Conference Program

The paper offers a comparative and critical reflection on the educational inclusion of students with a migrant background in Italy and Spain, focusing on the role of standardized assessments in capturing the complexities of integration processes within school systems. Drawing on both quantitative and qualitative methodologies, we examine how national evaluation tools—INVALSI in Italy and INEE in Spain—reflect or obscure the educational trajectories of first- and second-generation migrant students. The analysis spans a decade of data (2016–2025), enriched by legislative reviews, to explore the intersection of migration, educational policy, and social equity.

In both countries, the presence of students with non-native backgrounds has grown steadily, becoming a structural component of the school population. However, this demographic shift has not been matched by an equally robust transformation in educational practices or assessment frameworks. In Italy, INVALSI test results reveal persistent performance gaps between native students and those of migrant origin, particularly in Italian language and mathematics. These disparities are most pronounced among first-generation students and are only partially mitigated in second-generation cohorts. Interestingly, in English listening tests, second-generation students often outperform their native peers, suggesting that linguistic integration is not unidirectional and may vary across domains.

Spain presents a similar yet distinct scenario. The decentralization of its education system has led to heterogeneous regional policies, with varying degrees of support for migrant students. While the right to education is formally guaranteed regardless of legal status, the reality is marked by high repetition rates, especially among first-generation students, and significant delays in core competencies such as mathematics and Spanish language. The concentration of migrant students in public schools—often in socioeconomically disadvantaged areas—further exacerbates educational segregation and limits opportunities for intercultural exchange.

Standardized assessments, while useful for system-level diagnostics, are insufficient to capture the full spectrum of educational inclusion. These tools often fail to account for contextual variables such as socioeconomic status, linguistic diversity, and the psychosocial dimensions of migration. Moreover, the reliance on test scores as proxies for merit risks reinforces structural inequalities, particularly when used in isolation from qualitative indicators. We investigate the “Matthew effect” in education, whereby students who start with disadvantages—linguistic, cultural, or economic—are further marginalized by assessment systems that do not accommodate their specific needs.

To address these challenges, it is necessary to adopt a more holistic evaluation approach—one that integrates standardized testing with qualitative tools such as school self-evaluation reports, ethnographic observations, and participatory assessments. We emphasize the importance of teacher training, intercultural pedagogy, and the active involvement of families and local communities in fostering inclusive learning environments. In both Italy and Spain, successful examples of inclusive schools often emerge not from top-down mandates but from grassroots initiatives supported by civil society and the third sector.