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In this chapter, Milena Ivova Ilieva describes the Roma minority in the education system of Bulgaria, where – according to data from non-governmental organizations working directly with the Roma community – the number of Roma people varies between 8-10% of the total population. The situation of the Roma community is characterized by its marginal position in the society at different levels, which stands out more clearly against the process of globalization. Ilieva shows the disadvantages in social situation and presents a general overview of the classification of the Roma Community about educational integration. She analyses the official statistical data and gives reasons for the low education level of Roma in Bulgaria and describes the policy measures for Roma integration after 1989. She concludes that at this stage of their existence, the programs which the Bulgarian State is trying to apply with regard to Roma, are not effective and do not conform to the specifics of the Roma community.

The chapter provides information about the second largest ethnic minority in Romania, Roma people, and the way the Romanian educational system is open to inclusion. Based on factual data about number, groups and legal status, the chapter presents some peculiarities regarding the culture and language, social situation and the level of education. The main part of the presentation is focused on the educational issues, such as information about Romanian educational system and educational attainment of the Roma from preschool till tertiary education and lifelong learning programs. The last part include information about policies and support programs for Roma education and a short analysis of good practice initiatives within Romanian cultural and educational space.

In this chapter, the author analyses the education situation of Sinti and Roma in Germany and calls for a ‘Dawn of Learning!’ The author asks: Who is learning (from whom and for whom)? What is learned? What has to be learned? To answer these questions firstly the author describes the social and legal situation of the Roma minority in Germany then analyses their attainment in the German education system. With the help of two studies (Hundsalz, 1982; Strauss, 2011) the author demonstrates that educational attainments of German Sinti and Roma had significantly increased over time. Then the author emphasises the importance of mentoring programmes – involving Sinti and Roma as educational mentors – especially for their important role in the integration process. Lastly, the author shows the results of her own study aimed at revealing correlations of education and integration opportunities of Roma youth, with or without a limited residence permit in Germany (Hofmann, 2011). The question: What has been learned – so far? The author answers as followed: A dawn of learning for mutual respect and appreciation can be seen. The question: What has to be learned? The author’s answer: she wishes for a common aim of our learning processes to be a conscious and respectful handling of diversity which allows differences but focuses on common ground as a starting point for social negotiation to shape the society in which we want to live – on regional, national and European grounds.

Diversity is the wealth of Montenegro. It is a comparative advantage that provides an exceptional opportunity for understanding and tolerance. It encourages citizens to dialogue, get to know each other and get closer and not to misunderstand, confront and divide society. Any attempt to explore and consider the position of the minority national and ethnic groups in a given social reality is a very specific problem. The best indicator of democracy and tolerance achieved by the social system in a country is the attitude towards its minorities. It is reflected in the majority population's ability to exist under the conditions of tolerating and respecting minorities and their rights. In that sense, the question of the actual (not only constitutional) position of the minorities is an issue of the majority community just as it is a specific mirror of its achieved level of tolerance, emancipation and culture of living. It is especially interesting to explore those national and ethnic minorities with no ‘mother country’, that is, ‘no one to stand up for them’. The Roma population is one of these. It should be kept in mind that its position, regardless of the state in question, is complex and faces various problems.

In order to significantly improve the overall position of the Roma population in Montenegro, it is necessary to improve the socio-economic status of this group. The best way to do such a thing is through the acquisition of new knowledge and skills, as well as the promotion of Roma's identity and cultural heritage. The poor socio-economic status of Roma in Montenegro is a consequence of their inability to be employed. They are not employed because they are not formally educated or do not have a significant level of institutional education. So it is a vicious circle in which the Roma are spinning unsuccessfully to resolve, at least somewhat decently, their socio-economic position. The educational situation of the Roma population in Montenegro is significantly better at the end of the second decade of the twenty-first century, but still not nearly satisfactory in the way how that members of this population successfully participate in finding and getting a job. Therefore, through mutual communication between Roma and other social actors in Montenegro, it is necessary to raise awareness and strengthen the capacity of Roma about the importance of education and the connection of this segment of society with their employment. This leads to the improvement of the overall position of the Roma population in Montenegrin society, as well as the building of an inclusive and open society, a society of equality and justice and equal opportunities for all residents to access educational institutions at various levels and other legal and social structures.

Roma in Croatia are spatially, economically and politically marginalised. There is a social gap between Roma minority and the majority of population. Prejudice and stereotypes against the Roma community are deeply rooted in the mind of the local community due to their insufficient knowledge of the Roma culture. The women of the Roma ethnicity are doubly marginalised, because of their Roma ethnicity and their gender. Roma women, more than Roma men, lack the basic elements necessary for self-realisation: education, healthcare, cultural and political participation. Roma generally have poor access to healthcare, and most of them do not have medical records. The Roma in Croatia most often speak Boyash (bajaški) or Romani chib. They speak both their mother tongue (Romani) and the language of the country they live in – standard Croatian. Students can study the Romani language and culture in higher education, at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences and the Faculty of Teacher Education at the University of Zagreb. Kali Sara, the Roma Association for the promotion of the education of Roma in the Republic of Croatia, organises courses for Roma children and young people on the Romani language, culture and life in general. As for the educational attainment of Roma, data show that Roma children are still rarely included in the preschool education system. A large number of Roma children do not complete compulsory education. They rarely attend secondary school. Very small number of Roma students graduate at the Faculty level.

In this chapter the authors portray the situation of the Roma population in Portugal as a changing picture. They present a description of the social situation and living conditions of the Roma people of Portugal through the systematisation of the main results obtained from research conducted recently as part of the ‘Strategy for the integration of Roma communities 2013–2020’ and give a detailed analysis of the educational dimension in various levels of education, highlighting a public policy created in 2016, the Operational Program for the Promotion of Education. This programme, inspired by a civil society project and converted into a public policy due to its innovative character, supports Roma students in higher education and is funded by the Office of the High Commissioner for Migration. The authors describe the Roma Communities in Portugal with special regard to their social situation, their culture and language. Then the authors present an analysis about the educational attainment of the Roma in Portugal and the most important policies and support programmes for Roma education, which are considered as the key to the social integration of Roma communities. Finally, they describe some successful programmes: the OPRE, RESCUR and Dreams Teens Programs.

Roma, as a poor group of people differing from the majority, have been mostly at the edge of society, both in people’s minds and spatially excluded. The Roma community in Slovakia is often among those groups that are most at risk of poverty, discrimination and social exclusion. It is necessary for adults to have a job and their children of quality education. But significant part of the Roma suffers from marginalisation in the labour market and is sometimes even completely excluded from the formal labour market. Roma children are lost in the educational system. Level of academic achievement is highly dependent on a child’s socioeconomic background, suggesting that the educational system still fails to provide social equality in education or a fair distribution of educational resources for all according to their needs. Several strategies for various areas of enhancement of status of Roma have been developed. Some of them have remained strategies, and some of them have been implemented and have been included also in the Slovak legislation. The most significant in education are the year 0 in primary schools, the addition of pedagogical assistants, and some projects with a focus on inclusion in education and institutional assistance through community centres.

Taking into account the statistical data from 2004, about 12,300 Roma citizens live in Moldova, which represents 0.4% of the total population. Gypsies call themselves Roma in the Romani language of Europe. Given the challenge created by the lack of reliable and accurate data on the Roma population available from existing Moldovan statistics, the United Nations Development Program in Moldova initiated, in 2005, the first quantitative study covering 600 Roma households and 600 non-Roma households in 81 localities. Conducting surveys on settlements occupied predominantly by the Roma population has allowed the follow-up of results that eventually led to highlighting the aspects of life conditions, health and education system of Roma population.

Speaking about the factors that condition migration, family reasons are mentioned most often. Although official statistics do not provide disaggregated data on life expectancy, infant and maternal mortality for Roma, statistical data show that life expectancy, infant mortality, morbidity and other major health indicators in the Republic of Moldova (as in other countries in the region) are substantial more precarious for the Roma than for the majority of the population. School education is an important aspect in terms of both school attendance and learning outcomes, as the chance of success in life is generally higher with a higher education level. Qualitative education implies not only inclusion in the educational system, but also family participation in socialisation and support for early integration of children.