REFUGEE EDUCATION IN GREECE: A CASE STUDY IN PRIMARY SCHOOL

Katsigianni Victoria¹*, Kaila Maria^2
1Postdoctoral candidate, University of the Aegean, Department of Pre-school Education and Educational Design,  GREECE,  victoriakats@hotmail.com
²Prof. University of the Aegean, Department of Pre-school Education and Educational Design, GREECE, Kaila@rhodes.aegean.gr
*Corresponding Author

Abstract

The large number of children amongst refugees who have arrived in Greece since 2014, a wave that peaked in 2015, created the need of educating them as a first step of integration and normalcy to the child life.  Refugee education had already been recognized as a priority in  Europe, so Greece had to react, as soon as possible, to educate the large number of children who arrived in Greek territory with or without their parents. To facilitate their access to Greek schools, the educational programme “Reception Centres for Refugee Education”, known as DYEP, was established in selected by the Ministry of Education Primary and Secondary Schools during the school years 2016-17 and 2018-19. The right to education for refugees and the access to the educational system of the country was supported by the International Organization for Migration and the local government as well.

This research paper aims at focusing on a case study of a Primary school in Piraeus area in Attica, Greece, and the difficulties that emerged from the initial oppositional reaction illustrating how they affected the collaborative potential and the school climate as a whole. Finally, it is presented how this problematic situation was overcome and how the initial reactions changed. Teachers, pupils and parents were summoned to accept a new school reality under time pressure. Special attention is also paid to how teachers became aware of and got involved  in the programme and how the local community were prepared to accept and support such an ambitious plan.

The educational system was hardly prepared for the challenging reality of refugees and their introduction to education and society in general. It seemed that sometimes social resistance prevented the acceptance and solidarity within the school community. In some cases, the  lack of preparatory programmes  caused distrust and denial; as a result, much more time was needed to deal with the difficulties. The multicultural school environments, eventually, comprise a reality with their positive dynamic to open societies.

Keywords: Refugee education, case study, Greek schools