APR 20, 2020
By Lauren Husband, Communications Team
Throughout the month of April, we’re focusing on refugee employment and economic advancement.
And we can’t talk about economic advancement without acknowledging the essential role that educators play in improving economic and employment prospects for young refugees and their families.
So, we thought we’d talk to Kate Barnes, a math and science teacher at Owl Creek School and her former student Shomari Rimbo to see how distance learning is affecting young immigrants and their teachers.
The first 10 years of his life were spent in a Tanzanian refugee camp where the school he attended was 1 room for all ages, and all content was taught in Swahili.
Shomari’s first day of school at Owl Creek was terrifying. After years of attending school with his siblings, he now had to attend a different school than his older brother, Jack, for the first time. His biggest support was gone, he had only been in the U.S. for a few days, and he didn’t know the language. It was a lot to take in. Kate, who teaches 5th grade, remembers Shomari’s disorienting arrival to Owl Creek:
But out of all of the years I’ve been teaching, he has one of the strongest work ethics I’ve seen. He was always so eager to learn and so grateful for any kind of education. He always had such a positive attitude and was so polite, saying ‘good morning’ to everyone before school, even after he wasn’t my student anymore— he’d still come tell me ‘good morning.’
The thing I remember most about Shomari is his smile. It’s just so cheerful and bright!”
Shomari has been in Fayetteville for 3 years now and has found his stride at school, improving his English and making friends. But just as suddenly as he was dropped into the American school system, everything changed and he was taken out. The Covid-19 pandemic has proven challenging to students and teachers alike, but for immigrants, those who have lost jobs, low-income families, and large families, it can be a bit harder to transition to this new normal. Distance learning poses a number of challenges.
For Shomari, access to a computer was a problem at first. Although teachers send home work packets every week for students, students are still encouraged to use the internet to video chat with teachers and access online learning resources. With 4 siblings in school at once, Shomari and his family had to create a computer sharing schedule until schools distributed rental computers to students without equitable access. Now Shomari is able to focus on his classes and improving his English, which he’s already improved exponentially since arriving three years ago.
Kate agrees that local schools have worked hard to make resources available to families. Maintaining an element of consistency has been essential to making the new system work for students— Kate makes sure to be available to students at the same time everyday. And although many of her ESL students are still struggling with English and adapting to the new system, they’ve been doing well in math— and that’s something she’s proud of— they are comprehending staying on top of their work.
“But aside from the things we can’t change due to the situation, I’ve been so impressed with how much the community has come together during this time. We’ve created long-lasting connections with community organizations. So, reach out to teachers! We have a breadth of resources that we have access to for helping families and students. And for students and families who are struggling with online school— we want to help. Teachers are also trying to figure this out as we go, so we understand! We’re all confused and figuring it out together.”
So, Canopy wants to say THANK YOU, TEACHERS! Teachers are essential in so many ways, and you are particularly important to Canopy. You work tirelessly to comfort students in unfamiliar situations (even when it’s new for you, too), you teach English to new Americans, and you are agents for important social and cultural lessons. You are a foundational resources for immigrant families everywhere, and we are thankful for you.
Responses