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ESOn4007 Contemporary Migration Research
SPRING 2025
Odd Thursdays, 14:00 to 17:40, Room P24a
Instructors:
prof. Bernadette Nadya Jaworsky, Ph.D. (room 3.66, Wednesdays 11:00 – 12:00;
jaworsky@fss.muni.cz)
RNDr. Markéta Seidlová, Ph.D. (office hours by appointment; 251912@mail.muni.cz)
Guest lecturer:
Ass. Prof. Martina Cvajner, Ph.D., University of Trento
Course Description
There could hardly be a more important topic in contemporary societies than international
migration. In today’s globalized world, there are more than 281 million migrants and the trend
toward movement across borders is only increasing. Migration is a hot-button issue in many
countries, with politicians, the media and the public speaking out, especially concerning
unauthorized migrants and refugees. Exploring the phenomenon of migration can involve
multiple perspectives and methods. In this course, we focus on various methods for researching
people on the move, while we start with shaping the phenomenon with the help of the statistical
data and national policies, coming through the different faces of integration of immigrants and
ethnographies of borders to rich, detailed case studies of different groups of migrants and
countries. The ultimate goal is to gain a better understanding of contemporary migration
in a global context.
Course objectives
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
▪ Describe and consider the phenomenon of contemporary international migration
in a global context
▪ Investigate localized migration events
▪ Conceptualize the methods of migration research and assess the appropriateness of
single methods for a concrete research design
▪ Design a research study on a migration issue
▪ Assess the possible contribution of academic knowledge to non-academic social fields
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Conditions for Passing the Course
1) Participation in class (discussions, group projects) (20 %)
- 5 points for each class (students who cannot attend the class due to illness,
technical problems or other serious personal reasons should contact the
instructors for individual extra work);
2) Written Assignments (20 %)
- 5 points for each home assignment (4 discussion papers);
3) Final group project (3,500 – 4,000 words) (60 %)
- 10 % for the draft;
- 5 % for the peer review;
- and 45 % for the final paper.
Subject Points Delivery term Notes
Discussion Papers 20 Wednesdays at 11:00 Sessions 2, 3, 4, 5 (5
points each)
Class Participation 20 Thursdays in class Sessions 2, 3, 4, 5 (5
points each)
Topic of the final project (included
in the
points
for draft)
March 30 at 23:59 E-mail to both of
instructors
Draft of the project 10 Thursday, May 15 at
11:00
Peer review of the draft 5 Monday, May 19, 23:59
Final group research
project
45 Saturday, June 21 at
23:59
Evaluation is based upon this scale:
90-100 points – A
80-89 points – B
70-79 points – C
66-69 points – D
60-65 points – E
0-59 points – F
Study Materials and Instructions
• For each session, readings are specified in the syllabus. All the required texts are
available in electronic form in the IS Study Materials folder and are linked to the
Interactive Syllabus.
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• Instructions for group projects will be specified in class.
• Instructions for the assignments will be available in the Study Materials.
• Please, check the Interactive Syllabus regularly for actual readings and study
instructions. https://is.muni.cz/auth/el/fss/jaro2025/ESOn4007/
Timetable
The course is taught regularly in double-block sessions once in two weeks from 14:00 until
17:40.
Academic Honesty
The Faculty of Social Studies at MU expects students to know the study rules and maintain
academic honesty by refraining from plagiarism and from cheating during exams. Plagiarism
means that one presents other peoples’ ideas as one’s own and does not credit the author.
Plagiarism is one of the most serious breaches of ethical standards in the academic environment,
for it denies the mission of the university and the meaning of studying. From a legal perspective,
plagiarism is the stealing of intellectual property. In addition, the use of AI tools should be
judicious and under the direction of the teacher. The official FSS policy on academic honesty
and on the use of AI technology are available in the course’s interactive syllabus in IS.
Academic dishonesty is not tolerated under any circumstances at FSS. The minimum penalty
for academic dishonesty is expulsion from the course, a grade of F for the semester, and
referral to the Faculty disciplinary committee.
PLEASE NOTE:
All assignments may require an oral defense. Students will have to prove that their paper does
not contain parts that can be classified as plagiarized or contain academic fraudulence. Students
have to demonstrate that they used all the references enlisted in the paper and show beyond
doubt that they wrote the paper by being able to defend it in a discussion.
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Course Schedule:
Session #1 – INTRODUCTION TO THE COURSE (February 27) (Jaworsky/Seidlová)
We have linked the Syllabus and the Discussion Paper Guideline files in the Interactive
Syllabus.
Session #2 – ONE WORD WITH SO MANY MEANINGS: INTEGRATION (March 13)
(Seidlová)
Readings Prior to Class:
Joppke, C. (2007): Beyond national models: Civic integration policies for immigrants in
Western Europe, West European Politics, 30 (1), 1-22.
https://doi.org/10.1080/01402380601019613
Vertovec, S. (2007): Super-diversity and its implications. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 30
(6), 1024-1054. https://doi.org/10.1080/01419870701599465
Discussion Papers: to be submitted to IS-Study Materials-Homework Vault by March 12,
11:00 (please check the discussion paper guidelines in Study Materials)
Additional Readings (recommended):
Alba, R., Duyvendak, J. W. (2019): What about the mainstream? Assimilation in super-diverse
times, Ethnic and Racial Studies, 42 (1), 105-124.
https://doi.org/10.1080/01419870.2017.1406127
Goodman, S. W. (2010): Integration Requirements for Integration‘s Sake? Identifying,
Categorising and Comparing Civic Integration Policies. Journal of Ethnic and Migration
Studies, 36 (5), 753-772. https://doi.org/10.1080/13691831003764300
Session #3 – DIFFERENT OR THE SAME: REFUGEES IN TODAY’S WORLD
(March 27) (Seidlová)
Readings Prior to Class:
Chouliaraki, L., Stolic, T. (2017): Rethinking Media Responsibility in the Refugee ‘Crisis’:
A Visual Typology of European News. Media, Culture & Society, 39(8), 1162-1177.
https://doi.org/10.1177/0163443717726163
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International Organization for Migration (IOM) (2024): DTM Czechia “Accommodation and
financial situation of Ukrainian refugees”. Available at:
https://czechia.iom.int/sites/g/files/tmzbdl1681/files/inline-files/iom-czechia-dtm-report-aug-
sep-2024-en.pdf
Discussion Papers: to be submitted to IS-Study Materials-Homework Vault by March 26,
11:00 (please check the discussion paper guidelines in Study Materials)
Additional Readings (recommended):
International Organization for Migration (IOM) (2023): DTM Czechia “Socioeconomic
situation of Ukrainian refugees with focus on women”. Available at:
https://czechia.iom.int/sites/g/files/tmzbdl1681/files/inline-files/iom-czechia-dtm-jan-jun-
2023.pdf
Mijić, A., Parzer, M. (2022): The Art of Arriving: A New Methodological Approach to
Reframing “Refugee Integration”. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 21, 1–9.
https://doi.org/10.1177/16094069211066374
INTERIM HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENT:
Paper topic due to be sent by email to both instructors by March 30, 23:59; one paragraph
describing your paper topic and theoretical perspective.
Session #4 – ETHNOGRAPHIC APPROACHES (April 10) (Jaworsky/Cvajner)
Readings Prior to Class:
Cvajner, Martina. Soviet signoras. University of Chicago Press, 2019.
Read: Prologue (pp. vii-x); Introduction (pp. 1-25); Chapter 3 (pp. 95-116)
Discussion Papers: to be submitted to IS-Study Materials-Homework Vault by April 9, 11:00
(please check the discussion paper guidelines in Study Materials)
Additional Readings (recommended):
Additional Chapters in the book Soviet signoras.
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Session #5 – CHANGING LANDSCAPES OF MIGRATION: THE CASE OF CZECHIA
(April 24) (Seidlová)
Readings Prior to Class:
Drbohlav, D. (2012): Patterns of immigration in the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland. In
M. Okólski (Ed.), European Immigrations: Trends, Structures and Policy Implications (pp.
179-210). Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press. https://doi.org/10.1515/9789048517275-
009
Přidalová, I., Hasman, J. (2018): Immigrant groups and the local environment: socio-spatial
differentiation in Czech metropolitan areas. Geografisk Tidsskrift-Danish Journal of
Geography, 118(1), 72-87, DOI: 10.1080/00167223.2017.1370382
Discussion Papers: to be submitted to IS-Study Materials-Homework Vault by April 23, 11:00
(please check the discussion paper guidelines in Study Materials)
Additional Readings (recommended):
Drbohlav D., Lachmanová-Medová L., Čermák Z., Janská E., Čermáková D., Dzúrová, D.
(2009): The Czech Republic: on its way from emigration to immigration country. IDEA working
paper, No. 11. https://old.adapt.it/adapt-indice-a-z/wp-
content/uploads/2014/08/idea_the_czech_republic_2009.pdf
Pavelková, L., Hanus, M., Hasman, J. (2020): Attitudes of young Czechs towards immigration:
comparison of 2011 and 2016. AUC Geographica 55(1), 27–37.
https://doi.org/10.14712/23361980.2020.5
HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENTS:
1. Final group project draft: to be submitted to IS-Study Materials-Homework Vaults by
Thursday, May 15, at 11:00.
2. Peer-to-peer feedback on your colleagues’ project proposal: to be submitted to IS-Study
Materials-Homework Vaults and to your assigned peer by Monday, May 19, 23:59.
3. Final version of the final group research essay: to be submitted to IS-Study MaterialsHomework
Vaults by Saturday, June 21, 23:59.