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.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10564934.2017.1280337       

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.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10564934.2017.1280332       

Sweden’s Double Decade for Roma Inclusion: An Examination of Education Policy in Context

Nafsika Alexiadou & Anders Norberg

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 the Swedish Strategy for Roma Inclusion. Drawing on interviews and documentary materials produced around the Strategy by official sources and Roma organizations, the authors describe its background, rationale, and evolution, as well as the rifts it has revealed around the issues of minority representation and the framing of inclusion. The article describes the Strategy as a framework for education policy, aligned with the European Framework for Roma integration, and discuss it in relation to issues of representation, inclusion, and policy formation. IT argue that, at the discursive level, the Strategy has engaged positively with the politics of Roma inclusion and has introduced a number of new issues in the public debate. However, at the same time it has given rise to policy tensions that reflect inadequate representation of and discussions with Roma stakeholders. For policy makers this has presented opportunities to rethink the design of the Strategy and to opt for an open final text that allows for a more versatile and flexible set of policy options to emerge at the local level.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10564934.2017.1280342

Increasing Access to Higher Education and the Reproduction of Social Inequalities: The Case of Roma University Students in Eastern and Southeastern Europe

Stela Garaz & Simona Torotcoi

Abstract

This article explores how elitist elements are preserved within an expanding higher education. It analyzes whether the choice of field of study may be one of these elements and focuses on the case of Roma students in Eastern and Southeastern Europe. The analysis reveals that Roma in the region are not only underrepresented in higher education in general, but also in the STEM fields of study (science, technology, engineering, mathematics). At the same time, Roma are overrepresented in humanities and arts. This has the potential to negatively impact their competitiveness in the job market upon graduation.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10564934.2017.1280334