Universidade de Aveiro Departamento de Línguas e Culturas 2013 Fatma Desafios educativos enfrentados por imigrantes Narman Guerry turcos em Londres Educational Challenges Facing Turkish Immigrant Communities in London Universidade de Aveiro Departamento de Línguas e Culturas 2013 Fatma Desafios educativos enfrentados por imigrantes Narman Guerry turcos em Londres Dissertação apresentada à Universidade de Aveiro para cumprimento dos requisitos necessários à obtenção do grau de Mestre em Línguas, Literaturas e Culturas (2º ciclo), realizada sob a orientação científica da Doutora Gillian Moreira, Professora Auxiliar do Departamento de Línguas e Culturas da Universidade de Aveiro. o júri presidente Professor Doutor Anthony David Barker Professor Associado da Universidade de Aveiro vogais Professora Doutora Maria Cristina do nascimento Rodrigues Madeira Almeida de Sousa Gomes Professora Auxiliar da Universidade de Aveiro (arguente) Professora Doutora Gillian Grace Owen Moreira Professora Auxiliar da Universidade de Aveiro (orientadora). iv Agradecimentos I would like to thank Professor Gillian Moreira for her precious help and ceaseless encouragement throughout my dissertation. I would like to dedicate this dissertation to my husband and my parents for their immense support. v Imigração, multiculturalismo, segunda geração, os cipriotas turcos, curdos, turcos, Palavras-chave insucesso, baixa expectativa, modelos Resumo Esta dissertação tem como objetivo explorar o que desafia a segunda geração de imigrantes turcos a enfrentarem o sistema de ensino do Reino Unido, principalmente em Londres, mistura multicultural. Ao abordar os imigrantes turcos, tem de se ter em mente que há três origens diferentes, ou seja cipriotas turcos, turcos da Turquia continental e curdos. Neste estudo, estes três tipos de imigrantes de segunda geração foram analisados e os seus problemas foram resolvidos, nomeadamente: insucesso, língua, baixas expectativas, o bullying, envolvimento com gangues, crise de identidade e questões parentais. As soluções foram propostas, a fim de enfrentar os desafios que os imigrantes turcos enfrentam no Reino Unido. vi Keywords Immigration, multiculturalism, second generation, Turkish Cypriots, Kurds, Turks, low expectation, underachievement, role models Abstract This dissertation aims to explore what challenges second generation Turkish immigrants face in the UK education system, specifically in London, which has a high multicultural mix. When addressing Turkish immigrants one has to keep in mind Turkish immigrants consist of three different origins namely Turkish Cypriots, Turkish immigrants from mainland Turkey and Kurdish Turkish immigrants. In this study, these three types of second generation immigrants have been analysed and their problems have been addressed, namely: underachievement, language, low expectations, bullying, gang involvement, identity crisis and parental issues. Solutions have been proposed in order to tackle the challenges that Turkish immigrants face in the UK. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS................................................................................................................. iv ABSTRACT.......................................................................................................................................... vi INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................................ 1 CHAPTER ONE OBJECTIVES & METHODOLOGY................................................................................................ 4 CHAPTER TWO BACKGROUND TO TURKISH IMMIGRATION......................................................................... 9 2.1 Is Britain a Welcoming Country for Migrants? .............................................................................. 9 2.2 Why the UK? Characteristics of Turkish Immigration in London.................................................. 13 2.2.1 Turkish Cypriots in the UK............................................................................................... 14 2.2.2 Turks in the UK................................................................................................................. 16 2.2.3 Turkish Kurds in the UK................................................................................................... 17 2.3 Turkish Speaking Groups of London............................................................................................... 19 2.4 Where do Turkish Speakers Stand in the UK? ................................................................................ 21 CHAPTER THREE CHALLENGES FACED BY THE TURKISH SPEAKING COMMUNITY OF LONDON AND THEIR EFFECTS ON SECOND GENERATION TURKISH IMMIGRANTS................. 23 3.1 Underachievement in the British Education System........................................................................ 23 3.1.1 Language Problems........................................................................................................... 24 3.1.2 Low Expectations at School.............................................................................................. 29 3.1.3 Bullying............................................................................................................................. 30 3.2 Economic Challenges....................................................................................................................... 31 3.2.1 Kurds, the ‘Underclass’ of Turkish Migrants................................................................... 32 3.3 Gang Involvements.......................................................................................................................... 34 3.3.1 Identity Crisis.................................................................................................................... 35 3.4 Parental Issues.................................................................................................................................. 37 3.4.1 The Position of Women in London’s Turkish Speaking Communities............................ 37 3.4.1.1 ‘Honour Killings’........................................................................................................... 39 3.5 Status of Religion............................................................................................................................. 40 3.6 Fear of Turks.................................................................................................................................... 41 3.7 Conclusion........................................................................................................................................ 42 CHAPTER FOUR WHAT HAS BEEN DONE TO TACKLE THE UNDERACHIEVEMENT OF TURKISH SPEAKING SECOND GENERATION IMMIGRANTS? .............................................................. 43 4.1 Schools Provision............................................................................................................................. 43 4.1.1 English Supplementary Sessions....................................................................................... 44 4.1.2 Mentoring Facilities at Schools......................................................................................... 45 4.1.2.1 Role Models....................................................................................................... 46 4.1.3 Role of Parents.................................................................................................................. 46 4.1.3.1 Turkish Supplementary Schools........................................................................ 47 4.2 Cultural Integration.......................................................................................................................... 48 4.2.1 Learning from Other Ethnic Minorities............................................................................ 48 4.2.2 Women’s Solidarity Organisations................................................................................... 49 CHAPTER FIVE DEADLOCK OR HOPE FOR THE FUTURE? VOICES FROM THE TURKISH SPEAKING COMMUNITY.............................................................................................................. 51 5.1 Interviews....................................................................................................................................... 51 52 5.2 Drawbacks to the Turkish Supplementary School System.............................................................. 52 5.3 Becoming more ‘British’.................................................................................................................. 55 5.4 Future Migration.............................................................................................................................. 56 5.5 Conclusion........................................................................................................................................ 57 CONCLUSION...................................................................................................................................... 58 BIBLIOGRAPHY.................................................................................................................................. 62 APPENDIX............................................................................................................................................ 69 INTRODUCTION One of the many effects of globalisation is the rapid increase in the flow of people between countries,