'Raise your hands who will go to places where they do not feel recognized': On the segregation of Roma pupils in education
Abstract
The Roma represent the largest and at the same time the most disadvantaged ethnic minority in Europe. One of the serious problems in education systems, especially in certain Central and Eastern European countries, is the segregation of Roma students in schools and classes outside of mainstream education.
This segregation is not only illegal but also has serious negative effects on the overall level of education of the Roma minority and creates a signifi cant barrier to coexistence between the Roma minority and the majority society. This publication addresses the phenomenon of the segregation of Roma students in education using qualitative research combined with the findings of a number of previous professional studies on the topic.
The experience-based opinions of teachers and experts are thus intertwined with paraphrases of studies by various institutions and experts. The aim of the publication is to show how segregation arises, which actors participate in the process of creating segregated schools, and what the specifics of segregated schools are.
Knowledge of these key aspects of segregation is important in the search for preventative tools (how to prevent schools and classes from becoming segregated) and solutions (how to gradually lead segregated schools and classes to desegregation). As a result, it is clear that the elimination of segregation requires the activity of many different actors, whether municipal authorities, which can prevent segregation when setting school catchment areas, or counseling facilities, which can thoroughly diagnose the unjustified placement of Roma students, or mainstream schools, which can develop friendly and supportive attitudes towards socially disadvantaged Roma students and thus prevent them from leaving for segregated schools.
Only limited tools for change are available to segregated schools themselves, e.g. they can try to attract non-Roma students through greater openness or a higher range of educational alternatives and thus contribute to a gradual increase in the heterogeneity of student groups. In order to transmit examples of good practice, the publication also focuses on describing the tools that segregated schools (or schools at risk of segregation) successfully use to support the education of socially disadvantaged Roma students, which could be inspiring for mainstream schools.
These tools include the work of Roma assistants, support for multiculturalism in the curriculum, systematic organization of tutoring or strengthening the social work role of the school. In summary, the publication presents the segregation of Roma students as a complex phenomenon, at the core of which are deep-rooted prejudices against Roma.
In the long term, it is therefore necessary to progressively remove barriers between Roma and non-Roma and remove prejudices, not only among teachers and students, but also between the students' parents and the general public.