igration is a deeply political issue because it intersects with identity, sovereignty, and the allocation of finite resources. In recent years, the urgency of the migration debate has been amplified by several converging factors: climate change, protracted conflicts, rising economic inequality, and shifting political landscapes. At the heart of the political sensitivity is a tension between humanitarian obligations and national interests. While international law enshrines the rights of refugees and displaced persons, host countries often grapple with the socio–economic and political challenges of absorbing new populations.
The global education sector, especially teachers and schools, stands at the crossroads of this complex reality, uniquely positioned to address the challenges and opportunities that migration brings. Evidence suggests that investment in education and young people’s leadership are critical levers for building resilient communities and mitigating against negative drivers of migration, such as environmental degradation, insecurity, or lack of economic opportunity.
A joint report by the International Labour Organization, UNICEF, and the World Bank shows that equipping young people with skills for green jobs, fostering climate resilience, and teaching conflict resolution in fragile settings can stabilize communities and reduce the push factors for migration. To succeed, this requires significant international commitment to fund education and leadership development in the world’s vulnerable regions.
Host countries face significant challenges in integrating migrant students. Schools often serve as the first point of integration for newly arrived children, but they are also ‘ground zero’ for tensions. The success or failure of integration depends on system preparedness. Underprepared education systems can result in discrimination, cultural polarization and economic inequality, while well–supported schools and teachers transform the diversity into strength. This transformation requires teacher training to go beyond acquisition of technical skills to also include cultural humility, trauma–informed pedagogy, and socio–emotional learning. When teachers are empowered to do the "inner work" of unlearning harmful frameworks, they create classrooms where migrant and host country children can learn together and succeed.
Education sits at the heart of any long–term solution, for migrants and host communities. Across the Teach For All global network, we’ve seen how teachers serve as bridges for individual learners and foster understanding across communities. We can build education systems that are responsive to the realities of migration and uphold the dignity of all children on the move by developing collective leadership. Collective leadership brings educators, political leaders, families, and communities together around a shared vision that ensures all students can thrive.
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Schools are the heart of migrants’ integration and resilience
An education program supporting refugee schools in Somalia. Photo courtesy of UNICEF Somalia, via Flickr.
February 26, 2025
The global education sector, especially teachers and schools, stands at the crossroads of the complex issue of migration. Education is uniquely positioned to address the challenges and opportunities that migration brings, writes Katy Noble.
M
igration is a deeply political issue because it intersects with identity, sovereignty, and the allocation of finite resources. In recent years, the urgency of the migration debate has been amplified by several converging factors: climate change, protracted conflicts, rising economic inequality, and shifting political landscapes. At the heart of the political sensitivity is a tension between humanitarian obligations and national interests. While international law enshrines the rights of refugees and displaced persons, host countries often grapple with the socio–economic and political challenges of absorbing new populations.
The global education sector, especially teachers and schools, stands at the crossroads of this complex reality, uniquely positioned to address the challenges and opportunities that migration brings. Evidence suggests that investment in education and young people’s leadership are critical levers for building resilient communities and mitigating against negative drivers of migration, such as environmental degradation, insecurity, or lack of economic opportunity.
A joint report by the International Labour Organization, UNICEF, and the World Bank shows that equipping young people with skills for green jobs, fostering climate resilience, and teaching conflict resolution in fragile settings can stabilize communities and reduce the push factors for migration. To succeed, this requires significant international commitment to fund education and leadership development in the world’s vulnerable regions.
Host countries face significant challenges in integrating migrant students. Schools often serve as the first point of integration for newly arrived children, but they are also ‘ground zero’ for tensions. The success or failure of integration depends on system preparedness. Underprepared education systems can result in discrimination, cultural polarization and economic inequality, while well–supported schools and teachers transform the diversity into strength. This transformation requires teacher training to go beyond acquisition of technical skills to also include cultural humility, trauma–informed pedagogy, and socio–emotional learning. When teachers are empowered to do the "inner work" of unlearning harmful frameworks, they create classrooms where migrant and host country children can learn together and succeed.
Education sits at the heart of any long–term solution, for migrants and host communities. Across the Teach For All global network, we’ve seen how teachers serve as bridges for individual learners and foster understanding across communities. We can build education systems that are responsive to the realities of migration and uphold the dignity of all children on the move by developing collective leadership. Collective leadership brings educators, political leaders, families, and communities together around a shared vision that ensures all students can thrive.
