for intercultural assistants

Several years ago, drawing inspiration from the Swedish model of integrating foreign children in schools, we launched the Intercultural Assistance Program at the Polish Migration Forum Foundation. We employ individuals from specific cultural backgrounds who are fluent in a foreign language but also well-adjusted to Poland, functioning smoothly in society, familiar with the realities, school system, and proficient in the Polish language.

Intercultural assistants working at PFM, photo. Gazdowanie

Intercultural assistants play an important role in schools and are needed not only by children

The intercultural school, which accommodates various nationalities and cultures, has become a reality in recent years. According to the NIK report, in the 2020/2021 school year, 48,449 foreign children attended Polish schools, while in 2022/2023 this number increased to 222,523 children with migration experience (a 459% increase). With the influx of people from Ukraine, Polish schools began to receive children for whom entering a new environment was difficult and stressful. Since February 2022, many schools have employed intercultural assistants (referred to as assistance for the teacher of a foreign child in educational law).

Their scope of activities includes:

Supporting the adaptation and integration of migrant children in Polish schools;
Assisting in translations between foreign students and parents and teachers; often, translation involves not only linguistic but also cultural and customary issues;
The presence of assistants enhances the sense of security and psychological comfort for migrant children, and often for their immediate surroundings – parents and teachers;
Maintaining contact with parents of migrant children to explain the realities of Polish education and facilitate communication with the school;
Identifying the special needs of migrant children (e.g., educational or psychological) and responding to various forms of violence.

Who is an intercultural assistant?

The work of an intercultural assistant primarily involves language support and interpreting cultural codes. It entails familiarizing oneself with what was previously unfamiliar and unknown. Intercultural assistants support not only students with migration experience but also teachers, psychologists, school pedagogues, and school management. They also help in communication between parents and the school. Their presence positively influences the overall atmosphere of openness, mutual curiosity, helps to counteract discrimination and xenophobia in schools. Many people we talk to, working daily with educational institutions, say they cannot imagine working with a multicultural class without the support of an intercultural assistant.

Introduction of intercultural assistance to the educational legislation

We are very happy as the Polish legislation has recently changed and the position of intercultural assistants was introduced. The part of the acts states: “A school may employ an intercultural assistant. The intercultural assistant shall provide the persons referred to in paragraph 7 with assistance in dealing with the school environment, and shall cooperate with their parents and the school.” The aforementioned provision was passed by the Parliament in a vote on May 15 this year, and the President signed the act on June 7 this year.

Regarding the differences between the existing position of “teacher’s aide” (Article 165(8) of the Education Law) and the position of “intercultural assistant” (Article 165(8a)), the unofficial position of the Ministry of Education is that:

the teacher’s assistant, by definition, assists directly with the child in the classroom and is limited in time to 12 months;
an intercultural assistant/intercultural assistant supports the school community more broadly, the support of assistants is not limited in
time-limited, the school can hire the assistant / assistant on a permanent basis.

This is a tremendous success and the result of, among other things, many years of advocacy work by the Coalition for Strengthening the Role of Intercultural Assistants, of which Polish Migration Forum is a part!

Coalition for Strengthening the Role of Intercultural and Roma Assistants

As PFM, we are proud to be a member of the Coalition for Strengthening the Role of Intercultural and Roma Assistants. This partnership plays a key role in our advocacy efforts, raising awareness and increasing the influence of intercultural and Roma assistants in education. We collaborate with the Coalition to promote integration and equality in access to education.

We encourage you to visit the Coalition’s website, where you will find a rich collection of educational materials that can be helpful in working with intercultural communities and in schools.

Diversity School

Online training course for intercultural assistants – the Diversity School platform was created by the Polish Migration Forum Foundation in partnership with the International Rescue Committee (IRC). It is the first project of its kind in Poland designed for intercultural assistants.

The course is aimed at people:

wanting to work as intercultural assistants and teacher’s aides,
wanting to enhance their skills,
interested in the well-being of children in schools, as well as integration processes,
parents of foreign children studying in Polish schools.

go to the course page

Dedicated publications

Thanks to experience, constant qualification improvement, knowledge exchange with others, frequent evaluation, and systematic team supervision, our intercultural assistants are considered one of the most professional. That’s why we share our knowledge! Below you will find a list of dedicated publications.

Model edukacji międzykulturowej WISE [PL_EN]