Lost in transit: Education for refugee children in Sweden, Germany, and Turkey

In “Lost in Transit: Education for Refugee Children in Sweden, Germany, and Turkey,” chapter 13, Maurice Crul and his colleagues compare the ways in which three countries that have received large numbers of refugees are endeavoring to incorporate children into their disparate educational systems. The authors examine in detail the institutional arrangements most likely to shape the school trajectories of refugee children: 1) preschool; 2) entrance into compulsory schooling; 3) the so-called “welcome, submersion, or introduction classes”; 4) second-language instruction; 5) supports for teachers working with refugee students; 6) tracking; and 7) schooling after compulsory school. The programs vary greatly, and the results are varied. While both Germany and Sweden are struggling to provide equitable quality education to new arrivals, the situation in Turkey is bleak. Although Turkish law mandates the schooling of all minors regardless of nationality, about half of all refugee children in Turkey are not being educated in schools. Those who are enrolled in school “are in temporary education centers.” The authors suggest which educational institutional arrangements need to be in place to provide equal opportunities for refugee children to succeed in school.