A recent assessment of Germany’s approach to integrating refugee children into its school system paints a largely positive picture. Professor Nele McElvany, a leading educational researcher, highlighted the welcoming environment experienced by many newly arrived students following the significant influx of refugees beginning in 2015.
“Numerous studies indicate that refugee children and adolescents felt very comfortable and secure in German schools and were eager to attend” Professor McElvany stated. “While seemingly straightforward, this is a significant achievement given the challenges of being in a foreign country, learning a new language and dealing with the trauma of displacement. It represents a considerable success for the entire education system and the individuals working within it.
Addressing concerns about declining performance in school studies, Professor McElvany cautioned that the changing student demographics, including a rise in children without German as their home language, only partially explains the observed trends. The 2021 Iglu study on primary school students’ reading competency demonstrated a notable decrease in performance, a change which she attributes in part to evolving student populations. However, she stressed that other factors play a more substantial role.
“The period also coincided with the Covid-19 pandemic and Germany experienced relatively prolonged school closures, which demonstrably had a negative impact, as we recently demonstrated in a new publication” explained McElvany, Professor of Empirical Educational Research at the Technical University of Dortmund and Executive Director of the Institute for School Development Research at the University. “Other social changes are also at play, including a deterioration in learning conditions at home, such as access to a quiet workspace for children.
Professor McElvany is widely recognized as the head of the German branch of the international Iglu school study.
