"We belong, but not fully": Recognition, racialisation, and school belonging among immigrant-background students in Spain.

Abstract

Questions of recognition and belonging are central to modern migration and integration debates, yet the everyday school experiences of racialized immigrant-background youth remain underexplored, particularly in Southern Europe. This qualitative study examines how these students negotiate recognition, exclusion, and belonging in Spanish secondary schools. Grounded in Critical Race Theory, the research employed in-depth interviews alongside an adapted photovoice approach, utilizing photo-elicitation to capture the daily realities and perspectives of 28 participants. The findings revealed that school belonging is not just a byproduct of formal inclusion policies. Instead, it is a daily struggle shaped by moments of acceptance and rejection within a color-evasive institution. Students described everyday interactions tied to language, race, and nationality that welcomed them into the school community while simultaneously questioning their competence, voice, and right to be there. Ultimately, recognition functions as a conditional, unevenly distributed resource. However, rather than being passive subjects, these students showed a sharp awareness of these dynamics. They actively used bicultural competence, resistant capital, and identity work to challenge exclusionary boundaries. By centering youth voices, this study shows how belonging emerges from the tension between institutional norms and student agency. It advances research by framing schools as contested arenas in which belonging is continually redefined, offering vital insights into educational equity and institutional accountability.