Building bridges: the role of schools for a welcoming society

Abstract

The continuous movement of people from one land to another is something “natural,” which has been repeated throughout human history. Often, the reasons for emigrating are dramatic and predominantly related to wars or conflicts of various kinds. In the 21st-century society, increasingly characterized by multiculturalism and multiethnicity, educational contexts, primarily schools, find themselves managing a multiplicity of cultures and identities, which have now become an established reality. The main institution involved is the school, which, as an educational structure, is directly involved in managing the reception of immigrant children and promoting a type of intercultural education. The project, implemented in a primary school, aims to “give voice” to the emigration experiences of the children, not directly experienced by them, but which have nonetheless caused feelings of nostalgia, illusions, and losses.