ENABLE

Facilitate the integration of migrant and refugee children in schools via social and emotional learning interventions aimed at addressing psychosocial trauma.

Project period: November 2022 – Mars 2025
Coordinator: Pistes Solidaires (France)
Partners of the project: CESIE (Italy), SIRIUS Network (Belgium), CANDIDE International (Belgium), SYMPLEXIS (Greece), MAMAK ILCE MILLI EGITIM MUDURLUGU (Turkey), CDE of Central Greece (Greece)
Website: enable-europe.org

The context:

Millions of people are forced to leave their homes due to wars, conflicts, persecution, poverty, climate change, or in hope of a better life. According to UNICEF, one in eight migrants is a child.

Undoubtedly, migration—especially forced displacement and refugee experiences—is associated with extreme psychosocial trauma given the conditions under which migrants and refugees must leave their countries.

As many studies reveal, these traumatic experiences can have lasting physical, emotional, and cognitive effects, which is especially true for children who suffer some of the most damaging consequences during sensitive periods of brain development (UNESCO, 2019).

In general, migrant and refugee populations are more likely to experience trauma than the general population. And while not all migrant, refugee, and displaced (MRD) children develop post-traumatic stress disorder, those who do suffer significant disruption to their well-being and daily life flow.

Recently, education has played a key role in addressing psychosocial trauma in MRD children. It is recognized as an institution capable of fostering resilience and cultivating learners’ social and emotional development, helping build self-confidence and emotional regulation skills, while teaching children to form trusting relationships with others.

To this end, EU countries facing increased flows of migrant and refugee MRD children should better equip public and private schools with educational tools, methodological practices, and interventions to address the negative psychosocial effects of migration, displacement, and refuge within the school environment.

The objectives:

The ENABLE project aims to develop safe, stimulating, and responsive learning environments that promote a positive climate throughout the school, taking into account the histories and backgrounds of migrant, refugee, and displaced children by offering tailored psychological treatment services within the school setting.

The main objectives of the project are:

– Strengthen the capacity of primary and secondary schools to effectively address cases of psychological trauma by developing mechanisms, protocols, and first-level treatment and response tools.

– Enhance the ability of primary and secondary teachers to support the social-emotional development of migrant, refugee, and displaced (MRD) children within the school environment.

– Raise awareness among educational institutions, stakeholders, and policymakers about the importance of strengthening their policy framework regarding the treatment of psychosocial trauma in MRD children.

The project will develop the following tools:

– A training program for teachers and school principals to improve their knowledge and become trauma-informed educators.

– An online learning course for teachers and school principals focused on activities and practices that can be implemented in the classroom to facilitate the social-emotional development of migrant children.

– A “Building Trauma-Sensitive Schools” toolbox providing useful guidance and resources for adopting the ENABLE trauma-informed teaching approach.

The results:

Coming Soon