Intercultural Education for Sustainability in the Educational Interventions Targeting the Roma Student: A Systematic Review

Abstract

The ethnic and cultural diversity of today’s society demands an intercultural education that promotes equal opportunities and the inclusion of minority groups at risk of social exclusion. Various policies and governmental strategies are directed at favoring social inclusion and reducing situations of discrimination and exclusion. One of said ethnic minorities is the Roma community. This article talks about measures for reversing the high rates of absenteeism, dropout, and school failure. The aim of this systematic review in the educational context is to analyze programs and interventions that have been made to promote the educational inclusion of Roma students. Three databases were used—Scopus, Web of Science, and Eric—to examine 419 articles. After a selection, based on an inclusion criterion, which follows the guidelines given by the Declaration of Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyzes (PRISMA), 17 articles were chosen for the analysis. The main findings shed light on data for programs and interventions developed mostly within the school setting and for students of elementary and secondary education, however, there are also interventions that are developed in the community and extracurricular context. The works are centralized in valuing the cultural diversity of the Roma people with the Roma students but not just exclusive to them. Highlighted is the implementation of teacher assistants and/or intercultural mediators from the Roma community to be role models or references for the students, and family education participation is considered common practice. Such characteristics in educational interventions contribute to an inclusive education in an intercultural and sustainable manner.