Classroom teachers, EAL/D Teachers, School Executives, Administrators, School Learning Support Officers, Community Liaison Officers and School Counsellors all play a critical role in helping create the welcoming, inclusive and safe environment that fosters the wellbeing and resettlement of students with refugee experiences.
Educators are well-placed to build relationships with students that are built on trust, respect and a belief in the inherent potential of each student. As the psychiatrist Judith Herman points out, these kinds of relationships provide the context in which healing from trauma occurs. They allow the student to rebuild “the basic capacities for trust, autonomy, initiative, competence, identity, and intimacy. Just as these capabilities are originally formed, they must be re‐formed in relationships with other people” (Herman, 1998).
School Counsellors play a central role in identifying students with refugee experiences, assessing their support needs, coordinating the support services at school and, perhaps most importantly, they work hard to build rapport with students and create a welcoming space where students can seek support at challenging times.
At Hints for Healing, we endeavor to support educators and school counsellors by presenting research, stories, interviews and case studies that showcase the many ways in which schools can enhance the wellbeing, education and resettlement of children and young people recovering from refugee trauma.
Image source: STARTTS
In addition to the resources you find here at Hints for Healing, there are several other ways that STARTTS supports Educators and School Counsellors in their work with students with refugee experiences:
- A suite of Professional Learning modules and tailored training sessions, free of charge for schools. Flexible approaches to delivery, including face to face and virtual presentations, interactive workshops and guest speakers
- Specialist consultation services to school staff working with students with refugee experience
- Supporting schools to adopt a whole-school approach to promoting the wellbeing of students with refugee experiences
- Specialist resources for schools, teachers and counsellors (e.g. Settling In and Jungle Tracks)
- Collegial networks of educators and school counsellors focused on supporting the wellbeing and education of students with refugee experiences
- Partnerships with schools on school-led initiatives
Reference
Herman, J. L. (1998). Recovery from psychological trauma. Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, 52(S1), S98-S103.
Articles
Podcasts
Whole of School Approaches
At STARTTS we recognise the pivotal role in which the whole school community plays in a students’ recovery from refugee trauma. Schools can facilitate healing and resettlement through their role in developing skills and knowledge, and by providing a safe and stimulating environment in which students can explore justice, identity, human rights, meaning and hopes for the future. This, coupled with their links to parents and carers, along with the broader community, can help foster connections and a sense of belonging.
One way of cultivating such an inclusive and nurturing school environment is through a whole-school approach to supporting students with refugee experiences. The STARTTS School Liaison Team can assist schools over several years as they plan and implement initiatives that support the wellbeing and healing of students and their families.
STARTTS School Liaison Officers can assist schools as they work through the Schools In for Refugees Audit (created by Foundation House, our sister organisation in Victoria) or, for NSW Department of Education Schools, the Refugee Readiness Survey. These audits can help schools prioritise and plan as they systematically embed supportive policies and practices in all elements of school life, including teaching and learning, family engagement, transitions, the school environment and partnerships with external agencies
Professional Learning Videos
On 10 March 2021, School Liaison Officer Nicole Loehr delivered a webinar for PETAA (Primary English Teacher Association Australia), which PETAA have generously made available to the public. In this webinar, Nicole provides a summary of STARTTS services to NSW school communities and offers some introductory tips for teachers on supporting the recovery of students with refugee experience in the classroom.
