Abstract
Little research exists on the causes and processes of student transfer, which is also known as school mobility. This qualitative, multiple case study analyzes the cases of two students who first transitioned to lower secondary schools and then transferred from their schools.
The heart of this study analyses the narratives of the two transfers as dynamic processes of the meeting and clashing of the perspectives of the main participants (i.e., parents, students, siblings, staff, and external experts). This study shows that the transfers were caused by a clash between active parents and school staff during the parents' attempts to create optimal conditions for their children, who were having difficulty fitting in.
The study shows that the resulting conflict could not be overcome with communication and cooperation, which led to the transfer of the students accompanied by relief for the family and short- or long-term improvement in the students' situations. The analytical part of the study investigates how compatible the two cases are with the theories of social practice and social capital formulated by P.
Bourdieu and J. Coleman.
The study shows that each theory explains a part of the process of transfer in a unique way. The analytical part thus demonstrates that the theories complement each other and create a coherent pattern in which the former better explains the reactive dynamics of stigmatization and student and family exclusion in schools while the latter better explains the parents' strategic attempts to improve the quality of schools by increasing their social capital or seeking a school with a higher level of social capital.