Paper short abstract:

The proposed paper addresses the question to what extent can various "Western sites" be considered as educationally resourceful contexts in cases of Hungarian migrant children by examining their educational pathways and reintegration to the Hungarian education system.

Paper long abstract:

The proposed paper addresses the question to what extent can various "Western sites" be considered as educationally resourceful contexts in cases of Hungarian migrant children by examining their educational pathways and reintegration to the Hungarian education system.

In the last decade, Hungary experiences a sharp increase in labour mobility directed towards Western Europe, some of it resulting in return migration (roughly half of the total outbound migration). Care for children of returning families, including their schooling poses various challenges to the families and schools. Learning difficulties of return children, the emotional and psychological challenges they face, gradually emerge as 'a problem' in the education system, asking for new pedagogical approaches and innovative methods. The paper also examines to what extent does the school appreciate and utilize experiences of their pupils from abroad.The proposed paper is based on case studies of two schools located in different geographical locations in Hungary, including a middle-class bilingual elementary school in Budapest and a segregated "Roma school" in a poor region of Eastern Hungary. It focuses on the early experiences and difficulties of educational reintegration of return children, also on discourses and professional practices related to these children. In addition to interviews conducted with teachers and school principals, we have also paid attention to specific child perspectives and narratives of transnational migrant experiences, to 'gains' of mobility and to its 'losses'. It is in our plans to work more with the 'voice of the child' perspective and research method.