The school year in Czechia began with a European unique specimen. In Kolin near Prague a „social Roma secondary school" has opened. The children of a minority of 200.000 persons shall be lead to their school-leaving exam over four years, in order to work afterwards on the integration of their own ethnic group. The first success was that more children over 15 years than expected applied for the lessons. This is remarkable because a school education of Roma is not only very rare, but very often the pater familias does not want his children knowing more than he does.
The aim of the education is to enable the pupils to work afterwards f. e. as a crisis manager in special Roma districts or as an authorized Roma-representative of the government. It is a serious attempt for a long lasting integration.
The pressure on the government is great. Since 1990 there were numerous cases of racist acts of violence. The court often judged with incomprehensive leniency. On the other hand the unemployment of the mostly unqualified Roma increased to over 70%. And as a matter of fact, the Roma are involved in crimes to an extremely high extent. Over 90 % of the Czechs do not want a Roma as a neighbour. So far an integration failed also because of the fact, that Roma did not at all cooperate. This shall be changed now. The pupils have come from all parts of the country and will live in a boarding school. They are meant to become some kind of specialists for the solutions of problems. Besides the languages Czech, English, or German, also their own language and „romistic" is on the syllabus. This imparts to them the history of their people and the problems with the social environment. A knowledge of hygiene and health will be imparted to them as well. There is a consensus between all political representatives that a seriously meant integration must start in the kindergarten or in school. So far Roma children mostly ended in special schools. The new programme that is financed partly by the government and partly by an international Roma foundation shall show that Roma children can reach the same school levels like other children when they are looked after in an adequate way.