Exploring how young Iranian immigrant women navigate their cultural differences of home and school in Vancouver

This research addresses the gap in the literature on how first-generation young Iranian immigrant women conciliate differences in their identity between home and school. It captures the narratives of 6 Iranian immigrant women living in Vancouver, British Columbia; the women are between the ages of 18 and 24. Based upon semi-structured interviews and using a qualitative approach and narrative inquiry, the study explores how these young women negotiate their own space despite different cultural demands from school and family. The main research question asks: How do young Iranian immigrant women navigate the differences between school culture and home culture? The data is approached and analysed by drawing on the transnational feminist theoretical framework. Focusing on the themes of education and school experience, family relations, and intimate relations, the research looks at the ways in which these women, especially those facing multiple oppressions of gender, class, sexuality, and race, mediate the different expectations of parents, school, and mainstream Canadian culture. Key words: Iranian immigrants, young Iranian immigrant women, transnational feminism, identity, first-generation racialized women