Dr. Mona El Samaty receives Leithwood Award for outstanding thesis of the year

Congratulations to Dr. Mona El Samaty, recipient of the 2021 Leithwood Award for OISE Outstanding Thesis of the Year.

Established in 2003, this award is granted annually to one graduating doctoral student whose work demonstrates research excellence and advances knowledge in the field of education.

Thesis supervisor Professor Normand Labrie nominated El Samaty in recognition of her exceptional research for “La langue est la porte d’entrée pour un sentiment d’appartenance”: An Investigation of the Complex Relationship Between Language and Sense of Belonging Among Second-Generation Arab Canadian Young Adults in Montreal.

In her thesis, El Samaty uses an intersectional lens to examine the complex relationships between plurilingualism, identity, and sense of belonging among second-generation educated immigrants from an Arabic background in Montreal. Building on ethnographic work, she uncovers how familial, educational and social experiences shape young adults’ relationship with their multiple identities and their sense of place in Canadian society.

Our congratulations to Dr. El Samaty.