Migrant Families In Australia

The educational environment and its educators are imperative for the successful integration of students from migrant families. The provision of an inclusive education is vital, as a school, often, is the only connection between migrant families and Australia’s major societal institutions. According to the University of Oregon (1999), the notion of diversity encompasses “understanding that each individual is unique… [by] recognising… individual differences” (para. 1). The ways in which the educational environment responds to migrant families has a significant impact on the well-being of all individuals involved within the school community, irrespective of migrant or non-migrant status. In contemporary Australia, it is not uncommon for schools

1). Moreover, this language barrier has significant implications for migrant families within the school community, as it affects the efficaciousness of verbal and non-verbal communication. Even for migrant families from prominently English-speaking nations, such as England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales, a perceivably strong accent also influences effective communication within the educational environment. Unfortunately, stereotypes tend to surround migrant families, those of lower socioeconomic status and disadvantage, rightly or wrongly. However, only a rather small portion of migrant families, generally, refugees and asylum seekers, require targeted socioeconomic provisions as a result of the susceptibilities and bereavement from past experiences. As a result, for migrant families within Australia’s educational community “…it may be more difficult to establish social interactions from scratch, which can be aggravated by stigma and prejudices” (Miladinovic, 2016, para.

Globally competent teachers facilitate authentic opportunities for migrant students to acquire knowledge and understandings, and for all students to learn about global cultures and different points of view. The facilitation of a classroom that encourages students to become active participants in their own learning through inquiry and posing questions also promotes greater accountability and responsibility. “We all interpret the world around us through the lens of our own cultural background, values and experience… We cannot achieve a full understanding of any issue without exploring all perspectives” (Oxfam Great Britain, 2015, p. 9). When an education is successful in instilling global competencies and intercultural understandings (ACARA, 2017), teachers and all students, including migrant students, experience mutual benefits. An “inclusive education ensures that schools are supportive and engaging places for all school community members. It builds communities that value, celebrate and respond to diversity” (DET, 2017, para.