Uppeldi og menntun - 01.07.2011, Page 70

Uppeldi og menntUn/icelandic JoUrnal of edUcation 20 (2) 201170
líf og störf Ungra innflytJenda
The main findings of the research indicate that the participants in the study have
all successfully adapted to Icelandic society and take a positive stand towards it. They
describe themselves as having mixed identities or being cosmopolitans. They appear
to have managed to use for their own benefits their experiences in a new society and
the opportunities it provides, and they all have interesting future plans in work and
education, both in Iceland and elsewhere.
The participants all claim that they attained much of their present Icelandic know-
ledge during their years in compulsory school, but that little has been added since.
The older participants (age 20–24) in the group, who came to Iceland in their adoles-
cence and started compulsory school in Iceland, have struggled more in their subse-
quent studies than the younger participants (age 15–19) who have been in an Icelandic
compulsory school most of their lives in Iceland, or from the first grade. A young
woman of 24 consequently dropped out from upper secondary school and has not
gone back. The individuals in the younger group are doing well in their studies and
no longer need support in Icelandic or other subjects.
The participants´ social networks appear to differ between the older and younger
groups. The youth in the older group mostly have friends of immigrant backgrounds,
while in the younger group social relations include Icelanders as well as other
immigrants.
Keywords: Immigrant youth, integration, cultural identity, future plans
about thE author
Hanna Ragnarsdottir (hannar@hi.is) is an associate professor at the University of Iceland,
School of Education. She completed a B.A. degree in anthropology and history from
the University of Iceland in 1984, an M.Sc. degree in anthropology from the London
School of Economics and Political Science in 1986 and a Dr.philos. in education from
the University of Oslo in 2007. Her research has mainly focused on immigrant children
and families in Icelandic society and schools and various aspects of multicultural
education and school reform.