TOWARDS THE DIFFERENT: A CASE STUDY OF A SYRIAN ASYLUM SEEKER IN CROATIAN SCHOOL CONTEXT

Abstract

Migrations and migrants have been in the focus of interest and activities of many governments, organizations, and institutions, both worldwide and in Croatia. According to international policies, children who seek or are under international protection have the right to education. To access the education system of the Republic of Croatia more easily, they are given the opportunity to attend Croatian language preparatory or remedial classes. The research aim was to determine the needs and challenges posed by the inclusion of a Syrian asylum seeker in a Croatian primary school. The qualitative approach was applied. The case study presents a ten-year-old Syrian girl, attending a primary school in Zagreb. The data were gathered with the use of semi-structured interviews with the girl's sister, teachers in the primary school, and her classmates. In order to gain a deeper insight into the girl's functioning in the school context, notes made by teachers during observation of the girl’s performance in the course of the educational process were gathered and analysed. Guidelines and recommendations were developed that could have a positive impact on quality inclusion of children refugees and asylum seekers in the Croatian education system. Keywords: children asylum seekers, educational process, qualitative research