Systems of Social Identity Citizen Identities Shaping Female Jordanian and Syrian Refugee Students in Amman’s Public Schools
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Abstract
This study explores displacement, socialization, resistance, and citizenship by examining citizen identity formation of female schoolchildren and youth at three government (public), double-shift schools in Amman, whereby Jordanian girls attend school in the morning and Syrian refugee girls in the afternoon. Because Jordan (along with Lebanon) has the greatest influx of Syrian refugees in the world, school serves as a critical site for interrogating how systems of identity are upheld or altered for children and youth as a result of migration. Qualitative data from 12 focus groups with 90 students (36 Jordanians and 54 refugees) reveal a strong Arab Islamic identity amidst support for King and country, especially among Jordanian girls. While proud of Jordan’s role as a refugee host state to Arabs fleeing political persecution and societal destruction, there is acknowledgement that Jordan may have reached its maximum capacity to assist despite its commitment to Arab unity.