Despite the challenges in accessing education, Syrian refugee mother of four living on Chios island is hopeful for the future of her four young children.
Rana and her husband Mutayam with their four children aged from 2 years up to 10 years old in the reception center of Chios island. © UNHCR/Socrates Baltagiannis
Today UNHCR published the UNHCR Global Education Report 2021. Despite progress in some areas, the continued rise in the global forcibly displaced population around the world means that almost half of refugee children remain out of school.
Rana and her husband Mutayam arrived on Chios island in early 2020 with their four young children aged from 2 years up to 10 years old. With the onset of the pandemic, they have received little education since then. In Syria, they had no opportunity for formal education due to the conflict.
The COVID-19 pandemic has made access to education difficult, affecting an estimated 1.5 billion learners globally. However, although it has affected all children, refugee children have been hit hardest. Globally, 42 per cent of forcibly displaced people are children.
In Greece, according to data from the Ministry of Education, over 70% of an estimated 20,000 refugee and asylum-seeking children aged 4 to 17 years old were enrolled in schools last year. However, based on a report by the Ombudsman for Children’s Rights, due to multiple challenges including the pandemic, just over 14% of refugee children living in mainland and island camps were actually attending classes by the middle of the last school year.
While huge strides have been made in providing online learning and resources globally, refugee children living in precarious conditions do not necessarily have internet connection, a suitable device, the necessary resources for such things, or a safe and quiet space to learn.
Both Rana and Mutayam are University educated. Rana is a history teacher and Mutayam an Environmental Engineer. They both value education for their children above all else. While they never wished to flee their country, the safety of their children forced them to do so.
Rana and Mutayam’s daughter having fun during a puppet making workshop on Chios island. © UNHCR/Socrates Baltagiannis
Mutayam shows his young daughter a video of him teaching young children in a classroom back home in Syria. © UNHCR/Socrates Baltagiannis
The whole family gather round a mobile phone watching videos of Mutayam teaching in a classroom back in Syria. © UNHCR/Socrates Baltagiannis
Two of Rana and Mutayam’s sons play together in the container where the family of 6 have been living in the Chios RIC since 2020. © UNHCR/Socrates Baltagiannis
Mutayam seen teaching young children in a classroom back home in Syria. Photo courtesy of Mutayam
Rana and Mutayam’s nine year old son participates in a musical performance to welcome “Amal” a Syrian refugee puppet on her journey through Greece. © UNHCR/Socrates Baltagiannis
Rana and Mutayam’s eldest son is 10 years old. He is fascinated by science and learns with the support of his father. © UNHCR/Socrates Baltagiannis
“When I went to the hospital to deliver my youngest son, the hospital was bombed. We were lucky to escape but we realized then that we had to leave. We exhausted all possibilities of remaining in our country, we did not want to abandon our home, we were the last ones to go” says Rana.
Back home in Syria, both were teaching children informally and through NGOs for around 10 years. They started early in the mornings to protect the children from hearing the bombings that began in the afternoons. They also worked in the fields to earn some money for the family.
While the war and the pandemic have massively disrupted their education, Rana is confident that her children have the capacity to learn and to contribute to society in a positive way.
“My children are so smart. The eldest is most interested in science, with his father helping him. The second already speaks Greek and English, he has the ability to absorb languages. From the day my children were born they have faced a war that was not their fault. But they have so much positive energy and the society here will benefit from that” says Rana with enthusiasm.
The whole family looks forward to beginning a new life in Europe, where their children will finally be educated and work towards a brighter future. “Education is life, it is the launching pad of life. Humans grow up and live, and until the moment they die, they should try to grow more and more” she adds.
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