In order to meet the social-emotional needs of Syrian refugee children, Dubai Cares is supporting the International Rescue Committee's remedial education programme for Syrian children living in the Bekaa and Akkar regions of Lebanon.

Dubai Cares' Education in Emergencies: Evidence for Action (3EA) programme in Lebanon benefits 4,600 Syrian refugee children with the aim to improve their literacy, numeracy and social-emotional outcomes. With the integration of mindfulness activities for social-emotional learning into the education programme, the 3EA programme intends to decrease children's stress levels, improve their social skills and well-being. The programme also aims to improve children's executive functioning skills, increase psychological resilience and improved academic performance.

As of July 2015, approximately 1.5 million Syrians have sought refuge in the neighbouring Lebanon since the outbreak of the civil war in 2011. The children who have made this journey into Lebanon continue to endure extreme adversities, including exposure to violence, ongoing displacement, poverty, and volatile economic and social conditions. In a study of 371 Syrian refugee children, 90 per cent had experienced between one and ten war-related events, and 50 per cent had experienced between seven and ten.

Mohamad, a 12-year-old boy, along with his family of eight suffered immensely from the destruction caused by the war. They fled their hometown of Kser in Syria to leave behind daily violence, brutality and insecurity. Mohomad and his family sought refuge in Awadeh village in Lebanon where his father, Abed, faces a double ordeal of unemployment in Lebanon along with the psychological impact of the war on his children.

"Once the fighting began, the security situation affected my son's school attendance due to the war-torn surroundings. He missed so many days of school in grades 1 and 2 that there were large gaps in his basic education. By grade 3, the violence became so bad that he no longer went to school," Abed said, expressing the pain and psychological adversity that the war has left on Mohamad's life.

But Mohamad is now a student at Remedia Center in Awadah (Akkar region of Lebanon) and concurrently enrolled at the Lebanese government second shift public school. And Abed said he has noticed improvements in his son's learning after being enrolled in the 3EA programme.

For Mohamad, the mindfulness activities have greatly improved the lives of many children like him, by addressing their social-emotional needs. "I've started to recognise my feelings and to be able to express them freely and fearlessly using my own simple words."

He said mindfulness activities have motivated and encouraged him to attend the center regularly. "I like the mindfulness activities, they enable me to live the situation and start to imagine wonderful things and the world becomes a more peaceful place. I practise the mindfulness activities at home when I feel nervous, as this helps me to calm down and to become relaxed and comfortable again."

The Evidence for Action (3EA) programme has not only helped Mohomad to overcome his social-emotional needs but has also restored his desire to learn and achieve quality education.

"I've noticed that I have been improving in all academic subjects. Although I do not like French, now I know a lot of vocabulary and this helps me in my second shift school," he said.

Source: Khaleej Times