In Kirikhan, Hatay, I have been meeting with groups of Turkish and Syrian children, youth, and adults to discuss their educational needs. The goals of these groups are to better understand:
1. The ways in which Syrians in Kirikhan are learning
2. What people like and dislike about the ways they learn and their children learn
3. Barriers to education participation in the community and ways to overcome these barriers
4. Educational activities and facilities Turkish and Syrian people want
5. Women and girls’ unique education challenges and needs
To hear the perspectives of different groups of people, they are divided by gender, age, and nationality. The more homogenous the groups, the more likely they are to feel comfortable expressing their true opinions.
One group of Syrian girls drew the colored drawings included with this post.[1] The girls ranged from 8 to 12 years old. They completed these drawings when we first came together to talk. I gave them crayons and paper to draw whatever they wanted. Their faces lit up. One particularly vocal and jolly girl, seemingly overwhelmed with the number of ideas she had for drawings, exclaimed, “I have so many paintings!” At the end of our discussion, they selected a drawing to share with the group.
As you will notice, all of the drawings are nature scenes. “My mother teaches me that nature is the most wonderful, thing. So I drew this, “ explained one girl.
Several girls said they would like to have more opportunities to visit natural places, play outside, and have picnics.
I also found it interesting that several of the drawings were similar—a natural scene with mountains, a river, and trees, and butterfly drawings. They would see each other drawing particular things, then start on a similar composition of their own, with their own twist.
The conversations I have had have been incredibly helpful, interesting, energetic, and at times, heartbreaking. I am continuing to reflect on and analyze what we discussed. In the meantime, I am looking forward to having more and more of these conversations.
[1] I have removed their names from the drawings.
1. The ways in which Syrians in Kirikhan are learning
2. What people like and dislike about the ways they learn and their children learn
3. Barriers to education participation in the community and ways to overcome these barriers
4. Educational activities and facilities Turkish and Syrian people want
5. Women and girls’ unique education challenges and needs
To hear the perspectives of different groups of people, they are divided by gender, age, and nationality. The more homogenous the groups, the more likely they are to feel comfortable expressing their true opinions.
One group of Syrian girls drew the colored drawings included with this post.[1] The girls ranged from 8 to 12 years old. They completed these drawings when we first came together to talk. I gave them crayons and paper to draw whatever they wanted. Their faces lit up. One particularly vocal and jolly girl, seemingly overwhelmed with the number of ideas she had for drawings, exclaimed, “I have so many paintings!” At the end of our discussion, they selected a drawing to share with the group.
As you will notice, all of the drawings are nature scenes. “My mother teaches me that nature is the most wonderful, thing. So I drew this, “ explained one girl.
Several girls said they would like to have more opportunities to visit natural places, play outside, and have picnics.
I also found it interesting that several of the drawings were similar—a natural scene with mountains, a river, and trees, and butterfly drawings. They would see each other drawing particular things, then start on a similar composition of their own, with their own twist.
The conversations I have had have been incredibly helpful, interesting, energetic, and at times, heartbreaking. I am continuing to reflect on and analyze what we discussed. In the meantime, I am looking forward to having more and more of these conversations.
[1] I have removed their names from the drawings.