Immigrant Students, Essay Example

Argument: Immigrant students can become beneficial for the economy of the country, adding skills and abilities to the existing talent pool.

According to the OECD Report (online), one of the benefits of globalization is the extra talent flooding developed countries’ universities and colleges. Although different countries apply various student visa regulations regarding to immigrant students, all countries realize that the economy needs talented and hard-working people. It is true that students might be inactive financially throughout their years of study, still in the long run, they would help the country create a competitive advantage. There is a difference between the expenditure on education, even within Europe. In Estonia and the Czech Republic, the spending on education is low, while in Finland, France and Germany it is much higher. Therefore, an increasing number of students is looking for better opportunities and a future.

One of the main questions regarding immigrant students is whether or not the receiving country is able to help them with their homogenization and if they are able to keep them in the country. The integration of immigrant students should start at the point of entering the country. Language and cultural development programs need to be developed in order to provide equal opportunities for learning to everyone. The communication between schools and the immigrant families about education, learning, expectations and support is an important part of the process. Some countries realize the potential in supporting talent from different cultural backgrounds, and therefore, they produce leaflets in different languages about the education system. (EACEA, 2009)

The importance of helping immigrant children achieve their full potential is well described in the UNICEF study, as well. (2009) The research reflects on immigrant students’ situation in eight affluent countries and concludes that “children of these immigrants represent an increasingly large share of all children in affluent countries and will, during coming decades, be more prominent in society as workers, voters and parents”, (p. 83.) there is a need for new policies supporting these young people.

References:

UNICEF (2009) Children in Immigrant Families in Eight Affluent Countries. Online.  <http://www.globalmigrationgroup.org/uploads/gmg- topics/children/2.A_Children_in_immigrant_families_in_eight_affluent_countries_UNICEF_IRC.pdf>

OECD Report (2009) Pisa Conference. Untapped Skills- Realizing the Potential of Immigrant Students. Online. <http://www.oecd.org/edu/Untapped%20Skills.pdf>

EACEA Report (2009) Integrating Immigrant Children into Schools in Europe. Online.  <http://eacea.ec.europa.eu/education/eurydice/documents/thematic_reports/101EN.pdf>