ABSTRACT
The dimension of cultural and linguistic diversity and its significance for education have been discussed in Europe especially after the Second World War, but much more intensely from the mid-1970s on, when migration became visible as a stable fact in many immigration countries. The role of international organizations such as UNESCO, the Council of Europe, OECD, and the European Commission was and is influential in this field, promoting both discussion and international cooperation on policies, theory building, and research on implementation (CDCC, 1986; Commission of the European Community, 1994; OECD, 1991; Sténou, 1997; Wagner, 1997). Many universities in immigration countries boast scholarship on migration studies and, particularly, on the relationships between migration, multicultural society, the importance of culture for the development of individuals, bilingualism, multilingualism, and the aims and contents of education.
