Ethnische Ressourcen: Das Beispiel der Bilingualität

Taking bilingualism as an example, this contribution addresses the hypothesis that ethnic resources play an important role for the integration of migrants. This assumption is particularly prevalent in more recent concepts of the sociology of migration like, for example, in the concept of “segmented assimilation”. We will address four different questions: the importance of mother tongue skills for school achievement, the effects of mother tongue education programs on school achievement, the impact of mother tongue skills on labour market success in general and then particularly in Canada as a frequently cited example for a country pursuing an “adequate” language and integration policy. The evidence suggests that mother tongue skills (as well as inner-ethnic relations) virtually never display empirically provable effects on educational and labour market success. At least regarding processes of language acquisition and its consequences, the concept of intergenerational absorption through (linguistic) acculturation is still valid, which also holds for Canada.