Abstract:

The presence of refugee students in culturally and linguistically diverse classrooms relatively influences the development of local students as well. Students with different languages and cultural background in a learning environment create a different atmosphere and may influence the attitude of local students to other languages and cultures. Therefore, this study investigated how and to what extent native students were influenced from refugee students in terms of linguistic and cultural perspective. The mixed method was used in this study. Quantitative data were collected from local students in culturally and linguistically diverse classrooms through a questionnaire and qualitative data were collected from teachers teaching in these classrooms by means of interviews. The results of the study revealed that there were remarkable positive effects of the integration process on both sides though various problems emerged in diverse classrooms. The findings of this research may also give implications about the influence of refugee movement for other cultures.

Keywords: