ABSTRACT

Schools are critical spaces for young men from refugee backgrounds. They play an integral role in literacy development, educational attainment, and providing a sense of belonging. Inclusive education practices for this group are largely absent in Australian schools. Research shows focusing on these young men from a non-deficit position assists with inclusivity. There is a lack of research exploring the agentic practices of young men from refugee backgrounds within schools. This paper explores the symbolic value of swagger for a group of young men from refugee backgrounds at a high school in Australia. A Bourdieusian theoretical framework guided critical awareness of power in schools. This research shows how a group of young men found a meaningful way to acquire social and cultural capital. Despite the school’s constraints, this group developed a group identity reflected in their clothing and embodied dispositions referred to here as swagger. Our findings demonstrate the complex power relations at work, including the opportunity for the young men to resist and be included. In the spirit of Bourdieu’s concern for reflexivity our findings point to the need for schools, teachers, and education policy makers to consider the workings of power in schools in more considered ways.

摘要

学校是难民背景的年轻人的重要场所。他们在识字发展、受教育程度和提供归属感方面发挥着不可或缺的作用。澳大利亚学校基本上没有针对这一群体的全纳教育实践。研究表明，关注这些处于非赤字职位的年轻人有助于包容性。缺乏探索学校内来自难民背景的年轻人的代理行为的研究。本文探讨了一群来自澳大利亚一所高中的难民背景的年轻人大摇大摆的象征价值。布迪厄斯的理论框架指导了学校权力的批判性意识。这项研究展示了一群年轻人如何找到一种有意义的方式来获得社会和文化资本。尽管学校的限制，这个群体发展出一种群体身份，反映在他们的服装和体现在这里被称为招摇的性格上。我们的研究结果证明了工作中复杂的权力关系，包括年轻人反抗和被包容的机会。本着布迪厄对反思性的关注精神，我们的研究结果表明学校、教师和教育政策制定者需要以更深思熟虑的方式来考虑学校中权力的运作。