Refugee Students Adjust to Life in Ithaca

--Maura Gladys
(In Depth Education Story)

Karla* is a typical second grader. She likes to draw, play on the playground, and have fun with her friends. But unlike most second graders, Karla is adjusting to living in a new country with a new language and unfamiliar customs. That’s because she’s one of l8 students at Belle Sherman elementary school that are Karen refugees.

Karen refugees are natives of Myanmar that have been living in refugee camps along Myanmar’s border with Thailand. To learn more about their lives in a refugee camp, check out this article from CNN and this video from the Washington Post.

Most of the Burmese that live in Ithaca are part of an extended family that has been here for almost two years.

At Belle Sherman, the refugees qualify for ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) instruction and because they are refugees, the school deemed them “Students with Interrupted Formal Education” and said that they needed more help than the typical ESOL student.

“Most ESL kids that we get are very academic and have been exposed to the best education. [The refugees] have been in refugee camps, where their school is just a teacher and a few kids with a blackboard. It has required a lot of different teaching because there isn’t a base of experiential knowledge to teach from, so you have to create the experiences,” Peggy Robinson, the bilingual family liaison at Belle Sherman, said.

Kip Wilson, an ESL teacher at Belle Sherman agrees. “There are a lot of adjustments these kids have to make. They’re coming from schools that weren’t very structured. There weren’t a lot of materials, they didn’t meet everyday for six hours a week.”

Like most refugees, Karla is progressing slowly but surely.

“Karla is a very serious and hard working student. She reads quite fluently and has good comprehension. She’s eager to participate in whole group instruction,” Nancy Thompson, Karla’s teacher said.

*Names were changed to protect the source's safety

To meet Karla and hear a group of Karen children sing in their native language, check out this video.