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Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
Although all children have a right to education, many arrival centers for refugees offer little or no access to education. This is the conclusion of a study by Johanna Funck (University of Bremen) and Markus Ciesielski (htw saar).
The study, titled “Right to Education and Schooling for Refugee Children and Adolescents in Arrival Centers” (BiSKE), was led by the “Education in a Migration Society” working group at the University of Bremen. This study is the first to provide an overview of the availability and accessibility of school education for refugee children and adolescents in the months following their arrival in Germany. The researchers determined what access to education was available in arrival centers for 6- to 18-year-olds and the extent to which they had access to regular schools in all federal states. Between November 2024 and May 2025, the researchers conducted standardized surveys in 203 arrival centers nationwide. This is the first complete, systematic survey of the educational situation in German refugee arrival centers.
Significant Deficits: One in Five Facilities Does Not Offer Any Access to Education
The results reveal significant shortcomings. Thirty-eight facilities (19 percent) did not provide any access to education, even though children and adolescents lived in half of them for several months at a time. In 82 centers (40 percent), access to education consisted exclusively through of out-of-school educational measures or German language courses. These programs were mostly offered within the facilities, varied greatly in quality, and were not always accessible from the outset. Eighty-three facilities (41 percent) provided access to regular schools but often with restrictions, such as waiting periods or restricted to certain age groups. Notably, federal states that do not exclude asylum seekers from the German compulsory schooling regulations tend to provide better educational conditions overall than states that temporarily exempt refugee children and adolescents from these regulations.
Ruptures in School Biographies Persist in Germany
The study concludes that prolonged residence in refugee arrival centers without swift access to high-quality schooling endangers the future educational prospect of children and young adults. Thus, ruptures in school biographies arise not only during flight, but also in Germany. The study emphasizes that a more inclusive approach to compulsory schooling is key to reliably implementing the right to education. Providing compulsory schooling for all, regardless of residence status, strengthens the federal states' responsibility and requires corresponding investments in education, including financial, personnel, and structural resources.
Dr. Johanna Funck
University of Bremen
Faculty 12: Pedagogy and Educational Sciences
Education in a Migration Society working group
Email: funck@uni-bremen.de
Phone: 0421-21869128
https://doi.org/10.26092/elib/4985
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