Beginning in September 2026, Dr. Lucy Hunt will lead RE-TEACH, a project coming to OsloMet through the Marie Skłodowska Curie Actions Postdoctoral Fellowship initiative (ansatt.oslomet.no).
RE-TEACH is a two-year research project investigating how newly arrived refugee background teachers (RBTs) rebuild their professional identity and navigate the complex process of re-entering the school system in Norway.
“Teachers who have had to flee their home countries are often viewed only in those terms – as refugees. However, they are trained professionals with expertise which could substantially benefit Norwegian schools, and especially with their increasingly diverse student populations and global outlook”, says Hunt.
More inclusive and culturally responsive schools
The project’s output will translate findings into policy and practice briefings, specifically offering guidance for educational stakeholders on supporting newcomer teachers in schools. It will also give recommendations for policymakers at local, national and EU levels on improving reintegration pathways.
“Central to RE-TEACH is the idea that teachers are not passive recipients of policy, but rather active navigators of complex systems. Ultimately, the project aims to ensure that refugee teachers’ skills are recognised”, says Hunt.
By documenting their experiences and identifying actionable solutions, the project seeks to contribute to more inclusive, equitable and culturally responsive schools.
For Hunt, RE-TEACH is both a scientific endeavour and a commitment to refugee inclusion and public engagement.
“Refugee-background teachers’ expertise, when utilised at all, is often confined to roles in adult language education – to the detriment of the teachers themselves, to schools and support systems, and to the children whom they could be educating and caring for”, says Hunt.
“We can help them to reclaim their profession”
Hunt aims to ensure that refugee teachers’ voices are heard and their professional journeys understood.
“Teachers coming from around the world have so much to offer. If we can understand their pathways and remove unnecessary barriers, we can help them to reclaim their profession , and strengthen the inclusive and international nature of Norwegian education in the process”, says Hunt.
The project is hosted by the Centre for the Study of Professions (SPS) at OsloMet and is carried out under the supervision of Associate Professor Ida Drange and Professor Anne Birgitte Leseth, both leading scholars in labour market inequalities and work inclusion.
