Breaking down the barriers: educational paths, labour market outcomes and wellbeing of children of immigrants INTRODUCTION

The goal of successfully incorporating ethnic minorities represents a decisive challenge for modern societies. However, migratory background continues to negatively affect the life trajectories of migrants' descendants. 'Hard' and 'soft' barriers determine long-term inequality gaps and low intergenerational social mobility in both longstanding and more recent European immigration countries. This special issue complements the sparse findings on education, labour market outcome and wellbeing relating to immigrant offspring by providing original insight in order to individuate strategies for removing the obstacles that the descendants of migrants face. In-depth analyses have been performed for specific Southern European contexts in order to explore the specific inequality patterns that are emerging in these more recent and unexplored immigration contexts. The main findings suggest that the lower academic performances of immigrants' descendants can be raised through language-support programmes, mentoring programmes, positive role and disciplinary climate, extra-scholastic activities and parental involvement. Equality opportunities in education should support school-to-work transitions and better allocate the underutilised human capital reserves of migrants' descendants. Conversely, long-lasting penalties in educational careers and integration processes may arise when children are physically separated from their parents because of delayed family reunification.

Automated summary

Successfully incorporating ethnic minorities is a challenge for modern societies, as migratory background affects the life trajectories of migrants' descendants. 'Hard' and 'soft' barriers lead to long-term inequality and low intergenerational social mobility, particularly in European immigration countries. Research in Southern Europe suggests that equal opportunities in education should support transitions from school to work and improve academic performance of immigrants' descendants.