The first day at school marks a significant milestone for refugee and migrant children and their parents. This piece shares heartfelt stories of how other children have adapted, overcame barriers, and successfully navigated their school experience.
The beginning of September heralds the start of a new school year: getting school uniforms ready, buying new school bags, working out the best route to school, and looking forward to meeting school friends after a long summer break. At the same time, there is often a mix of nerves and excitement among students, parents, and even teachers. It is a time of anticipation of the unknown, new classmates, new teachers and new challenges. And there is also great excitement about learning new subjects and making new friends. On the other hand, nerves can stem from the fear of the unknown—worrying about fitting in, handling the workload, or facing social pressures.
The first day of school is a milestone not just for the child but also for their parents. Mums and Dads throughout the UK are on an emotional rollercoaster—excited to see their children start this great new adventure while dreading what is often the first time both parent and child have experienced separation. In reality, there are likely to be more tears shed by the adults than the children. However, when you are parents who are also refugees or migrants, either newly arrived to the UK or once again been relocated within the UK, your tears can be tinged with a deep fear for how your beloved child will be treated, will adapt to yet another new environment or cope with the trauma of being separated from you, their only connection to home.
If there is one thing that TogetherintheUK can share with you, it is to take a deep breath and let your children embrace this new adventure. We have discovered through the many stories refugees and migrants have kindly shared on our platform that children are more resilient than we give them credit. We received many lived experiences from refugee and migrant children and young adults in our Storytelling competition, sharing their initial struggles adapting to a new school environment and finding their place, making new friends, succeeding academically, helping fellow students, and looking to a future with opportunities.
It is true that starting a new school is often difficult and can cause anxiety. And, when you add the possible complications of a language barrier and adapting to a new school culture, on top of mixed emotions about leaving your home country behind, those first few days and weeks can be highly challenging. In addition, after a summer of racist rioting across the UK, there is an increased fear of being bullied because of your nationality, the colour of your skin, your clothes or religious beliefs. As Sisi Wang wrote in her essay for the TogetherintheUK anthology of migrant writing, Hear Our Stories,
The feeling of being an outsider cannot be understood until it’s felt.
Please Question Your Misconceptions by Sisi Wang, Hear Our Stories
We know that school cultures differ across the globe from discipline to segregation of genders, from formal uniforms to casual clothing, from state schools to private education, and from curriculum to curriculum. UNESCO data reveals that globally, the number of out-of-school children has risen by six million since 2021, and now, it totals a shocking 250 million. Some of the increase can be attributed to the mass exclusion of girls and young women from education in Afghanistan. So, it’s easy to imagine how starting a new school can be intimidating for some refugee students.
You don’t know what to expect when it comes to school. Things are so different. As time has passed, you have felt anxious about making new friends. As you walk into the school reception, you feel the gaze of your soon-to-be classmates.
Changes by Erin Bresler, Hear Our Stories
Unfortunately, starting new schools can be a regular experience for children waiting for their status to be granted, as they can be regularly and randomly relocated throughout the UK.
The whole process of finding me a new school was another hassle. The only school was two bus journeys away meaning the journey was always a long one. But I always had a love for school, so I always looked at the positive of having the privilege of learning.
My Life Story by Chelsey George, Hear Our Stories
Sadly, just as I was getting comfortable at this school, we had to move out of the place we were staying, and this meant changing schools. At that time, I thought changing schools would be nice and nothing new, but I struggled as I began my new primary school. I knew a little English, so it was a bit easier, but I still struggled to make friends and feel comfortable in this new environment.
Just a Little Girl in a Completely Different World by Natalia Tamargo Pumisacho, Hear Our Stories
The language barrier can be the most difficult challenge for your children and their teachers. It can prevent children from learning and getting the most out of their education, and while the academic side is important, socially, being able to communicate with their peers makes it harder to make friends and integrate into the school community, resulting in loneliness and isolation. In the UK, state schools try to provide English as an Addition Language (EAL) support teachers to help with the transition. Unfortunately, while EAL support teachers can help in some areas, their resources are often limited due to budget restraints. There are ways that you, as parents, can help. For mainstream teachers, learning to pronounce names correctly can be the first positive step in making a refugee or migrant student feel comfortable. It might help to write your child’s name phonetically so that teachers can understand how the name should sound rather than how it is spelt. Without this, there is a temptation to pronounce a name using English language conventions, as Karolina Jaks describes it.
Even though I introduced myself with the Czech pronunciation of my name, the way everyone had said my name my whole life, she asked how to pronounce it and only gave two options for the answer: the British versions of the name. That was quite daunting. My life had just turned upside down, and now my name is changing, too.
A Czecked-in Ticket to the U by Karolina Jaks, Hear Our Stories
The good news is that, like many EAL refugee and migrant students, Karolina discovered that certain subjects transcend the language barriers: math, music, and sports. As she said,
6×3 equals 18 in any language.
A Czecked-in Ticket to the U by Karolina Jaks, Hear Our Stories
Children need and deserve an education; whilst a cliché, they are our future. The UK offers a comprehensive education system with many learning choices and opportunities to give our children the best foundation. The good news is that first—and second-level education is free and compulsory, ensuring that your sons and daughters get the same opportunities as other children in the UK to learn and plan a future.
We know from talking with many refugees and migrant families that t the UK’s education system has a strong reputation throughout the world.. Even knowing that parents and their children can still be nervous about the new school year and dread that first day. However, we want to share success stories to inspire and comfort you.
I was able to finish my primary education with great SAT results! I am now in Year 8 at school in Birmingham
My Life Story by Chelsey George, Hear Our Stories
A few months went past, and I had made friends, I had finally settled in quite well and was able to be very comfortable with the language. I had made friends that spoke Spanish, but after a while without noticing I had friends that spoke English and I was able to communicate very good with them.
Just a Little Girl in a Completely Different World by Natalia Tamargo Pumisacho, Hear Our Stories
I am happy with the decision to move to England even though I didn’t seem to have much say in it. I now prefer English to Czech, and my primary love of maths, fuelled by its international aspect, has turned into a passion. I have a conditional offer to study maths at Warwick University, … not to mention all the amazing friends that I have here in England…
A Czecked-in Ticket to the U by Karolina Jaks, Hear Our Stories
TogetherintheUK wishes all children, especially their parents, a happy, exciting first day of school.
Notes
The UK education system is compulsory and free and mandates that all children aged five to 16 must receive full-time education. Typically, this means refugee, asylum seeker, and migrant children have the same entitlement to full-time education as other children in the UK. The TogetherintheUK webpage has detailed information on the UK education system on its Practical Info page, including some very useful links.
To purchase a copy of Hear Our Stories, An Anthology of Migrant Writings, compiled by TogetherintheUK, go to TGIUK
To read more about the lives and impacts of migrants on UK society, go to TogetherintheUK.
