Education and integration

Education and migrant students According to the latest statistics the majority of students with a migrant background still attend schools of a type that only offers basic qualifications. When they finish school they often end up with a degree that is regarded by most employers as not sufficient for a qualified job. So many of the migrant students remain unemployed or get a job with little pay.This means that they are often excluded from taking part in the mainstream of German society.

What are the reasons for this development ? Many of the students‘ parents have come from countries where they received only little education. Many parents speak their mother tongue at home so that their children don‘t learn German properly. Generally one can say that migrant students are not very much supported by their parents when it comes to education.

What has been done to change this?

Integration courses Today migrants who come to Germany to work there are expected to attend an integration course where they learn German and get some general information about living in the country.

Nursery school All children are entitled to a place at a nursery school. The number of migrant children has increased steadily and so more of them speak good enough German when they come to school

Secondary schools This also applies to secondary schools where the number of migrant students is rising.About 10% of all students who take their exams at a Grammar School have a migrant background ( The number of students at our school is even higher)

Integration policy in Stuttgart Stuttgart encourages its migrant citizens to apply for jobs in the municipal administration and local government realizing the assets of migrants: they speak at least two languages fluently and have a better intercultural awareness than most Germans. But to be able to qualify for these jobs migrants need to have a certain educational level. One example of sucessful integration is the present Minister of Integra- tion who has a Turkish background.

Different attitudes Generally most migrants are interested in their children‘welfare and invest in their education. Many of them see their future rather in Germany than in their home country. Statistics say that more than 80 % of young Turkish migrants believe that speaking the German language will help them to get a good job. Most of them don‘t want to return to Turkey for good.

German national soccer team