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Interim report III of the research project "Evaluation of the integration courses (EvIk)" , , Analyses and findings on course participants, course specifics, teachers and integration course providers at the start of the course
Source: BAMF (cover image: © AdobeStock | Monkey Business)
As Interim Report III of the research project "Evaluation of Integration Courses (EvIk)", Research Report 46 presents the findings of a survey conducted between September 2021 and April 2022 at the beginning of integration courses with more than 3,000 participants, around 350 teachers and over 200 course providers from 318 courses. The study focuses on the two most prevalent course types with the highest number of participants: General Integration Courses and Literacy Courses.
The survey is part of a longitudinal study in the ongoing EvIk project. The aim is to identify areas for the further development of the integration course system.
Key findings at a glance
Course participants
Literacy Course participants differ from General Integration Course participants in key socio-demographic characteristics. On average, Literacy Course participants are older and more likely to be married, but also more likely to live apart from their partner. In addition, they live in larger households, which can be attributed to a higher number of children. However, the proportion of women with (young) children is low in both course types, particularly in Literacy Courses. The analyses indicate that childcare is generally carried out by women and that women tend to enroll in integration courses only when external childcare is available.
There are clear differences in terms the learning prerequisities for acquiring German by course type, as a significant share of Literacy Course participants has not attended school, has limited experience with formal language learning and the majority have a refugee background.
Literacy Course participants have also poorer learning conditions in their private environment than participants in General Integration Courses, as they often lack space for undisturbed learning and frequent worries about relatives living abroad can impair their ability to concentrate.
Composition of the integration courses
The course composition in terms of gender, level of education, age, length of stay in Germany, and the number of countries of birth of the participants can be classified as rather heterogeneous in both General Integration Courses and Literacy Courses.
With regard to the share of participants with a refugee background, no clear pattern emerges in General Integration Courses. In contrast, Literacy Courses can be classified as predominantly homogeneous in terms of the high share of participants with a refugee background.
Integration course teachers
The integration courses are often taught by female teachers. The composition of the teaching staff is ethnically diverse and the average age is high.
The course teachers have a degree or an additional qualification recognized by the BAMF in the field of German as a foreign language/German as a second language. Most teachers were admitted to the integration course system through direct admission and did not require any additional qualification. Other routes (e.g. via various further training courses) show the openness of the admission process. There is interest among many teachers in further and advanced training courses (offered by the BAMF and other providers).
Course Teachers report a high level of job satisfaction. However, some of the teachers consider their class size to be too large. In addition, some of the teachers, particularly in Literacy Courses, often encounter participants with numerous language acquisition difficulties and unique challenges.
Integration course providers
Most course providers have many years of experience in running integration courses and offer at least one additional service, such as (social) counselling for migrants in German or their first language, or rooms for self-study. Migration Counselling for Adult Immigrants (German: Migrationsberatung für erwachsene Zuwanderer, MBE) is also often available either on-site or within walking distance. Only few providers offer additional childcare or supervision services, mainly due to lack of space, high bureaucratic hurdles and a shortage of suitable staff.
The providers report a high number of freelance staff and great difficulties in finding suitable teaching staff, especially for the Literacy Course. On the other hand, the majority of providers have no difficulty in retaining their teaching staff.
The research report was written by: Ramona Kay, Dr. Christian Babka von Gostomski, Dr. Salwan Saif, Dr. Pia Homrighausen, Dr. Jan Eckhard and Dr. Nina Rother
The full research report is only available in German.