Socio-spatial segregation in school-society relational spaces from the perspectives of Turkish immigrant mothers: “Where are the Germans?”

ABSTRACT

By applying a relational spatial approach, we examine how Turkish-origin mothers in Germany perceive and experience socio-spatial segregation and how they relate this issue to the quality of education received by their (pre-)school-age children. Socio-spatial segregation is examined using the concept of ‘space’, to interpret not just physical but also symbolic boundaries perceived at the intersections of school and society. To explore the mothers’ subjective perceptions, qualitative interviews with 22 mothers were conducted and analysed using qualitative content analysis. The findings indicate that mothers who live in immigrant-dense neighbourhoods criticise the quality of education in their children's schools. Some of these mothers also state their worries regarding the exclusion or ‘Germanisation’ of their children in ethnic German majority schools. Strategies for selecting appropriate places of residence and school for the family, considering social and ethnic composition, are mentioned among respondents – rendering diversity both beneficial and problematic.

KEYWORDS:

• segregation
• education
• space
• identity
• parenting
• migration

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

The data collection for this study was carried out as part of the project ‘Inclusive Education and Social Support to Tackle Inequalities in Society’ (ISOTIS), funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Program [grant agreement No. 727069].

Notes on contributors

Hande Erdem-Möbius

Hande Erdem-Möbius is a PhD candidate in Educational Science at the Free University of Berlin and a research fellow at the University of Bamberg in Germany. Her key areas of research are migration, identity and social and educational inequalities.

Özen Odağ

Özen Odağ is a full-time faculty member and professor of psychology at Touro College Berlin in Germany. She has a specialisation in media psychology with a specific focus on the impact of culture on media uses and effects. She studies this from an advocacy perspective, aiming to empower marginalised and at-risk social groups in society. Prof. Odağ is an expert in qualitative empirical methods.

Yvonne Anders

Yvonne Anders is a full professor of education with a focus on early childhood education at the University of Bamberg in Germany. Her key areas of research are the quality of early childhood education and care and its impact on children's development, the professional competencies of ECEC staff, and international comparative analyses of ECEC quality and its impact.