ABSTRACT
Summary: By the end of 1979 over 4,100,000 foreign workers were living in West Germany — more than ever before, in spite of the formal ban on new recruitment imposed in 1973. Three-quarters of these are ‘guest workers’ with their families, ie they come from countries with which Germany had agreements on the recruitment of labour. After 1973, the structure of the foreign population changed considerably. The formerly high proportion of workers whose families were still living in their home countries has rapidly decreased; nearly all of those who remained after the ban on recruitment have brought their families to the Federal Republic.
German education policy for foreigners is full of contradictions. At present, it is expected that while the so-called first generation will return to their homelands, the so-called second generation — about 1,000,000 foreign children and adolescents at present — are subject to a policy of integration. For the different target groups, three kinds of educational measures can be distinguished: (1) language courses for adults (first generation), which are not obligatory and depend mainly on local initiative; (2) schooling programmes for foreign children in ordinary German classes, preparatory classes, special classes for foreign pupils, or bilingual classes; and (3) training programmes (including language tuition) for the high percentage of adolescents and young adults without school-leaving certificates, apprenticeships, jobs, or sufficient knowledge of German. This chapter describes the background, present situation, and projects in this field. *
