Jan Stewart. Supporting Refugee Children: Strategies for Educators.
Miller, Jennifer
Jan Stewart. Supporting Refugee Children: Strategies for Educators.
Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2011. 348 pp. Annotated
bibliography. References. Index. $34.95 sc.
The United Nations has identified that recent global conflicts have
seen 42 million people displaced. Some have made it as refugees or
asylum seekers to countries like Canada, the US, the UK and Australia,
where the children become part of increasingly diverse school
populations. Jan Stewart's book is a timely volume that provides a
rich introduction and background to the social, psychological and
educational issues played out in many Canadian schools, and, in fact, in
highly diverse classrooms around the world. Her view is that schools are
largely "failing these children and contributing to their
marginalisation in society" (8), a finding that has been echoed in
the US, the UK and Australia. The book is divided into two parts, the
first addressing theory and research, and the second,
"Praxis," which contains plans for lessons to support the
social, emotional and psychological well-being of the students. The
author's background in counselling permeates the work in this
section, and, indeed, the overall approach to the issues around refugee
education.
The book incorporates a somewhat complex integration of
psychosocial theories, including a "bioecological model," a
model of refugee adaptation, and one of "segmented
assimilation" (15-16). Data are drawn from a qualitative study of
13 students in Winnipeg, although insights from the author's work
in Uganda as director of the University of Winnipeg's Global
College Institute for Children Affected by War are also included to
provide a picture of the premigration experience. The Winnipeg students
were from Afghanistan, Sudan, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Rwanda, and
eight of the 13 had lost one or both parents. The children's
stories of violence, suffering and loss are indeed terrible, and it is
understandable that they view school and education as a pathway to
salvation. Stewart's book, however, does not shirk from the real
and confronting challenges they face in Canada, including racism and
discrimination, further violence and school failure.
The challenges identified align well with current research
literature, although little contemporary research on the effects of
disrupted education on learning is cited. The author relies heavily on
the students' individual stories to portray the difficulties they
face. For example, although EAL programs, and acquiring both "basic
communication skills" and "academic language and literacy
skills" are identified as key to the students' success at
school (80), not even Canada's own Jim Cummins is cited as an
essential reference on these issues, and how to address them. There is a
considerable and growing body of literature on refugee background
students and second language learning, literacy, the importance of
academic content language and so on. Stewart focuses on systemic aspects
of the EAL courses available, and students' participation in them,
but does not explore the role of acquiring the dominant language,
English, or how this might best be done. Instead she writes, "there
was so much more beyond just reading and writing that needed to be done
to support these students" (82-83). This is a common view--cultural
issues, all aspects of settlement, emotional adjustment, and social
adaptation are all important for these students. Yet one of the
world's leading researchers on refugees, Jill Rutter, has long
claimed that while a number of agencies help address these needs, what
remains as a huge gap is how to teach literacy to these students, and
how to build viable and measurable educational outcomes.
The author does, however, highlight the critical role of teachers
(good ones) in providing a rock solid base for these students. As
several students said to one teacher, "I would have committed
suicide if I hadn't known that you two would be really mad at
me" (100). The downside is that teachers who work intensively with
refugee background students, in the absence of resources and power to
effect change, are also liable to experience exhaustion and burnout (183-184). Stewart's ecological theory points to the need for
interaction between schools and community organisations, so that
educational systems can better address the needs. Very few countries do
this effectively, and research indicates that adolescent refugee
children and their teachers are more at risk than their peers in
elementary schools.
The second part of the book presents lessons and resources for
supporting students. The lessons focus on creative self-expression,
personal awareness, emotional recovery, resilience, hope and peace.
Although the book's subtitle is "Strategies for
Educators," these tend to be generalised approaches to cultural
diversity, collaboration and school organisation, with EAL programs
forming one small paragraph in 14 pages of recommendations. In fact, it
is arguable that the most pressing need, and most misunderstood, for
these students at school is the successful acquisition of English for
social and academic purposes.
That said, for those who are new to the field of refugee education,
and are seeking a rich, nuanced introduction to the narratives of many
students in contemporary Western classrooms, Supporting Refugee Children
is both useful and easy to read. It will provide valuable insights to
teachers, administrators, counsellors and undergraduate programs in
Canada and elsewhere.
Jennifer Miller
Faculty of Education
Monash University
