By executing the MULTI-SCHOOLS project, the consortium aimed to transform educational centers into successful integration hubs through a whole-school approach. The primary objective was to reduce exclusion barriers for migrant students by strengthening cooperation between schools and families. We sought to ensure that teachers acquired intercultural competences and innovative digital methodologies to manage multicultural classrooms with confidence. For families, the expectation was to improve their proficiency in the host language and their civic orientation, thereby facilitating their active participation in school life and their future socio-occupational integration. On a technical level, we intended to develop accessible digital tools, such as the MULTI-SCHOOLS Mobile App and a learning portal, allowing schools to self-assess their inclusion capacity and implement personalized action plans. Furthermore, we aimed to foster mutual respect and European values through mentoring activities and digital storytelling of real-life experiences. Ultimately, the consortium pursued a systemic impact to decrease early school leaving and promote a more cohesive and resilient society.
The consortium submitted this project in response to the urgent need to manage the migration crisis and the influx of refugees, particularly following the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, which significantly increased the presence of migrant students in countries such as Spain, Germany, and Italy. We identified that schools lacked a comprehensive approach to inclusion, leading to linguistic and social barriers that resulted in low academic performance and a high risk of early school leaving. We addressed specific needs identified through surveys and international reports, such as the OECD (TALIS, 2020), which highlighted the lack of teacher readiness for multicultural classrooms and the low digital competence of migrant families in supporting their children's learning. The project responded to the lack of tools fostering home-school cooperation, empowering parents through host-language learning and civic competences. Finally, it addressed the need to modernize educational centers by transforming them into integration hubs using innovative technologies such as web radio and QR codes.