The intensification of migratory flows around the world, largely associated with the humanitarian crisis that has been victimizing migrants and refugees more visibly since 2015, has motivated fracturing positions in civil society and in the political sphere, expressed in welcoming movements, on the one hand, and in xenophobic and segregationist movements, on the other hand, a stance that has been conquering territory in contemporary societies (Huber & Reynolds, 2014; Silva et al., 2018).

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, guided by the commitment to “leave no one behind”, has had the migratory phenomenon as one of the major challenges to be considered, namely regarding SDG 4, devoted to Education. UNESCO underlines the need to protect the right to education of displaced persons, considering the principle of non-discrimination, which comprises the inclusion of migrants and refugees in national education systems. The increase in the migratory flow to Europe leaves many migrant and refugee students helpless in the education systems, and European countries are faced with the growing need to adapt the institutional, social, and educational response to the reception of a considerable number of children and young people with diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds (de Wal Pastoor, 2016).

The migration crisis added urgency to the demand of an inclusive school (de Wal Pastoor, 2016). Despite the efforts to ensure access to education for all, there are shortcomings in the quality of educational integration that compromise the academic, emotional, and social well-being of young migrants, intensifying the marginalization and stigmatization of these groups in society (Cerna, 2019; de Wal Pastoor, 2016; European Commission/EACEA/Eurydice, 2019; PPMI, 2017; Silva et al., 2018).

According to the holistic model for the educational integration of refugees (Cerna, 2019), teachers’ training to deal with diversity is one of the main factors to improve the response of education systems to meet the learning, social and emotional needs of this population (de Wal Pastoor, 2016; Szelei et al., 2020; European Commission/EACEA/Eurydice, 2019; PPMI, 2017).

From this panorama, the following research questions emerged: What are the teachers' perceptions and beliefs about migrants and refugees, about welcoming other cultures and about cultural diversity in schools? What training needs, opportunities, challenges, and good experiences can be identified in this area?

Professional development of teachers in interculturality is also an insufficiently studied field (Szelei et al., 2020). Research shows that teachers feel unprepared to work with students from different cultural backgrounds (de Wal Pastoor, 2016; PPMI, 2017; Szelei et al., 2020). Indeed, the increase in cultural and social diversity raises challenges and opportunities for education. For teachers to be(come) agents of positive change in this process, it is essential to promote a culture of support for teachers.

Ecologically informed research on education of migrants and refugees, that considers the educational and historical realities of specific countries (in terms of receiving and integrating migrant populations and national cultural minorities) is still scarce and this is especially true for Portugal (de Wal Pastoor, 2016). Professional development of teachers in interculturality is also an insufficiently studied field (Szelei et al, 2020).

This study intends to contribute to improve the quality of the educational integration of migrant, refugee and ethnic minority children and young people, as well as the professional development and well-being of teachers when working with a multicultural public. For this purpose, the research aims to study the perceptions of primary, secondary and vocational school teachers about the welcoming of other cultures in Portugal and in the Portuguese education system, particularly migrants, refugees and ethnic minorities. Furthermore, it also proposes to know teachers’ preparation and training to deal with cultural diversity.

The sample is composed of teachers from schools throughout the national territory. An online questionnaire was developed and administered to teachers in Portuguese primary, secondary and vocational schools. Considering the approximate number of 150,000 teachers in Portugal (INE, 2024), and to ensure that the sample was representative, it was expected to inquiry approximately 400 teachers. The survey was disseminated nationwide and open for participation from February to May 2023. The number of valid responses was higher than expected, resulting in a total of 643 participants. The questionnaire is divided into four groups, most of which are closed questions, with only two open and optional questions. Group I involves sociodemographic questions and characterizes the professional profile, consisting of a total of 13 items. Group II contains 6 items related to the work context. Group III addresses questions specifically related to the experience of working with immigrants and refugees, totalling 11 items. Group IV consists of 10 questions about perceptions of hosting other cultures in Portugal. The data collected is subject to statistical analysis (closed questions) and content analysis (open questions). Exploratory, descriptive, and inferential statistical procedures are being undertaken, using IBM SPSS (version 29) software.

The main aim of the online survey was to gather information about teachers' perceptions on the welcoming of other cultures to Portugal and to explore some aspects of their experience working with immigrant and refugee students. Hopefully, this data will help to identify teachers’ high or low prevalence of positive or negative stereotypes concerning immigrant and refugee population, and also to characterise the preparation and training of teachers to deal with cultural diversity. So far, the preliminary analysis suggests a low prevalence of conscious prejudice towards welcoming other cultures in Portugal. On the other hand, there is data pointing to the existence of a negative stereotype regarding the perception of certain ethnic groups as less hard-working than others. In the context of initial and ongoing teacher training, teachers report gaps in certain dimensions of intercultural education, such as communicating with a multilingual and multicultural audience or relating to the families of immigrant or refugee students. The data also suggests that the majority of teachers surveyed consider themselves poorly or fairly prepared to deal with these areas in their professional practice. However, a more thoughtful and informed analysis of these issues is needed. The open questions include the voluntary sharing of teachers’ reflections, recommendations, and experiences of professional practice with students from minority cultures. It is hoped that the content analysis will reveal interesting praxeological aspects that can inform inclusive and integrative educational practice towards cultural diversity. The information gathered on perceptions and beliefs, on the one hand, and on the positive experiences shared, on the other hand, may inspire important insights on the improvement of teachers’ education and well-being, and on the healthy fostering and integration of students from different cultures in school, thus contributing to fairer, more inclusive, democratic and wealthier societies.

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