My first visit to a refugee camp was a huge shock for me. On social media and the news you already see how bad their living condition is. When you think you are prepared to see their condition you are not. I started to see everything from very near with my own eyes, you can feel their pain even more. Children on bare feet when it is at least 45 degrees, people with disabilities who cannot leave their tents, overcrowded tents, poor sanitation and hygiene conditions. For a human rights student this is the place to get a heart attack.
Once a week a colleague and I walked to the other side of the camp where not a lot of people go because it is too warm to walk that far. We were visiting every tent to introduce our organization and to let them know that we were here to help them and that they were not alone. Every time when visiting these people I came back with a heart broken into a thousand pieces. The first week I felt depressed, sad and worthless. I did not know what to do, where to start and what I wanted to achieve. I already was part of working groups and was working on policy recommendations, however I wanted to do more. I learned that you cannot help everyone, however do whatever you can in your power to help at least a few people. I decided to concentrate on the children, because seeing them in such a situation was hurting me the most. Thus I decided to start English classes.
When I started working at a NGO I did not plan to give English classes nor to work with children that much, however when you are in a country where there are problems everywhere but a shortage of people who can help, you do not think you just do. This was something that just happen, you did not think or plan it you just do it, because it is a necessity.
When I saw children, playing with rocks and dirt, or sitting in their tents the whole day. Nothing to play with nor to write on. I came with the idea to teach them English which is not only educational and good for their communication skills and future but also a fun thing to do and helps getting the kids' mind off their current situation. In a refugee camp education is really their only hope.
It is important that refugee children receive schooling because it creates a sense of hope and security, which most of the time is lacking in refugee settings. After they have faced times of conflict and loss, educational activities play a very important role in their lives. Education does not only teach them to communicate with others and helps to create the human social capital needed for development but also provides physical and psychosocial protection for the children.
The first class was an introductory class for every child to get to know each other and where they come from. We started with a class of eight children. I used two songs and videos for the first few classes to teach the children numbers and the alphabet. In the beginning they were all very shy and did not sing along with the songs, however when they saw the stickers of golden stars which they would get if I would hear them sing loudly, they all started singing. Eighty percent of the children memorized the numbers right away. Everyone who was near our cabin came to check what was going on. These kids made everyone happy, by just being children and doing what they should be doing. Everyone got their homework and left class. The first class was a success.
We started with eight children and after the first few classes it grew even up to thirty children. They all received English books and writing equipment. They were now getting their mind of their current situation and were more busy with their homework, trying to be the best pupil in class and making friends.
When summer was ending we got the great news that a school was opening inside the refugee camp. There would be two shifts, in the morning for the younger children and in the afternoon for the teenagers. The great news was indeed that a school was opening which meant that I did not have to worry anymore about the education of the children and I could focus on other projects, however stopping the English classes was very hard for me especially because we got a very good bond with the children and I hoped that it was not going to break.
The children liked the news of the opening of the school however not that our classes would come to an end, however we found a good way to make it up to them by organizing a day outside the camp for. Which I will write about in my next blog.
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