Education and experiences of immigrants and refugees · Migration, Health and Trauma · Peace and Human Rights Education
Learning from the Other
Asylum spaces as spaces of nonrecognition
Addressing the Language and Literacy Needs and Challenges of Students with Refugee Experiences
The practice of relationality in classrooms
Pedagogical challenges in integrating refugee students in the Global North
Joint attention, the pedagogical relation, and pedagogical tact in the age of digital education
Constructing the multilingual child
To make the student exist” – Bilingual subject teachers’ narratives about multilingualism in language support classes in Norway
Translanguaging challenges in multilingual classrooms
Included as excluded and excluded as included
Proposing a conceptual framework for relational pedagogy
The relationship of the three “As” of adaptation
The Refugee Crisis and Education
Contested Childhoods
| Citations per year | 1 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2026 - 2026 (1) |
| Highly cited | No |