Education and Migration Background: The Divide Between City and Countryside

The range is enormous, as sociologist Mario Steiner demonstrates in an article in the journal "Education and Teaching." For example, the proportion of early school leavers among first-generation young migrants in the Mühlviertel is 7.7 times higher than among those without a migration background. In other very rural areas such as the Innviertel, Lungau, or Bludenz-Bregenzerwald, the proportions are at least five to seven times higher. In Vienna and Graz, however, the ESL proportion is "only" double, and in Innsbruck and Klagenfurt-Villach, it is three times as high.

"The (educational) integration in cities thus works significantly better than in rural areas," Steiner concludes from the data. He sees the large inequality as a "social and democratic political mandate for intervention," especially in times of a skilled labor shortage.

"Lock-In Effect"

Steiner also sees an urgent need for action due to the "lock-in effect" of early school leaving: Within a year, only 12 percent of those affected overcome their ESL status, meaning they are back in training or formal education. For Steiner, this indicates "only a limited success of (re-)integration programs." Notably, while only 10 percent of first-generation young people manage to re-enter school or training, the figure is even higher for second-generation young people than for those without a migration background (around 15 compared to 13 percent).

(APA/Red)

This article has been automatically translated, read the original article here.