Social Sustainable Education in a Refugee Camp

Abstract

The main objective of this article is to discuss how an Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) institution in a refugee camp can promote social sustainable education. By giving empirical examples of innovative pedagogical ideas and practices inside a Greek ECEC institution, this article argues that concepts of formation are ways to promote social sustainable education. The article draws on data from an ECEC institution in which both the children living in a refugee camp and Greek children are located together. With nature as a neutral cultural mediator, serving as a pedagogical framework, children can make new experiences based on participation, equality and mutual respect. Data were produced through field observations, semi-structured interviews and one group interview from March 2019 until September 2019. The empirical data reveal three dimensions that we suggest work as markers for social sustainable pedagogical practice: the importance of nature and play as a facilitator for children’s activities; the importance of participation and equality; and the importance of commitment to the community. The findings are discussed in relation with theoretical concepts of formation, with a particular focus on children as active agents and the value of experiences, and the importance of highly qualified educators.

Contributions to Sustainability through Young Children’s Nature Play: A Systematic Review

“…Affinity toward nature/biophilia [32,79] Connection to nature [53,60,[69][70][71] Connection to other living things [64] Sense of intimacy and at home-ness in nature [60,65] Sense of belonging in/attachment to place [64] Environmental identity [63,64] Awareness of and sensitivities to natural/environmental surroundings [64,70] Appreciation and respect for nature [51,52,59] Environmental dispositions and values; valuing of life within nature [32,65] Environmental Literacy Development:…”

“…Respectful interactions with nature [69] Stewardship of/caring for plants, wildlife, living creatures, and/or nature; compassionate care for nature [59,60,63,65,66,70] Sharing environmental knowledge with others [71] Modeling/monitoring for pro-environmental behavior with peers and family (such as making sure family recycles, teaching other children about how to treat animals) [51] Citizenship, civic skills [65] Approaches to Learning Creativity, creative thinking, imagination [54,59,74,78] Curiosity [2] Languaged and non-languaged exploratory behavior [70,72] Exploratory skills [60,63,65,72] Focus, attention [54,55,74] Persistence, perseverance, determination [32,55,60,67] Processing and using information [59,60] Engagement [67,68,71] Motivation [55,59,67] Feelings of competence [55,76] Positive attitudes toward learning [55] Risk analysis [59] Cognitive: General…”

“…Early literacy skills [51,58,69,71] Increase in diversity and specificity of parent-child talk about plants and nature; use of plant-related terminology [56] Language development, vocabulary development, word acquisition [59,72] Verbal expression of thoughts, ideas, and feelings [59,60] Communication skills [59,65,69] Writing skills [71] Cognitive: Math…”

“…Social-emotional skills, social development [58,69,77] Prosocial behavior; decreased antisocial or challenging behaviors [32,52,54,76] Goal-directed cooperation or collaboration [51,60,76] Helping behavior-directed cooperation or collaboration [54] Negotiation [76] Positive peer play interactions; decreased play disruptions; decreased play disconnections [32,55,58] Sense of community/belonging; feelings of "at home" in the world; feelings of inclusion and equality across genders and cultures [60,65,76] Empathy; sense of compassion, concern, or responsibility for others [52,59,60] New perspectives [77] Table A3. Cont.…”

Syrian Refugees’ Integration Policies in Jordanian Labor Market

“…The length of the waiting period until the refugee's asylum application is processed also has an important role in their mental health. The lengthy asylum procedures may worsen the mental health problems and sufficient mental health care in this period is required [27,28,32,33]. This means that keeping the refugees waiting or warehousing them in camps will subsequently lead to more mental health problems.…”