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Shifting the Interaction Order in a Kindergarten Classroom in a Somali-Centric Charter School

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Refugee Education across the Lifespan

Part of the book series: Educational Linguistics ((EDUL,volume 50))

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Abstract

Classroom behavior management has been identified as an issue for some educators of refugee children who do not feel adequately prepared to support their students. While most of the research has been conducted on refugee-background students in secondary school settings, there is growing awareness that early childhood educators need support in identifying pedagogical and behavioral strategies which are supportive, inclusive, and effective for refugee children. In this chapter, we turn the language socialization lens on classroom behavior management in a kindergarten classroom in a Somali-centric charter school located in the American Midwest. We examine change over time with a focus on the teacher’s practices for quieting students. In analyzing data collected over three school years, we found that the teacher expanded her repertoire of practices for restoring quiet and order and that this change over time may be characterized as a shift from a teacher-as-sole-authority orientation toward classroom behavior management to an orientation in which authority can be shared with students. In addition to contributing to the small body of research related to Somali refugee children, we hope to help shape a different narrative about young children of refugees and the teachers who work with them, as well as to encourage researchers and practitioners to consider what culturally responsive classroom management might be for this population.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    At the time of this study, at least 80% of the students were Somali, and key aspects of the curriculum were developed with Somali students in mind – e.g., Arabic was taught as a second language.

  2. 2.

    The imperative ‘sit down’ is pronounced differently in different dialects of Somali. Multiple dialects were spoken by children in Ms. R’s classes. The digraph dh represents a retroflex stop, which, to our hearing, Ms. R approximated in this recording.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA

    Leslie C. Moore & Sirad Shirdon

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  1. Leslie C. Moore
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  2. Sirad Shirdon
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Correspondence to Leslie C. Moore .

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  1. Department of English, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA

    Doris S. Warriner

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Moore, L.C., Shirdon, S. (2021). Shifting the Interaction Order in a Kindergarten Classroom in a Somali-Centric Charter School. In: Warriner, D.S. (eds) Refugee Education across the Lifespan. Educational Linguistics, vol 50. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-79470-5_16

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-79470-5_16

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