During a press conference on Tuesday 6 June 2023, Luxembourg's Minister of Education, Children and Youth, Claude Meisch, presented the new reception system for newly arrived children and young people in the Grand Duchy.
A bill, soon to be voted on by the Chamber of Deputies (Luxembourg's parliament), is expected to further improve the quality of measures for integrating foreign students into the public school system in Luxembourg.
The SIA service for school integration and reception will provide support and guidance to children and young people within the Luxembourg school system. This one-stop shop aims to ensure the systematic support and reception of newly arrived students and their families. The SIA is already operational and is located at the Maison de l'Orientation in Luxembourg-Ville. According to the Ministry of Education, Children and Youth, it has already offered support to Ukrainian refugees and provided parents and students with information on the Luxembourg school offer as well as on non-formal education and assistance, development and support measures. The ministry added that this one-stop shop also offers an analysis of the situation (school achievements, etc.) of individual children and systematic support to help them quickly integrate into a regular class, as well as supporting their personal development.
As a resource service, the SIA will support schools, colleges and centres of competence in specialised psychopedagogy in their mission of integrating newly arrived students and will create a national network of reception and school integration professionals.
At the centre of this system, according to the ministry, is a holistic approach that emphasises the skills and identity of students who have recently arrived in Luxembourg through a reception project: after having established the student's aspirations, needs, achievements and know-how, the SIA draws up a reception project that will accompany the student until the end of his/her integration period. The objective is to find ways of schooling adapted to his/her situation and to allow him/her to flourish.
In addition to individual support, the new SIA service will offer close follow-up of the pupil for two years: an assessment of performance and academic progress as well as observations in class will be regularly evaluated according to the reception project. This follow-up can lead to the adaptation of the reception project to continue to guarantee optimal support for the student, according to the ministry.
An individual is designated within the school as contact person for the SIA, the parents and the teaching staff, in order to promote targeted communication around the student's interests.
The ministry concluded that through the individualisation of courses, assistance and adaptations targeted by the reception project, each student has the possibility of obtaining a qualification or a diploma and of integrating more easily into Luxembourg society.
