Page 156 - Ana Kozina and Nora Wiium, eds. ▪︎ Positive Youth Development in Contexts. Ljubljana: Educational Research Institute, 2021. Digital Library, Dissertationes (Scientific Monographs), 42.
P. 156
positive youth development in contexts
Students with an immigrant background in the Slovenian
educational environment
Many students in Slovenia with an immigrant background belong to the
ethnicities of the countries of former Yugoslavia. In most cases, these stu-
dents and/or their parents are economic migrants and/or refugees who
came to Slovenia during the war in the Balkans and then remained (Ribičič,
2004; Vižintin, 2014). In recent years, however, the number of refugees
coming to Slovenia from the Middle East (EMN, 2017) has been growing as
well. In general, immigrant students come from families with a lower soci-
oeconomic status (Cankar & Zupanc, 2020).
Slovenia has only become a country of immigration in the last few dec-
ades and thus still struggles to establish the appropriate mechanisms for
promoting a supportive environment for newcomers. In Slovenia, immi-
grants enjoy equal rights, but not equal opportunities. The Slovenian ap-
proach to integration negatively affects attitudes toward immigrants such
that they are seen as strangers, not as equals. In addition, education is one
area where the social integration of migrant students is not sufficiently
supported (MIPEX, 2019). First-generation immigrant students are gran
ted basic rights to compulsory education and several support mechanisms,
such as learning of the Slovenian language and additional professional as-
sistance (e.g. remedial classes, individual learning support, and tutoring).
Moreover, a two-stage model with introductory and follow-up workshops
during the adaptation period are in place for newly arrived immigrant stu-
dents (Mlekuž & Vršnik Perše, 2019). There are also several very effective
good practices at schools and different national and international projects,
funded by the government, which offer support for immigrant students,
their parents and their teachers (Gril et al., 2021; Mlekuž & Vršnik Perše,
2019; Vižintin, 2017). These support measures are meant for first-generation
and not second-generation immigrant students.
It is observed that students with an immigrant background (first- and
second-generation) more commonly enrol in short upper secondary vo-
cational education programmes and less commonly in the more socially
desirable upper secondary vocational education programmes (Cankar &
Zupanc, 2020; Skubic Ermenc, 2015). Further, a longitudinal survey of stu-
dents’ achievements at national tests reveals that first-generation immi-
grant students achieve lower scores in mathematics than second-genera-
tion immigrant students and both groups of students achieve lower scores
than native students. This is true even when the results are controlled for
156
Students with an immigrant background in the Slovenian
educational environment
Many students in Slovenia with an immigrant background belong to the
ethnicities of the countries of former Yugoslavia. In most cases, these stu-
dents and/or their parents are economic migrants and/or refugees who
came to Slovenia during the war in the Balkans and then remained (Ribičič,
2004; Vižintin, 2014). In recent years, however, the number of refugees
coming to Slovenia from the Middle East (EMN, 2017) has been growing as
well. In general, immigrant students come from families with a lower soci-
oeconomic status (Cankar & Zupanc, 2020).
Slovenia has only become a country of immigration in the last few dec-
ades and thus still struggles to establish the appropriate mechanisms for
promoting a supportive environment for newcomers. In Slovenia, immi-
grants enjoy equal rights, but not equal opportunities. The Slovenian ap-
proach to integration negatively affects attitudes toward immigrants such
that they are seen as strangers, not as equals. In addition, education is one
area where the social integration of migrant students is not sufficiently
supported (MIPEX, 2019). First-generation immigrant students are gran
ted basic rights to compulsory education and several support mechanisms,
such as learning of the Slovenian language and additional professional as-
sistance (e.g. remedial classes, individual learning support, and tutoring).
Moreover, a two-stage model with introductory and follow-up workshops
during the adaptation period are in place for newly arrived immigrant stu-
dents (Mlekuž & Vršnik Perše, 2019). There are also several very effective
good practices at schools and different national and international projects,
funded by the government, which offer support for immigrant students,
their parents and their teachers (Gril et al., 2021; Mlekuž & Vršnik Perše,
2019; Vižintin, 2017). These support measures are meant for first-generation
and not second-generation immigrant students.
It is observed that students with an immigrant background (first- and
second-generation) more commonly enrol in short upper secondary vo-
cational education programmes and less commonly in the more socially
desirable upper secondary vocational education programmes (Cankar &
Zupanc, 2020; Skubic Ermenc, 2015). Further, a longitudinal survey of stu-
dents’ achievements at national tests reveals that first-generation immi-
grant students achieve lower scores in mathematics than second-genera-
tion immigrant students and both groups of students achieve lower scores
than native students. This is true even when the results are controlled for
156
