REFUGEE CHILDREN IN CRISIS:

This study aimed to identify the kinds of challenge encountered by Syrian refugee children who are living in Jordan but not in refugee camps. A sample of 120 Syrian refugee children residing in Amman provided the data for this study, which is based on a descriptive approach. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) was used to analyze the data. We found that the main economic challenges faced by these children were low wages, labor exploitation, difficulties with paying back debts for their families, ongoing poverty, and the high cost of living in Jordan. Educational challenges were also largely economic and were mainly due to the high cost of education and the priority of work over school attendance. Health challenges too were economic and centered on the high cost of health care and the obstacles to obtaining medical insurance. Social challenges included lack of interpersonal bonds, an inability to form new friendships, and the absence of entertainment. This study suggests that providing financial support for Syrian refugee families consistent with the increasing cost of living in the hosting country would result in better lives for the Syrian children, as would creating job opportunities for heads of families in line with memoranda of agreement that Jordan has with international organizations. Further, public education for Syrian refugee children should be made free of charge, particularly in the elementary stages.

Download Full-text

Syrian Refugee Families with Young Children: An Examination of Strengths and Challenges During Early Resettlement

Journal of Contemporary Issues in Education ◽

10.20355/jcie29356 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 14 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Sophie Yohani ◽

Larissa Brosinsky ◽

Anna Kirova

Keyword(s):

Young Children ◽

Critical Incident ◽

Service Providers ◽

Child Outcomes ◽

Psychosocial Adaptation ◽

Refugee Children ◽

Research Approach ◽

Structured Interviews ◽

Syrian Refugee ◽

Refugee Families

With the arrival of a large number of Syrian families to Canada, educators and other service providers are reflecting on best practices to support the psychosocial adaption of refugees from conflict settings. This article draws on a study that examined the psychosocial adaptation of Syrian refugee families with young children in Western Canada, and uses the RAISED Between Cultures framework to discuss their strengths and identified barriers during early resettlement. Using a community-based participatory research approach and critical incident method, the study involved focus groups and semi-structured interviews with ten Arabic-speaking cultural brokers who were working with Syrian refugee families using holistic supports during early resettlement. Data were analyzed thematically both across and within 10 cases, then examined in light of six factors that contribute to refugee children’s outcomes as identified in the RAISED Between Cultures framework. As key figures in refugee children and families’ adaptation to their host country, educators can draw on these findings to identify families’ and children’s’ strengths and challenges during early resettlement to ensure positive child outcomes.

Download Full-text

Bridging Cultures

Handbook of Research on Assessment Practices and Pedagogical Models for Immigrant Students - Advances in Educational Technologies and Instructional Design ◽

10.4018/978-1-5225-9348-5.ch012 ◽

2019 ◽

pp. 235-248

Author(s):

Einas Albadawi Tarboush

Keyword(s):

Public Schools ◽

The United States ◽

The Body ◽

Refugee Children ◽

Foreign National ◽

Syrian Refugee ◽

Refugee Families ◽

Body Of Knowledge ◽

Depth Analysis ◽

American Schools

This literature review focuses on exploring the existing body of research that examined the schooling experiences of Syrian refugee children living in the United States. It also attempts to identify the gap previous studies did not bridge to enrich the body of knowledge. Hundreds of thousands of Syrian children and families have had to negotiate the perils of displacement. As could be expected, the education of these Syrian refugee children has been held at a crossroads as families attempt to find both security and a renewed sense of prosperity abroad. The researcher's hope is that a more in-depth analysis of the lived dynamics of Syrian refugee children in American schools will reveal something more significant in regards to how schools and their educators can expect to find success with their foreign-national student populations, as well as providing refugee families with useful tools in navigating the complexities of American public schools.

Download Full-text

Syrian Refugees’ Children Instructional Challenges and Solutions in Jordan: Teachers’ and Parents’ Perspectives

BORDER CROSSING ◽

10.33182/bc.v8i2.448 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 8 (2) ◽

pp. 311-331 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Ahmad Alkhawaldeh

Keyword(s):

Negative Attitude ◽

Refugee Children ◽

Syrian Refugees ◽

Refugee Students ◽

Syrian Refugee ◽

Educational Challenges ◽

Violent Behaviors ◽

School Learning ◽

Teachers And Parents ◽

Instructional Challenges

As a neighboring country to Syria, Jordan received a large influx of Syrian refugees whose children’s education has been a huge challenge to the Jordaninan educational system. The present qualitative study investigates the educational challenges Syrian refugee children faced with possible solutions to overcome them. Therefore, a conveniently selected sample of twenty four participants (twelve Syrian refugee teachers and twelve Syrian refugee parents) filled out an open questionnaire on Syrian refugee students’ instructional challenges, the reasons for such challenges and the solutions to surmount them. The major challenges, according to Syrian refugees’ teachers, revolved around lack of achievement among refugee children, lack of devotion to school learning responsibilities, insufficient refugee teacher training, refugee children’s behavioral difficulties and overcrowded classrooms. According to Syrian refugee parents, most of these challenges encompassed deterioration in instructional achievement, lack of school assignments, carelessness to achieve well in Match and English, lack of high qualifications among refugee parents, difference in interest in French in Syria and English in Jordan, violent behaviors among refugee children because of the war situation and absence of one of their parents. Other challenges included vague attitudes towards learning, lack of concentration in exams, quick irritation, stubbornness, negative attitude toward schooling, mis-behaviors by classmates and difference between school and home instruction. Most of the reasons for such challenges belonged to the war condition and the psychological traumas and social circumstances of refugee children. Recommended proposals embodied strengthening school/parents communication, training refugee teachers and tackling refugee children’s psychological problems.

Download Full-text

Parenting in migration: Critical aspects and challenges of “doing family” of refugee families and social workers

Journal of Social Work ◽

10.1177/14680173211014681 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 146801732110146

Author(s):

Nadia Rania ◽

Laura Pinna ◽

Ilaria Coppola

Keyword(s):

Social Workers ◽

Social Services ◽

Host Community ◽

Cultural Barriers ◽

Family Identity ◽

Helping Relationship ◽

Refugee Families ◽

Job Opportunities ◽

Migrant Families ◽

Italian Context

Summary Although migrant families comprise a small number of immigrants, they present a significant challenge for the host community. In the Italian context, social services support migrant families through paths to autonomy and integration in the community. The purpose of this study was to investigate perceptions that families and social workers have of “parenting” and “doing family” (training and management of family identity, roles and daily practices) in the complexity of migration. The study involved 15 immigrant parental couples, using family interview techniques and 12 social workers in 3 mini-focus groups. The collected materials were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using grounded theory. Findings The main results are identified and discussed as strengths, critical points and challenges. Some of the themes such as “willingness to work” or “lack of job opportunities” are common to both family members and social workers. Other themes are relevant to one group only. Among these, “availability and support of social workers” only emerged among families, whereas “education and respecting the rules” only emerged among social workers. Applications The results indicate that it is necessary for social workers to engage in a meaningful helping relationship with families, build networks of inclusion services, and also with the support of mediators overcome linguistic and cultural barriers. Social workers should involve families throughout he integration process. Furthermore, social services must also consider how families experience the difficulty of relating to social workers, which represents an obstacle to support for social integration.

Download Full-text

Through Her Eyes: The Impact of War on Syrian Refugee Families

Journal of Transcultural Nursing ◽

10.1177/10436596211026367 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 104365962110263

Author(s):

Ahlam Al-Natour ◽

Edith J. Morris ◽

Samar Mohammad Al-Ostaz

Keyword(s):

Social Stress ◽

Phenomenological Study ◽

Semistructured Interview ◽

Transcultural Nursing ◽

Cultural Perspective ◽

Refugee Women ◽

Syrian Refugee ◽

Refugee Families ◽

Specific Care ◽

The Impact

Background The Syrian war conflict ended with devastating impact on Syrian refugee women and their children. A few studies have been done that explored the impact of the civil war and displacement of Syrian families from a cultural perspective. The purpose of this study was to highlight the experiences of the Syrian war–refugee families who have sought shelter in a host country. Method A descriptive phenomenological study was conducted using a semistructured interview approach among 16 Syrian refugee women who were approached from two Jordanian health care centers. Results The main themes discussed how the war ended with financial and social stress, family violence, and hazardous effects on women and children health. Conclusion This article introduced how culture and religion influence how family unit and members responded to war stressors. This study provided transcultural nursing knowledge, allowing nurses to be grounded in individualized culturally specific care.

Download Full-text