Who is a Refugee?
Before you start this module, reflect on this question: What do you know you know about refugees?
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees defines a refugee as “someone who has been forced to flee his or her country because of persecution, war, or violence. A refugee has a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, political opinion or membership in a particular social group. Most likely, they cannot return home or are afraid to do so. War and ethnic, tribal and religious violence are leading causes of refugees fleeing their countries.” Refugees are a sub-group of immigrants. Policies define who has refugee status.
(6 min)
What are some of the plights of the refugees and immigrants?
- Inconsistent and discriminatory treatment
- Obliged to rebuild their lives in the face of xenophobia and racism
- Difficulty of entering the workforce, hence need to depend on humanitarian aid for livelihood
- Children may be out of school due to lack of funding
In this video watch some of challenges faced by refugee children. As you watch the video, think about how the evident themes may influence the preparation of a lesson plan for a classroom with refugee student(s).
(3 min)
"We all jumped into the sea to save our lives"
Links to an external site.
Deeper Dive
If you are interested in knowing more about refugees read and watch the following materials
The Visa Process Links to an external site.
Statistics on Immigrants Links to an external site.
The link below is a resource guide for early childhood education. The first half is for teachers; the second half is for parents. It contains relevant information about some of the barriers faced by English language learners
RESOURCE GUIDE FOR EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATORS AND PARENTS Links to an external site. Links to an external site.