On the Education of Guest-Worker Children in Germany: A Comparative Study of Policies and Programs in Bavaria and Berlin

Abstract

For the Federal Republic of Germany, a country which has nearly 2 million of these "guest workers" and another 2 million of their dependents, the impact has been profound. For not only have these new immigrants influenced the composition of the labor force, but they have also had an impact on the social and cultural life of Germany. The Federal Republic is evolving into a culturally and ethnically pluralistic society. These new immigrants-the Turkish-Germans, Greek-Germans, Yugoslav-Germans-have found a home in Germany. They are strengthening their resolve to stay by reuniting their families, investing more of their income on their "quality of life" within Germany, drastically reducing their remittances to the home country, and actively seeking the education of their children in German schools (see Rist 1978a). Table 1 indicates the flow of foreign workers into the Federal Re-