Scottish Government

Executive Summary

1. Introduction

Our project seeks to answer two questions: What do children from ethnic minority families make of Scotland and Scottish culture and identity, as reflected in the texts they encounter inside and outside school? And further: How do they make sense of these texts and relate them (if they do) to their own experiences, to their countries of origin and to their home culture?

The Scottish context of ethnic immigration is complicated by Scotland's own cultural, linguistic and political differences from England. Immigrant pupils must learn to read and write Standard English in the classroom, but also have to learn to understand a different accent and lexis in the playground, on the street and in the media. Often 'dispersed' to Glasgow (where this study is based) from the South, they encounter a significantly different urban accent and dialect, as well as media views of more traditional Scottish culture beyond the city. Books will be part of their first encounters with language, and these will contain textual and visual images of life in Britain and, in some books, of life in Scotland.

In this context, our research aims were as follows:

• To analyse the reactions and responses of children from ethnic minority and indigenous Scottish communities to a range of Scottish texts.
• To explore how these children deal with the multiple literacies that are part of their transition between cultures.
• To find out how children's identities can be developed or reinforced by books set in the culture in which they now live.

This led us to ask further questions:

• Are there particular issues of Scots language and usage in Scottish texts that impact upon new learners?
• To what extent do children interpret their new culture in either a positive or a negative light?
• Do particular characters and incidents in texts, or humour and moral themes, relate in any way to their own cultures and if so, how?
• How do children who consider themselves as 'Scottish' respond to the portrayal of their own culture in such texts?
• What barriers do the language and pictures raise or break down?
• What does it mean to be bi-cultural in a country like Scotland where national identity is itself in a process of change and self-definition?

We read a sample of children's texts featuring Scottish settings, characters, language or themes with groups of primary school pupils from different backgrounds: recent immigrant and asylum-seeking children, settled children from originally migrant families who had been in Scotland for more than a year, and 'native Scots'. We chose pupils at the Primary 6 stage because they would have the maturity to reflect with us on textual issues of language, culture and identity at home and at school. Three schools were involved in the study.

Different methods of approaching the texts were used: whole class reading and discussion sessions, small group discussions, and interviews with same-sex pairs. We also interviewed teachers of bilingual children within the school setting. Data analysis then allowed us to track the most important issues affecting ethnic minority pupils' responses to texts and provide a new and detailed picture of the educational processes which these children go through in terms of language, literacy and identity formation.

2. The Scottish context for ethnic minority communities

The city of Glasgow has been a particular site for immigrants in Scotland for at least 150 years. Different waves of migration have formed the city: Irish, Highland Gaelic, Jewish, Polish, Lithuanian, Italian, South and East Asian among others. New groups continue to arrive, population decline is now slowing down and the ethnic minority population has been increasing. Data on immigration shows that 34% more foreign born people were living in Scotland in 2001 compared to 1991, making it one of the fastest growing rates in the UK.

Glasgow has a higher black and minority ethnic population than Scotland as a whole, although still predominantly 'white' (nearly 95%). According to the Scottish 2001 census, 3.44% of Glasgow's population were born outside Europe (the average for England and Wales is 6.6%), and 13% of the population was aged between 5 and 15, with 10.5% of the pupil population from ethnic minority groups (about 2500 in total, including asylum seekers). Since Devolution there has been a growing debate and awareness about race and ethnic minority communities in Scotland, with concerns expressed that a proper infrastructure has not been created for the reception of asylum-seekers.

However, a recent study reported more positive public attitudes towards asylum seekers in Scotland than in England (Lewis 2006), suggesting that this may be due to the positive discourse of the Scottish Executive and a more positive image of asylum seekers in the Scottish media. On the other hand, the report also found that people in Glasgow were generally hostile to asylum seekers and made little distinction between them and settled ethnic minority communities.

A report commissioned by Glasgow City Council, Effective Teaching and Learning in a Multi-Ethnic Education System (Cassells 2006) re-emphasised bilingualism's intellectual benefits, with children who manage to maintain two languages tending to do better educationally and be better integrated into both worlds. However, the report's finding of poor language role models (for both English and the heritage language) in the homes of ethnic minority families aroused community criticism, and it also recognised weaknesses in the language role models experienced in schools, due to a lack of ethnic minority teachers and of professional awareness of bilingual learning among Scottish teachers. In 2005, the document Learning in 2 (+) Languages (produced by LTS and SEALCC and funded by SEED) identified good practice in supporting children who are accessing the curriculum through English as an additional language ( EAL), and encouraged schools to be more proactive in addressing the needs and raising the achievement of bilingual pupils through taking account of their cultural and linguistic background.

Although there is a growing body of research on minority communities in Scotland, there is still much work to be done on understanding the attitudes, roles and relationships between new pupils, their families and educational establishments, and much that is unknown about home literacy practices, changing patterns in immigrants' language use, and their use of electronic technologies for communication, learning and entertainment.

3.Literacy, culture and identity: literature review

3.1 Literacy and bilinguality

Recent changes in our understanding of literacy have led to new research on the ways in which multiple literacies operate in specific cultural contexts, some of it focussed on the relationship between literacy, identity, bilinguality and culture, including the impact of ICT. It is also now recognized that there is a transfer of cognitive strategies from reading in the first language to reading in the second, with bilinguals being often more aware of linguistic operations than their monolingual peers. However, these competencies cannot develop fully unless a context is provided in which they are recognized and encouraged. 'Affective variables' are a powerful factor influencing bilingual children's educational achievement. In literacy, they often benefit from developing a process of 'imagination and image forming' (as opposed to a solely word-centred focus) as a strategy to develop literary language awareness by situatuating themselves imaginatively in the mood, mode and significance of texts (Datta 2000). This research informs the present study's focus on interpretation skills and textual illustration.

3.2 Home/school literacy practices

New research, both national and international, attempts to explain how children make sense of school literacy experiences in relation to home literacy experiences. Shirley Bryce Heath's pioneering studies (1983, 1986) included an analysis of the way in which narrative and books are viewed in different communities, impacting on children once they start school, where certain literacy approaches are considered more important than others for further learning. Recent research on home and school literacy links shows that although there is still much to do in some schools, there is an increasing understanding about the importance of bringing pupils' heritage cultures and languages into the classroom. However, research also makes clear that the relationship between these two contexts is not always straightforward.

3.3 Multiculturalism, identity and texts

Bruner's influential work on culture and the language of education reveals how 'culture making' is linked to narrative and the construction of self. Through texts and narrative, we revise our own history but we also look to the future. This dialogue begins before school and continues into young adulthood when it becomes more conscious and also provides a space to reflect on identity. This emerges as a significant issue for ethnic minority children in the present project, realised through careful choice of texts and classroom strategies.

3.4 Bilinguality, popular culture and digital media texts

Recent studies take account of the ways in which bilingual children interact with the texts of popular and digital culture, which are frequently their first encounter with their new community and often deeply embedded in the literacy lives of families. Parents tend to view these texts in a positive light, because of their learning potential in terms of language and the social links provided with other children. In many immigrant homes, children often draw upon media and digital texts in other languages to help them make meaning in their new contexts, both at home and at school.

3.5 Research implications for the Scottish context

Findings and strategies from such recent research provided the platform for developing our approach, undertaken for the first time in the Scottish context, and setting out to explore:

• the intersections of home and school literacies through discussion and shared experience
• the mediated literacies of picture books through the analysis of text and illustration
• the experience of asylum/ethnic minority bilingualism as it meets the 'bilingualism' of the Scottish school context [Scots in the playground and Standard Scottish English in classroom pedagogy]
• the provision of spaces where 'language and life histories' can be heard, and 'self-authorship' can begin in a new country
• the use of Scots language as a 'neutral venue' or third frame of reference where the language of power and the language of relative powerlessness or poverty can encourage equality [since everyone is a relative stranger to its use in the classroom context]
• the use of whole-class sessions that may offer a 'metalinguistic' but also community-based focus
• the focus on 'ephemera' of comics, videos, drawings, speech-bubbles, both in the texts chosen and in the writing/drawing activities
• the use of accents and oral features of story-telling, such as voice, first-person narrative or poetry, or moral issues arising from characters' decisions, to make an impact in terms of shared human experience.

4 .Identity, language and text

4.1 Scottish identity: Scottish children's literature and language in education

Scottish children's language and literature is a growing field of literary and academic interest, yet it has not been the subject of research similar to that on ethnic minority children reading English books. A specifically Scottish focus is particularly important, within the changing demographic patterns of language and culture in contemporary Scotland, increasingly open to economic migration and educational change within a global perspective. Globalisation has paradoxically been a spur to recovery of local and historical identities, through the realisation that tourism and other 'cultural industries' would benefit from a greater focus on the distinctiveness of Scottish culture, including its languages, literature and arts.

Curriculum guidance on Scottish culture included in English Language 5-14 National Guidelines suggests that Scottish writing and writing about Scotland should permeate the curriculum ( SOED 1991: 68). That this aim remains debateable or unfulfilled arises from a complex series of causes, both cultural and educational. A key difference between Scots and other minority languages is recognised to be a historical neglect, misrepresentation or hostility towards it in school contexts, where developing children's competence in Standard English has understandably been a key concern for teachers and parents. There is a resulting absence of statistical and pedagogical information about the use and teaching of Scots, which this project begins to address.

Issues of social inclusion are involved, with the Scottish Executive's focus on developing social capital through the networks and norms that build the trust and reciprocity to create local communities and wider civil society. If children of present-day immigrant communities are to become the Scots of the future, then the development of confident literacy and linguistic awareness is vital for individual and socio-economic development. Thus one of the key aims of the Executive's Cultural Strategy is 'Promoting Scotland's languages as cultural expressions and as means of accessing Scotland's culture' (Scottish Executive 2000c: 23).

Such concerns also inform the new Curriculum for Excellence that is being developed to help Scottish schools meet the needs of pupils in a changing world, recognising that Scotland's rich diversity of languages offers rich opportunities for learning and global interconnections. Website guidance for schools includes much that is relevant to this research, with regard to the development of successful learners, confident individuals, responsible citizens and effective contributors. Schools and teachers wishing to develop topics in Scottish literature in line with such guidance can now draw on a range of new publications and resources in Scots language publishing for children, some of it funded by a Scottish Executive that recognizes its importance as part of the linguistic and cultural heritage of young people.

4.2 Ethnic minority children reading children's books: interpreting/making sense of text and pictures

There is now a growing body of research on the subject of how minority ethnic readers make sense of children's literature in English (Bromley 1996; Laycock 1998; Colledge 2005; Walsh 2000, 2003; Mines 2000; Coulthard in Arizpe and Styles 2003; Arizpe 2006). These studies have involved pupils from a wide variety of ethnic backgrounds and different genres of texts, such as picture books or adolescent novels. Most studies focus on emergent readers, but there are also case studies of older readers, beyond primary school. There have been no comparable studies in the Scottish context.

Children's literature can provide an enjoyable space for those new to a language and culture in which to explore unfamiliar elements through words and images (whether visual or textual). If there is a supportive environment, it can become a 'third space' (Homi Bhabha 1994) in which emergent bi-culturate children can negotiate and construct identities without fear of 'getting it wrong'. The interaction of teachers and pupils around a text can lead to a better understanding, for everyone involved, about how texts work within a particular cultural context and also about what readers bring from their own cultural backgrounds to the meaning-making process.

5.Research design and methodology

5.1 The schools

Three primary schools with a significant intake of immigrant and refugee children from different areas of Glasgow were involved: two were non-denominational, housed in large Victorian buildings, and the third school dating from 1930s expansion of denominational education in Glasgow was a large building in the middle of a council estate.

5.2 The pupils

Within the total group of 14 pupils (7 girls and 7 boys) with whom we worked most closely, all were first generation immigrants with the exception of one Pakistani boy who had been born in Scotland. The countries of origin of these bilingual pupils and/or their parents were: Pakistan (4 boys - this represents the higher population of Pakistanis compared to other ethnic minorities in Glasgow), Latvia, Hungary, Iran, Iraq, Turkey (2 girls), Rwanda, Congo, Algeria and Somalia. Their heritage languages included Urdu, Panjabi, Farsi, Latvian, Hungarian, French, English, Dutch, Turkish, Rwandan, Kurdish, Congolese , Arabic and Somali, among others.

These pupils were selected by their teachers either as being particularly able to help us in our research or because they felt it would increase the pupil's confidence to participate in a project with the University. Although the cohort did not fully represent our original intention of sampling the experiences of children from recently arrived and more settled migrant families, we were content to be guided by the teachers' knowledge of their pupils. It was also important to the researchers to develop a model of whole-class and small group engagement that was inclusive of the comments and experiences of children from Scottish and immigrant backgrounds.

5.3 The selected texts

The following texts were chosen from the corpus of available Scottish children's books. They allowed us to make creative use of a range of genres and narrative structures such as folktales, myths, humorous poems, science fiction, cartoons, and two first person narratives by a child narrator (both using dialect). Except for these two narratives, the texts all contain illustrations: Janet Reachfar and the Kelpie by Jane Duncan; 'Hauntit Park' by Hamish McDonald; The Mean Team from Mars by Scoular Anderson; 'Blethertoun Rovers' by Matthew Fitt; 'My Mum's a Punk' by Brian Johnstone; 'Wee Grantie' by Iain Mills; 'Tigger' by Anne Donovan; Oor Wullie and The Broons.

5.4 The sessions

Whole class sessions and group discussions were the main sites for observation and for gathering data. We used each text at least twice. The whole class sessions were held in the P6/P7 classrooms with the teacher usually present. On three occasions the class did further work on the text by drawing in response to two of the stories. The group sessions were held in different rooms, according to what space was available. These group sessions usually followed the whole class sessions and began with a brief discussion or comments on the text read in class. A new text was distributed, read aloud and discussed. Additional questions about literacy were included in these group sessions. For one session, the boys and the girls were taken separately. All the sessions were taped and later transcribed.

5.5 The teacher interviews

Semi-structured interviews were also held with two bilingual support teachers from one of the schools. These interviews served to raise issues about bilingual pupils, to confirm the researchers' observations and therefore to triangulate the data.

5.6 Strategies for engaging with text and culture

A variety of creative approaches helped the ethnic minority pupils think about their experience in a new culture as well as inviting them to interact with the text through images and language. All proved successful and could be applied to other texts. They also served as a starting point for discussing various issues linked to Scottish and migrant identity, to literacy at home and at school and to personal experiences.

5.7 Data analysis and framework

The data from observations and memos, transcriptions, drawings and other documents were then analysed using qualitative methods based on a descriptive framework and codes that emerged from the data itself. These framework categories allowed the researchers to form a better picture of the interaction between literacy practices at home and at school and their relationship to pupils' experiences and sense of identity.

6.Findings

The findings offer a full exploration of key issues of literacy, language and identity, considering the children's experience at home and school, perceptions of Scotland and Scottish people, home literacy practices, their responses to the chosen texts and frequently skilful strategies for making sense of them. Their discussions of Scots language and Scottish texts offer further insights, particularly as these reveal conflicting aspects of identity between countries of origin and current residence. The role of the school in supporting them through this transition also emerged, with points for further research or development.

6.1 Personal experience

The children's experiences often included a caring role for younger siblings or parents whose English was less confident than theirs. Relatively recent arrival had sharpened their perceptions of Scotland's language, geography and culture, with some negative impact of rough language and violence around the flats where they were housed. This was balanced to some extent by a more mature awareness that behaviour varied with age, and that older people were often kind and helpful, much depending upon family customs. Scottish parents were perceived as being over-indulgent and inconsistent in discipline, unlike stricter ethnic minority parents. There was awareness of the need to evade sectarian tensions centred on football. Positive aspects of Scottish life included scenery, parks and museums, free medicine, helpful council services, and an open policy towards migrants.

6.2 Home literacy practices

Heritage languages were encouraged and practised, in after-school lessons if these were available. They struggled to maintain facility in the home language, as English became their frequent daily mode of expression and study, but were helped by communication with family members overseas and the presence of home language books or comics. Favourite texts included many library books in English, often classic children's literature or information texts. Literacy practices included reading sacred books, but also writing letters or stories in their spare time, and there was extensive use of electronic technology to keep in contact with family members and news events in their native land. Learning English was a commitment of many parents, who sometimes enjoyed language games and puzzles in English. The use of multilingual dictionaries was mentioned. These pupils' support for younger siblings often showed effective assimilation of teaching strategies derived from their school experience.

6.3 Making sense of text

Previous knowledge and experience of texts in other languages was clearly brought to bear in their interpretation of Scottish stories, and intertextual connections were made. As readers, they were capable (in the discursive group context) of making responses to texts that were more mature than their level of English proficiency might suggest. Setting and landscape were responded to, characters were discussed with empathy, and meanings were negotiated with attention to textual evidence and the opinions of others. They could question the text, make inferences and show awareness of humour and comedy, using illustrations appropriately. Awareness of the roles of authors and illustrators was less mature, but audience awareness and critical judgement were both evident. These skills, in some cases, did not seem to have been recognised in the whole-class context and group setting.

6.4 Scots language

Teacher and parental disapproval of informal Scots language, including swearing, had affected the children's view of its appropriateness for school. However, they showed some keenness to explore Scots language, record local speech (often with a keen ear for the different sounds of Scottish words) and to mimic it appropriately in some of our activities. The opportunity to discuss different languages was welcomed by them.

6.5 Scottish stories

Themes of the supernatural and of Scottish family life were the focus of interested discussion by both native Scottish and migrant pupils, who all agreed that reading stories about a culture in its own local language helped them to understand it better. Stories in English had the advantage of teaching the migrant children more about the language, however. Teachers remarked upon the engagement of 'reluctant' boys in these reading and discussion sessions around their own culture.

6.6 Stories of origin: making sense of identity

The migrant children made many cross-references to 'my country' in discussion. None yet felt particularly Scottish. Those who had been considerably longer in Scotland could express a measure of confusion or accommodation to twin identities. They were interested in discussing religious differences (in a very tolerant way) and looking forward to continuing their education in secondary school. Current anxieties about forced repatriation were not raised, but may have created a sense of caution about discussing certain issues of identity and reasons for their presence in Scotland.

6.7 The role of the school

School heads and staff were positive in their support of migrant pupils, stressing the key aim of providing a 'safe' environment in which the qualities of intelligence and commitment that these children brought to the school community could flourish. Many points emerged for staff consideration from our analysis of the children's performance and the role of Scottish texts and language in enabling this.

7. Conclusions and implications for pedagogy and research

Conclusions are set out in subsections covering research, teacher development and policy issues. The scope for detailed research across a range of emergent issues is outlined. This is a new area of enquiry in Scottish educational studies, with implications beyond the literacy experience of migrant pupils. Staff development implications for teacher education and continuing formation are indicated, together with relevant policy considerations for school heads and education authorities.