The European Union‘s Committee on Culture and Education has adopted a motion on educating the children of migrants.
In a report written by Hannu Takkula, entitled Migration and Mobility: Challenges and Opportunities for European Education Systems, the motion address several key issues in migrant education and calls for “integration to be encouraged through sports and other extra-curricular activities, as this can also help to combat social exclusion of those from less privileged backgrounds. The earlier and more successfully that migrant children are integrated into schools, the better they will perform through school, further education and eventually in the labour market”. (Source: European Parliament press release).
An excerpt from the press release:
Migration can be greatly beneficial to schools as it can enrich them both culturally and educationally, but at the same time it can present significant problems if cultural differences hamper understanding between pupils or between pupils and teachers. The report, drafted by Hannu Takkula wants to encourage a more effective means of incorporating migrant children in national education systems, as he believes that workers within the Union will be less likely to move abroad ‘if there is a risk that their children will suffer educationally’.
