Canada has been a major destination for the post-Soviet migrants and refugees. While the country has been welcoming and has done a great deal of policy and structural work in enabling immigrants and refugees from all over the world to feel safe and succeed, research shows that everyday life and education experiences of the newcomers can be punctuated with many structural, cultural, racial, and other challenges. The post-Soviet population of Canada is not exempt from these realities. Post-Soviet immigrants to Canada constitute a rapidly growing and distinct group, whose educational experiences and expectations are highly understudied and seriously misunderstood. The existing scant research on their experiences in Canada and North America describes the challenges of economic and social integration, focusing on the experiences of the adults and community leaders, but it is almost silent when it comes to school age children and young people. Even so, the literature highlights important issues of marginalization, discrimination, and alienation that have apparently been glossed over by policymakers due to the post-Soviet immigrants’ invisible minority status and stereotypes grounded in Cold War legacy and current geo-politics.
This 3-year SSHRC -granted research project studies the key challenges and opportunities faced by the students and parents as well as by the teachers and schools that work with post-Soviet students and families. Building on results of our previous projects, and on the unique strengths of our team and our community connections, the study aims to contribute to enhancing students’ educational outcomes (e.g., increased academic achievement and well-being, improved engagement and satisfaction with schools and the host society), develop capacities of educational and community institutions, and boost trust and collaboration between the involved human and organizational stakeholders. Its outcomes will benefit the students, education practitioners, policy makers, institutions, communities, and research.
Methodology
This research is a multiple method, multiple embedded case study, integrating both qualitative and quantitative components. The qualitative phase primarily involves in-depth interviews with a diverse group of participants with post-Soviet backgrounds, including high school students, parents, teachers, school administrators, and community educators. These interviews aim to gather participants’ perspectives on their experiences as post-Soviet immigrants or refugees in Canadian educational contexts. Additionally, classroom observations and analysis of archival and policy documents are included to provide contextual understanding and triangulate data.
In the quantitative phase, findings from the qualitative study are used to inform the design of the survey. This survey is administered to a wider demographic encompassing educators, parents, and students. It focuses on various aspects such as demographic information, reasons for immigration, educational expectations, challenges in accommodation and integration, and involvement and collaboration. The objective of this quantitative phase is to assess the generalizability of issues identified in the qualitative phase.
Disclaimer
This research project is an exploratory, education-focused inquiry grounded in the principles of the need for impactful evidence-based policy research, academic freedom, intellectual integrity, and social and ethical responsibility towards participants (and policy impact). It seeks to understand and inform educational policies and practices in Canada by engaging with the lived experiences of Canadian immigrant communities now residing in the GTA/Ontario and who came from Eastern Europe, the Baltics, Caucasus and Central Asia—countries that regained or gained independence following the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991.
This project does not carry any political or ideological agenda. We are aware of the complex history of the Soviet Union, including the widespread experiences of oppression along national, linguistic, religious, class, and other lines. We are also aware of the contested nature and various uses of terms such as "post-Soviet". Our usage of this term is meant exclusively to describe countries that were once part of the Soviet Union.
Importantly, our study’s principal focus is on these communities' Canadian educational experiences. However, given that attitudes towards Canadian education are influenced by participants' prior knowledge and experience, and the qualitative-constructivist paradigm of the study, our participants often explain by sharing their educational experiences before coming to Canada, including those from both pre-independence and independence periods.
We are committed to the responsible and respectful use of data and language in our analysis and reporting.
Survey
Besides qualitative interviews and observation, the data for the SSHRC research project is collected via a quantitative survey administered to parents, students, teachers, and educators at community centers. It focuses on five main areas:
Demographics and reasons for migrating to Canada
Expectations from Canadian education in comparison with the education in home countries
Views on educational accommodation and integration
Challenges faced in schools and society
Involvement and collaboration among students, parents, communities, and public schools
Survey Participation
If you are a member of any of these groups, we would appreciate it if you could take a few minutes to answer our survey questions.
Ethical Considerations
The study team is deeply committed to doing research ethically. The research has been approved by the University of Toronto Research Ethics Board and participating school boards. All participants take part in the study voluntarily and have all their personal data anonymised and kept secure. The study aims to ensure that all participants benefit from the study by having a chance to discuss their educational experiences and learn more about ways to support high school students from post-Soviet backgrounds in Canadian schools. Last, but not least, a modest remuneration has been provided for participants’ time and the team has offered professional development workshops for teachers as part of our commitment to knowledge exchange.
The project activities are mainly located in Toronto, the traditional, ancestral, unceded territory of many nations including the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishnabeg, the Chippewa, the Haudenosaunee and the Wendat peoples and which is now home to many diverse First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples. As the project team are themselves immigrants and deal with the experiences of immigrants to Canada, they feel that it is important to acknowledge the rights of indigenous people who were there before us and to commit to their struggle against various systems of oppression.