How to support Afghan refugee children

The webinar hosted by The Bell Foundation was presented by Katie Barringer, Head of Educational Progression at Refugee Education UK (REUK) and her colleagues, Hamid Khan, Education and Welcome Project Officer, and Ehsan Habibi, Further Education Project Co-ordinator.

REUK is a UK charity that equips young refugees to build positive futures by thriving in education. REUK has built up extensive Afghan-specific experience, including supporting Afghan refugees in the UK, monitoring and analysing outcomes for returned young people in Kabul, and doing research for the UN on the links between education and integration for young Afghan refugees.

Katie began with an overview of the displacement and educational experiences that Afghan children are likely to have had before reaching the UK. Next, she identified the most common wellbeing and educational challenges that Afghan children face in the UK. She outlined strategies that teachers can employ to welcome and support their new learners, and she provided information about additional support and resources that teachers can access.

What are Afghan children likely to have experienced before reaching the UK?

1. Displacement

Recent events in Afghanistan led to a very rapid, unprepared, and traumatic displacement experience for many Afghan families. For some, this displacement has come on top of decades of hardship. Their dramatic uprooting has caused some refugees to experience acute psychosocial and health challenges. Once in the UK, families have been housed in bridging hotels, where many still remain. Resettlement plans are uncertain, so teachers can expect a lot of movement of children between schools as their families are resettled or find alternative accommodation.

2. Education

Research has shown that school attendance and completion rates in Afghanistan are relatively low, particularly for girls, and particularly at secondary level. Schooling in Afghanistan has three key characteristics:

• Afghan schools have single sex classrooms, so children may feel some discomfort in mixed classrooms.
• Afghan schools have a shorter school day, so children might find long days here tiring.
• Afghan schooling has a teacher-centred pedagogy, based on rote learning and memorising, so children may feel unprepared to participate in discussions or to express their ideas and opinions.

These features mean that adjustments to UK schooling are difficult, and to illustrate this, Katie shared a contribution from a young refugee, Salma, who came to the UK in Year 10 and is now at university. Salma urged her audience to give young Afghan refugees time to find their voice, to harness their thoughts, and to develop their many talents. Salma’s success in education highlights the potential that refugee children have for high attainment.

What are the common challenges Afghan refugee children experience in UK schooling?

Katie identified two types of challenges – academic and wellbeing – and stressed that these overlap and interact with each other.

1. Wellbeing challenges

Four key experiences help to explain the behaviours that Afghan refugee children might exhibit:

• Trauma and distress from the past, for some going back many years;
• Trauma of the present: the destabilising effects of being in a new country and living in a hotel indefinitely with no sense of a settled future;
• Grief for what they have lost and anxiety over those they have left behind;
• Isolation and loneliness as they struggle to adapt to a new country and culture.

Teachers are likely to see the following behaviours at school:

• The fight-or-flight response occurs when previous trauma and related triggers cause reactions that flood the body with adrenaline and shut off the thinking part of the brain, inhibiting the ability to learn. The fight reaction can cause children to lash out at others or to internalise their feelings and report that they feel pain.
• The flight mechanism can lead to children becoming withdrawn and disconnected from what is going on around them.
• Children can also struggle to concentrate and be distracted easily.
• Children will struggle to sleep and be tired, or fall asleep at school, or come to school late.
• Children may exhibit visible distress at school.

2. Academic challenges

Katie identified the following challenges that will be visible in the classroom:

• Most obvious will be the language barriers and the lack of resources for English as an Additional Language (EAL) support.
• Children will be adjusting to a new curriculum and different teaching and learning styles.
• Some children will have special education needs and these may be difficult to diagnose and address.

There are challenges outside of the classroom that impact on academic success:

• Home environments: Hotel accommodation (but also more permanent homes) may have limited or no internet and computer access, and limited space for completing homework.
• Lack of parental support and engagement: Parents may not be able to support their children’s learning because of language barriers or stress, for
• Poverty: Limited financial resources may impact on nutrition, and the ability to buy uniforms and pay for extracurricular activities.

Despite these challenges, Katie stressed that she and her colleagues see resilience, determination, and a sense of hope as they work with young Afghan refugees.