“Es porque tienen ganas de aprender”: How a Non-profit Teacher Creates a Learning Environment to Help College-Aged Syrian Displaced Students Adapt and Learn Spanish in México

Abstract

This chapter draws from an ethnographic study of Syrian displaced young adults living in México, who are commencing their university studies. Since the beginning of the Syrian conflict in 2011, many of these young adults spent several years in refugee camps or in cities under siege before arriving in México through special arrangements made by a non-governmental organization (NGO). Using an ethnographic and discourse analytic approach (Rymes B, Classroom discourse analysis: a tool for critical reflection. Routledge, 2016; Wortham S, Reyes A, Discourse analysis beyond the speech event. Routledge, 2015), this chapter looks at how a Spanish language arts teacher is able to foster a learning environment where Syrian displaced students are engaged and willing to participate in their new educational environment. Although today many language education programs for migrants are dominated by monolingual ideologies and practices, there is a growing concern among educators and administrators about how to best promote academic success among the refugee and transnational student population (Cummins J, Can J Appl Linguist 10:221–240, 2007; García O, Kleyn T, Translanguaging with multilingual students: learning from classroom moments. Routledge, New York, 2016; Naidoo L, Int Educ 26:210–217, https://doi.org/10.1080/14675986.2015.1048079, 2015; Warriner D, Curric Inq 47:50–61, https://doi.org/10.1080/03626784.2016.1254501, 2017). This chapter argues that understanding the pedagogical practices enacted by language instructors can give educators and administrators an insight into advancing the language goals of displaced students.