1646 – Issue 3

Second Tree provides educational and integrational activities to refugees and asylum seekers from over 15 countries, including Syria, Afghanistan, The Congo and Iraq. They work in two refugee camps and an urban area in the City of Ioannina, reaching over 2,500 refugees through their three programmes: 1. Language learning – teaching both English and Greek classes to adults 2. Youth education & well-being – through a scout- themed education programme for children and teenagers 3. Integration of refugees into local life – through community building activities. I began teaching English to children aged 8-16. I was surprised by how alien a classroom environment was to these students, many of whom had never had access to formal education, having spent most of their lives living in Refugee camps. Simple things such as holding a pencil, sitting down at a desk and putting hands up to answer a question were completely foreign concepts to them. On top of this, the formal education system in Greece is sporadic and challenging for the children, many seen kids change right in front of my eyes. Seeing a student who used to fight in every lesson working happily in a group of mixed genders and nationalities or seeing a spark ignite in a child seeing videos of mysterious deep-sea creatures for the first time is incredibly special. I was only meant to stay at Second Tree for three months; however, I quickly fell in love with the work and the people and decided to extend my time there. Unfortunately, in March of 2020, Greece went into a national lockdown. With no way of reaching our students, we had to stop our programmes. Spending lockdown in a house was hard enough for many of us but imagine having to spend lockdown in one small room with your family. This was the reality for many of our students, some with families as large as 8! Children were not allowed outside; they weren’t going to school; they had no mental stimulation. Many resorted to playing video games all night and sleeping most of the day. When we started our programmes again in June, we were worried about what we would find. Luckily, we were greeted by excited children who still wanted to learn. of whom don’t speak Greek. Unlike their Greek peers, many of the children in camps don’t attend formal education for the entirety of the school year. Therefore, they see our programmes as their primary source of education. Laila, for example, is a 16-year-old student from Iraq who dreams of becoming a doctor. She was in our youth programme for three years, where she learned the majority of her English. I saw her grow from a shy, unhappy child to a confident, happy and passionate teenager. Laila often credits the programme for teaching her what she knows today and helping her to come a little closer to achieving her dream. The programme isn’t just about learning English though. It’s about providing children with opportunities for development and growth. The trauma that many of our student’s experience presents itself through acts of aggression, ADHD, and the inability to retain information, which often leads to behavioural issues. There were times where I would only teach for 10 minutes in a 50-minute lesson; the rest being taken up with behaviour management. Taking the time to address these behavioural issues had a real, noticeable impact and throughout my time at Second Tree, I’ve It’s the people who have kept me here. I work in a strong community that cares about one another. 18