This is a project work by the students from 10GI. In this class, 50% of the students are from foreign countries. Some can´t speak Portuguese,yet.The Portuguese students present their schoolmates.
(music: D-Day by Rui Massena)
In recent years, the immigrant population, especially from Asia, Africa and Brazil, has been growing significantly in the surrounding neighborhoods of our school, contributing to a great social change and a cultural and linguistic diversity. Gil Vicente School is an example of the growing multiculturalism in Lisbon.
Most students who attend Gil Vicente School have Portuguese nationality, but about 20% come from foreign countries. Having a foreign nationality does not necessarily mean that these students don’t speak Portuguese. However, it is very significant the learning and integration difficulties they have to overcome. Although many students come from the PALOP (countries whose official language is Portuguese), the great part of students have serious difficulties in the domain of the Portuguese language, written and spoken.
And that's why many of these students end up feeling not well integrated and have a negative attitude towards the Portuguese school.
All of us, students, teachers and all the school community should contribute to the inclusion of foreign students and help them feel a sense of belonging at school and help them to overcome the obstacles they face in succeeding at school and building a new life.
We think the following measures are very important:
All students who don’t speak Portuguese as their first language should have the necessary support to their linguistic integration; not only extracurricular classes but also support by Portuguese students who could monitor groups of foreign colleagues by providing them a better integration into school life and study support;
We should learn more about traditions and cultures of all countries and nationalities present among the students of our school.
We should spread our culture and invite our colleagues from different cultures to share our customs and exchange views on life
Being a foreigner in a school is not easy; there is a new culture, language and learning to discover. We still have a lot to do and discover about integrating foreign students. We all have an important role in the inclusion of new students and it is our duty to make the school a better place every day.
Marta Alves, nº14 ; Rodrigo Carvalho, nº18, 11ºL
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