Strategies adopted by immigrant parents in language and education integration of children: The case of nigerians in Lisbon, Portugal

Abstract

Available statistics show that in Europe, 1.92 million immigrants were admitted to EU member states in 2022, of which 14.6% were children. Studies have also found that the level of language and educational integration of immigrant children to a great extent tends to be influenced by the level of parents’ active involvement in such schools of their children. This study focused on exploring the strategies adopted by Nigerian immigrant parents in the language and educational integration of children in Lisbon, Portugal. Guided by the theory of social capital and ecological systems theory, qualitative data were collected using in-depth interviews with eight Nigerian immigrant parents who were purposively selected. The study found that parents adopted strategies such as constant school visitation, monitoring, buying additional educational materials and setting family rules in the language and educational integration of children. The study found that despite the existence of language support for children and parents in Portuguese schools, challenges such as lack of English proficiency among Portuguese teachers, and long waiting times in Portuguese language class registration have continued to militate against utilising the support programmes. To address these challenges and to improve language support for parents and children, the study recommends measures such as employing teachers who are proficient in Portuguese and English, Prioritising parents of school-age children in language courses and grouping Portuguese language classes according to the educational qualification of learners.