Third culture indigenous kids: neo-colonialism and student identities in Nigerian international schools

Abstract

This study examines the extent to which indigenous Nigerian students attending international schools in their own country are able to successfully negotiate their identities from conflictual perspectives within their schools and home communities. Using a sample of 66 students aged 12 to 18 years, from two international schools in Nigeria, the findings show the students appeared to display different identities in relation to the degree to which they conformed to expectations of both environments. The article argues that the negotiating of indigenous students’ identities results in the forming of a third space within which they are subjected to ideological and cultural pressures. They are thus referred to as third culture indigenous kids (TCIKs).