| Abstract [eng] |
In the context of globalization, migration, and multilingualism, schools are becoming important spaces for intercultural dialogue and student integration. The research problem is related to the lack of studies in Lithuania that analyze intercultural dialogue and integration processes in bilingual schools from the perspectives of both students and teachers. The object of the research is a bilingual school as a space for intercultural dialogue and integration. The aim of the research is to investigate how intercultural dialogue is developed and how student integration takes place in a bilingual school, based on the experiences of school community members. The study applied scientific literature and document analysis, semi-structured interviews, and qualitative content analysis. Students and teachers from one bilingual school participated in the study. The findings showed that the bilingual school environment is generally perceived positively and associated with cultural diversity, opportunities to learn about different languages, and a stronger sense of community. Intercultural dialogue and integration are mainly promoted through joint activities, projects, events, mixed groups, and informal communication. Integration is hindered by prejudices, stereotypes, communication within separate groups, language difficulties, and insufficient student maturity. Teachers play an important role in creating a respectful, safe, and dialogue-based educational environment. |
