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The effects of the ‘Welcome Schools’ Program in Madrid, Spain: an ethnographic analysis

The aim of this paper is to share the conclusions of a recent ethnographic study carried out in Madrid from 2005 to 2008 to analyze the effects of a program implemented by the Community of Madrid, Spain, to address diversity in schools. The Program was given an English name – ‘Welcome Schools’ – and was aimed at preparing children recently arrived from outside Spain for entry into the regular school system. The Program was implemented through different measures, including (in English) ‘Linking Classrooms.’ Linking Classrooms are separate classrooms for immigrant children in regular schools where they are taught Spanish for a period of up to nine months, after which the children are supposed to enter the regular school system (preferably in the same school, but this is not always possible) and follow the Program without any other official support. This paper aims at analyzing the aims of the Welcome Schools Program and, given these, what the Program solves and what it leaves unresolved. The paper ends with a general discussion of immigrant student opportunities with respect to participation in the host society. What I shall present here are the final conclusions of this analysis.