Page 16 - IO1-Report

KA201 - Strategic Partnerships for School Education
The Universal Language of Mathematics (2018-1-TR01-KA201-059704)

Somalia (5%). Asylum seekers and recognised refugees in Italy have the right to register with the
System of Protection of Asylum Seekers and Refugees (SPRAR), which helps in the search for training
places and jobs.

2.2. The situation of refugee and migrant children in Italy

In Italy, in 2012 and 2013 minors of foreign origins amounted to 23.9 percent of the foreign population,
which was 2.4 percent more than in 2011. Up to 60 percent (approximately 500,000) of them were born
in Italy, and the rest came to Italy with their parents, after them or on their own. During school year
2015/2016 there were approximately 615,000 foreign pupils residing in Italy – 653 persons more than
in school year 2014/2015 (0.1 percent). At the same time, according to the research, conducted by
Borrini and De Sanctis (2017), in the last five school years, from 2011/2012 up to 2015/2016, the
number of Italian pupils decreased by 193,000 persons from 8,205,000 to 8,012,000 (-2.3 percent),
while the number of foreign pupils increased up to 59,000 (+7.8 percent) - 756,000 to 815,000 pupils.

For some years now, migrant pupils have been the dynamic component of the Italian school system,
which contributes with its growth in the times when the overall school population is diminishing due to
the steady decrease in the number of Italian pupils. The data presented by Barban et al. (2011) gives
us a very complex overview of statistics on different communities. Communities with the long average
presence in Italy - such as the Senegalese and Philippine – have a lower percentage of children in
respect to their general populations (approximately 20 percent). Other communities, such as Indian or
Pakistani, whose presence in Italy is shorter, have a higher percentage of children in their total
population (25 and 29 percent respectively). Also, the age of minor’s entrance in Italy differs depending
on their community. In the case of Ukrainians and Moldavians, children are usually older than 6 at the
time of their entry into Italy (compared to the general average age of 2.7 years). But there are also
many separate cases when these patterns show irregularities. For example, Peruvian minors have a
higher average age than Moldavians, but the South-American children in general come to Italy when
they are younger than four. There is also a difference during the period between the arrival of the adult
and of the minor, registered on his/her residence permit - it is more than 5 years for Chinese nationals
and less than 2 years for Ukrainian and Moldavian citizens. Why these irregularities exist could not be
conclusively clarified.

Italy is facing certain difficulties with its transformation from the country of emigrants to one of the
main immigration destinations in Europe. Political parties use the phenomenon of immigration as the
base for their propaganda (Banca d’Italia 2009). Although studies and data prove the opposite, they stir
up alleged fears, stereotypes and slogans in their political discourse, such as that the newly arrived
foreigners might take the jobs away from Italians. Although immigration increases the number of jobs,
this is also necessary from an economic point of view in view of an increasingly aging population. (ibid)
However, because stereotypes, prejudices and discrimination persist in Italian society, it is difficult even
for migrant children and young people born and raised in Italy to obtain adequate jobs. The
precariousness of their situation is also illustrated by the example of the “5 P” – “precario, pesante,
poco pagato, penalizzante e pericoloso” (“precarious, physically difficult, underpaid, penalizing and

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