17 July 2017

Differentiation in the Making: Consequences of School Segregation of Roma in the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Slovakia

Vera Messing


This recently published article -- a part of European Education's 2017 special issue (Vol 49, Issue 1) on "A Decade of Roma Inclusion" edited by Christian Brüggemann & Eben Friedman -- examines how various forms of ethnic segregation in education affect everyday life and future aspirations of Roma youth in three Central and Eastern European countries: the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Slovakia. It draws on a comparative European investigation about the diverging experiences and paths of ethnic minority youth in Europe (EDUMIGROM). The article investigates how segregation actually comes about in Central and Eastern Europe and looks at ways in which various forms of separation shape the everyday experiences and future aspirations of youth through the lenses of 14–15-year-old Roma students and their teachers. It reveals that studying in segregated Roma schools limits young Romas’ chances for further education and deprives them of interethnic social networks. Meanwhile, studying in segregated classes of ethnically mixed schools has a devastating effect on the development of young people’s identity, self-esteem, and interethnic relationships.

10 July 2017

Trying to Include but Supporting Exclusion Instead? Constructing the Roma in Slovak Educational Policies


Jozef Miškolci, Lucia Kováčová & Martina Kubánová

This recently published article -- a part of European Education's 2017 special issue (Vol 49, Issue 1) on "A Decade of Roma Inclusion" edited by Christian Brüggemann & Eben Friedman -- examines how the design of proinclusive educational policies and the general public construct the Roma students and parents in Slovakia. The authors analyze data from two educational policies and five focus groups conducted in five regions in Slovakia. The findings demonstrate that the Roma are constructed negatively as irresponsible dependents and as deviants who do not value education and are incapable of making wise decisions about their lives. The authors argue that these findings can be considered relevant for policy formulation processes, proinclusive policies may sabotage their own goals if negative social constructions of a certain societal group are embedded in them.

03 July 2017

Education of Roma Youth in Hungary: Schools, Identities and Belonging

Jekatyerina Dunajeva


This recently published article -- a part of European Education's 2017 special issue (Vol 49, Issue 1) on "A Decade of Roma Inclusion" edited by Christian Brüggemann & Eben Friedman --  analyzes how, historically, schools have been homogenizing institutions that often disadvantaged people of color and ethnic and religious minorities. In this article the author examines Roma education in Hungary, focusing on (re)production of racial identities and the negotiation of ethnic labels. Dunajeva distinguishes two models of education as they relate to ideas of integration, and assess the evolving ethnic labels: “bad Gypsies” and “good Roma.” According to the author, these labels reflect different philosophies of education, and both contain different tensions and challenges.