Refugees learning French through interaction not textbooks

Refugee sponsorship organisation Hay Doun along with Vanier College and cégep Montmorency are preparing to offer a different educational experience to Syrian youths.

Rather than focus on grammar and conjugation, which students learn in school, the Programme de soutien aux apprentissages en français Hay Doun aims to establish links between students and Quebeckers to help improve social interaction and integration through weekly French classes with volunteer tutors.

“I believe in the openness of Quebec,” said coordinator, Gabriella Djerrahian. “It’s about having that introduction by an actual person from here. It’s that intimacy of interaction.”

After registration Feb. 20, they expect to have at least 80 students that will be divided into elementary and high school age groups.

The goal, which they are confident to reach before classes begin on March 5, is to have one volunteer tutor per student. Classes will run on Saturdays until mid-June.

Almost immediately a call for volunteer tutors received over 115 responses. “It’s incredible. We haven’t stopped receiving emails,” said Djerrahian. As of now they have 63 registered volunteers, many of whom have a background in education.

To inform pupils of the program, Hay Doun called every family they had sponsored in the last 12 months.

Djerrahian sees it as a socio-cultural program that is beneficial for both students and tutors. “It’s bringing together two groups that may not have met each other . . . and the tutors get a different view of refugees than what they see on the news.”

Training

The program is meant to be fun for both the tutors and the students. “It gives them an opportunity to make it more social, ask questions about Quebec culture and play games,” said Isabelle Anne Beck, who organizes the educational aspects of the program and has over 20 year experience in pedagogical consultation.

“It’s not about teaching, it’s about learning through interaction,” she explained.

The program prepares the volunteers through workshops on student interaction, including sensitivity training. Some kids might have been out of school for several years escaping war in Syria, and could have been through traumatic experiences.

“We need to be sensitive to that plight,” said Djerrahian.

Vanier College and cégep Montmorency have donated five classrooms each. The locations were critical for the program, as the majority of Hay Doun sponsored refugees that will be participating have settled in Saint-Laurent, Cartierville and Laval.

For Vanier’s part, the classrooms were already available and only had to be rearranged so the Hay Doun classrooms would be next to one another.

The program is virtually cost free, apart from a small budget Hay Doun has put aside for material like games, notebooks and pens, which they are still hoping could be donated.

To volunteer or make a donation, contact education.haydoun@gmail.com