I am an Assistant Professor of Development and Education in Inclusive Societies at Utrecht University. I am studying interventions countering polarization in education, and educational cooperation initiatives between mosques, schools and youth care institutions sharing a student population in multiethnic neighbourhoods. In my work, I use qualitative methodology and adopt a multidisciplinary approach to studying issues of cultural diversity and learning. My research interests include integration and empowerment of migrant youth, ethnic and religious identity formation, multilingualism in children and sociology of education. I appreciate being approached for collaboration on these topics.
Previously for my Ph.D. research at the University of Amsterdam, I investigated the portrayal and practice (i.e. organization, learning goals, content, curriculum, and pedagogies) of mosque education in the Turkish Islamic communities in the Netherlands, with a special attention to the role played by this non-formal religious education in the integration of the Turkish-Dutch children.
I am a member of the American Educational Research Association, the Comparative and International Education Society, and the Netherlands Interuniversity School for Islamic Studies.