Nicaraguans and the Educational Glass Ceiling in Costa Rica: The Stranger in Our Midst

Abstract

This qualitative case study focused on the socio-cultural and educational experiences of undocumented (i.e. in the sense that they do not have the necessary documents to be in the country legally) Nicaraguan students in rural K-12 schools in Costa Rica. In this longitudinal study, a number of Nicaraguan students and their parents were interviewed during two different time periods over 11 years. The study was contextualized in the relatively new phenomenon of South-South immigration and revealed that immigrants maintained close connections with the communities they left and formed networks that supported new arrivals in Costa Rica. Despite blatant and overt discrimination, the students made significant educational and economic gains, which have moved them up the economic and social ladder. Eventually Nicaraguans hit a glass ceiling that limited their upward mobility and forced them to find alternative paths to achieve their goals.