In the document entitled Building Hope: Appropriate Programming for Adolescent and Young Adult Newcomers of War-Affected Backgrounds and Manitoba Schools, released by MacKay and Tavares (2005) from Manitoba Education, Citizenship and Youth, MacKay and Tavares assert that: “there is a lack of programming for war affected children which leads to falling out of the school system and limits the long term educational and life opportunities of these learners… the stress and frustration that students experience because of inappropriate programming tends to accentuate the challenges they face …show more content…
African refugee students, principals, teachers, parents and community members participated in the study. Data for the study was collected through various focus groups, interviews and observations.
Data shows that Canada continues to see unprecedented increases in the number of refugee students in their schools and the increase of refugee students has not been accompanied by appropriate educational or specialized support to assist the students (Kanu, 2008, p. 916). As a direct result of the lack of informed and targeted support within the African refugee students programming, resulting in a dramatic rate of drop-outs and social alienation (Kanu, 2008, p. 916). Many of the African refugees tend to suffer from multiple traumatic experiences and are most likely to have experienced larger periods of disrupted schooling, which often resulted in periods of difficulty integrating into new societies, slower acquisition of academic skills, and greater difficulty acquiring a new language. African refugee students are also prone to alarmingly high drop out rates and the engagement in anti-social behaviors such as gang activity, prostitution and drug use (Kanu, 2008, p. …show more content…
It is the belief that through rich and varied experiences teachers will develop dynamic conceptions of subject supportive of the needs of immigrant students, and develop healthy relationships with their students, all of the critical features pointed out by Kanu