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Department of Educational Sciences and Psychology

Completion of the project "School integration of newly immigrated children"

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Bild indem steht, dass das SIGN Projekt erfolgreich abgeschlossen wurde. © AdobeStock​/​H_Ko

The MERCUR-funded joint project "School integration of newly immigrated children" was successfully completed after three and a half years. The aim of the project, which was carried out in cooperation with the University of Duisburg-Essen and Ruhr University Bochum, was to identify determinants of the school integration of refugee and newly immigrated children. The focus was on the influence of individual, family and school factors on the educational participation and integration of fourth-graders in the Ruhr metropolitan region. Controlling for cognitive abilities and socio-economic status, newly immigrated children were significantly less likely to be recommended for grammar school than children who had not immigrated themselves, but not to transfer to grammar school. There were also disparities in reading skills, for example. It was shown that differences in vocabulary play a central role in explaining these discrepancies. Overall, the results emphasize the relevance of vocabulary for school success in elementary school. A comprehensive vocabulary can pave the way for a successful educational career. Accordingly, the promotion of this vocabulary is of essential importance, especially for disadvantaged groups. The study was also able to identify resources that can provide starting points for such support - for example, immigrant children reported reading together with their parents significantly more often than children born in Germany. A first insight into the results and handouts for teachers can be found in the IFS practice portal at: https://ifs.ep.tu-dortmund.de/praxis-videoportal/praxisportal/praxisbeitrag-wortschatz-warum-er-wichtig-ist-und-welche-rolle-das-lesen-von-texten-spielt-36127/