The educational experiences of non-national students in a Maltese primary school

Abstract

Immigrants find various difficulties which prevent them from living a just life in their country, such as fewer job opportunities and persecution. The rise of the number of immigrants entering our country is continuously increasing. This is affecting the educational system of Malta, since these students need to be integrated so that they receive the education they deserve. This dissertation, carried out as a qualitative study, aims to investigate the main challenges present between non-national students and the Maltese students who attend a state primary school in Malta. In particular, the educational experiences of these students are analysed visà- vis the language and/or languages they use to communicate. Furthermore, the provisions of this particular primary school to address such challenges are also analysed. Clearly, the most challenging experience that these non-national students are having in this school is the language as there seems to be a lack of provisions for this issue. Also, there is no awareness of the ethnic discrimination that some of the non-national students are experiencing. Some recommendations are given at the end of the study.