REFUGEE WEEK 2018 Celebrating 20 Years! Different Pasts, Shared Future Introductory Workshop: Welcome to Refugee Week 2018 10 th May 2018, The Commonweal School Cristina Bennett Volunteer Schools of Sanctuary Lead
Objectives: to understand a little more about the context and experiences of asylum seekers and refugees generally and some detail about asylum seekers and refugees in Swindon; to consider our responsibility as teachers (and global citizens) to enable all those we work with to understand the context and experiences - especially of those in our own community to explore ways we can use existing resources to broaden and enrich our understanding and that of our colleagues and learners to consider actions which will have impact in our schools Different pasts, shared future
Part 1: eating cake and drinking tea / coffee introducing the context and establishing what schools are already doing (and have been doing) - there are some things that teachers will be sharing focusing on what's happening in RW and what more might be possible in schools during that week and beyond Part 2: browsing resources and ideas; choosing resources for sharing with colleagues and for using in own classrooms thinking about what happens next: make some 'pledges' to ourselves Different pasts, shared future
Introductions, why are we here and where are we now? Where s your understanding about asylum seekers and refugees? 1-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------à 10 How confident are you to share your understanding with your colleagues? 1-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------à 10 How confident are you to share your understanding with your learners? 1-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------à 10 (1 = least confident; 10 = most confident)
asylum seeker
refugee
Definitions and myth-busting Various definitions activities but need to go further and understand what it actually means to live in the UK as an asylum seeker and as a refugee https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=me1r1ipd59c (a good one to use in secondary schools) What is City of Sanctuary, what is The Harbour Project and what is Refugee Week? Where do we fit into the picture? What can we do in our schools? resources and activities to use in school share ways we can be use them with our classes explore suggestions for what happens after Refugee Week is over
Match the term with the definition: term asylum seeker refugee illegal immigrant economic migrant European migrant definition someone who moves to another country to find work someone who is allowed to stay in another country because they have proved they would be persecuted at home someone who can work in another country in the European Economic Area someone who is in another country without legal permission someone who has fled their homeland and needs sanctuary
Match the term with the definition: the answers term asylum seeker refugee illegal immigrant economic migrant European migrant definition someone who has fled their homeland and needs sanctuary someone who is allowed to stay in another country because they have proved they would be persecuted at home someone who is in another country without legal permission someone who moves to another country to find work someone who can work in another country in the European Economic Area
Quiz time 1. The UK has more asylum seekers than most countries. T / F 2. How many refugees are there in the UK? a) 30,590 b) 118,995 c) 1.5million 3. Everybody has the right to seek asylum in another country. T / F 4. Asylum seekers have the right to work as soon as they arrive in the UK. T / F 5. When an asylum seeker is granted Leave to Remain they have just 28 days to find somewhere to live and a source of income. T / F
Quiz time the answers (use Myth-busting some essential reading resource sheet to help with responses) 1. The UK has more asylum seekers than most countries. T / F 2. How many refugees are there in the UK? a) 30,590 b)118,995 c) 1.5million 3. Everybody has the right to seek asylum in another country. T / F 4. Asylum seekers have the right to work as soon as they arrive in the UK. T / F 5. When an asylum seeker is granted Leave to Remain they have just 28 days to find somewhere to live and a source of income. T / F
Understanding what it actually means to live in the UK as an asylum seeker and as a refugee https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=me1r1ipd59c (a good one to use in secondary schools) Widden Primary School video http://www.unhcr.org/uk/news/stories/2018/1/5a54af934/uk-sanctuary-network-offersvital-backstop-for-refugees-asylum-seekers.html City of Sanctuary video http://swindon.cityofsanctuary.org/schools-of-sanctuary/resources-schoolsof-sanctuary-award
The Harbour Project is a registered charity that has been serving asylum seekers and refugees in Swindon since the Kosovan crisis of 2000. It aims to: provide relief for asylum seekers and refugees and their dependants who are in conditions of hardship or distress preserve and protect the physical and mental health of asylum seekers and refugees provide facilities for asylum seekers and refugees for education, recreation and other leisure time occupations with the object of improving their condition of life and assisting their inclusion into the wider community, particularly but not exclusively by provision of a drop-in centre.
City of Sanctuary is a movement committed to building a culture of hospitality and welcome, especially for refugees seeking sanctuary from war and persecution. Our network of local groups includes boroughs, towns and cities across the UK and Ireland, all committed to building this culture of welcome across every sphere of society. Wherever refugees go, we want them to feel safe and find people who will welcome them.
Life is often desperately hard for asylum seekers and refugees living in exile in the UK. Lots of organisations and individuals in Swindon are working to support those who come to our town for their safety. The Swindon City of Sanctuary movement brings them together and provides a simple platform so that others can join in.
People seeking sanctuary have lost their homes and families yet bring all kinds of skills, arts, food and culture, that enrich our town, which we believe should be celebrated.
What can we do in our schools and classrooms during Refugee Week to celebrate the diversity which asylum seekers and refugees in our community have brought with them?
There are many ways for your school to participate in Refugee Week... Perhaps some of your classes, or the whole school, could: create pieces of art or drama exploring this year s theme; use a global food focus for this year s theme perhaps a global 20 th Birthday Party? read a book written by an asylum seeker or refugee; read a book about the experience of seeking refuge; write a poem focused around this year s theme; compose and record a song / piece of music to celebrate this year s theme; organise a fundraising activity in which the money raised goes to organisations supporting asylum seekers and refugees in Swindon, e.g. The Harbour Project http://harbourproject.org.uk/ or Swindon City of Sanctuary http://swindon.cityofsanctuary.org/; (refer to Refugee Week 2017 Teaching Ideas) create and develop your own idea perhaps around one of 20 Simple Acts specially compiled to celebrate Refugee Week 2018 www.simpleacts.org.uk
REFUGEE WEEK 2018 http://swindon.cityofsanctuary.org/schools-of-sanctuary Celebrating 20 Years! Different Pasts, Shared Future http://refugeeweek.org.uk/simple-acts/ http://swindon.cityofsanctuary.org/ https://youtu.be/xlhiv0pkfno http://refugeeweek.org.uk/refugee-week-2018-celebrating-20-years/
Let s explore: http://refugeeweek.org.uk/simple-acts/
Try something a bit more challenging with KS4 / KS5 https://www.redcross.org.uk/get-involved/teaching-resources/refugees-and-migration?q=refugee+journeys&category= For Refugee Week 2016, leading artists teamed up with the British Red Cross to create a new album based on the real-life stories of refugees and asylum seekers. To create The Long Road album, artists paired up with people who had been forced to flee their home and seek safety in the UK. You can pick and choose from transcripts of three songs featured on The Long Road album to help young people engage with refugee stories. A set of critical questions open up a space for conversation, discussion and debate and help build young peoples understanding of the humanitarian impact of the current refugee crisis. https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-long-road-british-red-cross-mw0002918191
Review and evaluation 3 Simple Acts you could develop in your school 2 myths that you think are most important to bust 1 pledge to keep Refugee Week as more than just a week in your school
Introductions, why are we here and where are we now? Where s your understanding about asylum seekers and refugees? 1-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------à 10 How confident are you to share your understanding with your colleagues? 1-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------à 10 How confident are you to share your understanding with your learners? 1-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------à 10 (1 = least confident; 10 = most confident)