The progress of the integration of integration course participants , Date: 2013.04.04, format: project (finished), area: Authority , Academic guidance of the integration courses

The research project entitled "Progress of the integration of integration course participants (Integration Panel)" analyses the effectiveness and sustainability of integration courses. To this end, written, standardised survey of those attending integration courses and those not doing so have been carried out between 2007 and 2011. In addition to this survey of participants at general and parents’, women’s and youth integration courses, the development of language skills among those attending literacy courses was also analysed.

Slightly over 4,000 randomly-selected integration course participants, as well as a comparison group of immigrants who did not attend an integration course, were questioned at various points in time within the integration panel. The integration panel hence provides for the first time sound, comprehensive data and analyses on integration courses and their effectiveness and sustainability. Surveying a control group of persons not attending a course serves to ascertain whether those attending integration courses are able to integrate more quickly than those not doing so.

The group of course participants took part in the survey at four points in time: at the beginning of the course (2007), at the end of the course (2007/2008), approx. one year after the end of the course (2009) and three years after the end of the course (2011). The control group was questioned at three points in time (2008, 2009, 2011).

To add to the quantitative questions, qualitative, structured interviews were carried out with Russian- and Turkish-origin integration course attendees. The study focuses topically on the impact of attending the integration course on the further integration of those taking part, as well as on their own self-perception and the perception of their role.

Publications on the integration panel

Working Paper 52 "Long-term integration trends among former participants in integration courses" completes the research project "Integration Panel" and analyzes long term developments of integration processes into German society.

Research report 11 "The integration panel – Results of a longitudinal study on the effectiveness and sustainability of integration courses" presents the results of the first three surveys on the effectiveness and sustainability of the integration courses.

Working Paper 37 "Qualitative supplementary study to the integration panel" introduces the results of a qualitative study of female Russian- and Turkish-origin integration course participants.

Working Paper 23 "Development of language skills and language competencies relevant to everyday life of integration course participants during the course" examines the progress made by the integration course participants with regard to their everyday language abilities and skills as the course progresses.

Working Paper 19 "Evidence on the integration of participants at the beginning of their integration course" introduces the research project to investigate the effectiveness and sustainability of the integration courses and provides an overview of the composition of the respondent participants, as well as of the status of their integration at the beginning of the integration courses.