Recognition and Exercise of the Social Right to Education. Challenges and Opportunities in a Multicultural Inclusion Perspective
Recognition and Exercise of the Social Right to Education. Challenges and Opportunities in a Multicultural Inclusion Perspective

Author(s): Elena Girasella
Subject(s): Politics / Political Sciences, Education, Law, Constitution, Jurisprudence
Published by: Transnational Press London
Keywords: Social Right to Education; Challenges; Opportunities; Multicultural Inclusion Perspective;
Summary/Abstract: The slight increase in the number of refugees who had access to university education in 2019 is far from the UNHCR's target of the inclusion of 15% of the refugee population in tertiary education by 2030 (UNHCR, 2019) and it is reasonable to assume that the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus pandemic will explain its negative effects even in this topic. This work is intended to contribute to the affirmation of the right to education as a social right. The contribution is based on the assumption that the enhancement of the knowledge and skills of migrants, refugees and asylum seekers represents one of the main levers of inclusion and development. Investing in education and facilitating access to the highest levels of education not only guarantees full personal development but it also generates indisputable added value to the entire community. The assessment of a positive impact that goes beyond the private sphere is justified by the quantity and quality of the migration flows in this century. Notwithstanding these simple remarks, the choice to undertake an educational path is still residual. It is, in fact, one of the most difficult paths to deal with, starting from the problem of demonstrating the level of previous studies by the documents. Regardless of age, precondition, motivation and expectations, the reception system implemented by the host countries causes the loss of the background of knowledge and skills which, on the contrary, should be recognised and further supported. The chosen point of view looks at the migration phenomenon as a matter of high political value, it can be ascribed to the capacity of institutions to guarantee sustainability and inclusion, through processes that, first of all, enhance human resources brought by the migration phenomenon and, moreover, that include in the social system people of different cultures and languages. The level of inclusion of immigrants is certainly related especially to the politics and legislative acts that the legal system adopts to overcome cultural, ideological and religious differences. In this framework, it must be considered that the concept of integration does not correspond to that of homologation and that the government intervention will be all the more effective the more it will be able to ensure coexistence and compatibility between different cultures, through its different institutional structures, within the constitutional principle of pluralism and that of equality, and, at the same time, guaranteeing to the immigrants an adequate level of rights, especially the social ones. Looking at the Italian university system we will try to give an account of its most recent evolution in the indicated direction. To do this, we will consider the legal framework and we will examine how it leads to the necessity to expand the sphere of social rights to be recognised to the individuals, besides any status linked to citizenship. Lastly, by illustrating the main experiences emerging from the Italian context, we will examine the way the contribution of universities in favour of the inclusion of migrants, refugees and asylum seekers is expected to become increasingly important.

• Details
• Contents