Successes and Challenges of Children who are Syrian Refugees: Language, Literacy, and Wellbeing

Successes and Challenges of Children who are Syrian Refugees:
Language, Literacy, and Wellbeing

Researchers: Johanne Paradis¹, Xi (Becky) Chen², Alexandra Gottardo³, Adriana Soto-Corominas⁴, Redab Al-Janaideh², Jennifer Jenkins², Kathliki Georgiades⁵, Irene Vitroulis⁶, Mazen El-Baba⁷, Lisa Rochman⁸

Affiliations: University of Alberta¹, OISE, University of Toronto², Wilfred Laurier University³, Universitat Internacional de Catalunya⁴, McMaster University⁵, University of Ottawa⁶, H.appi⁷, NorQuest College⁸

Research Partners: NorQuest College and H.appi
Keywords: Refugee children and youth, bilingual language development, second language acquisition, heritage language acquisition, Edmonton, Toronto, Waterloo, English, Arabic, longitudinal study
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Summary

Objective: This study explored factors that contribute to the successes and challenges of Syrian refugee children’s language and literacy development in both their second language of English, and the heritage language of Arabic. This was a three-year longitudinal study, with research carried out at three sites: Edmonton, Toronto, and Waterloo. This study was also a collaboration with a CYRRC project from the Well-being cluster to explore the relationship between learning and well-being in Syrian refugee children.

Objective: To help establish best practices for second language learning of refugee children, taking into consideration how individual differences in socioemotional well-being contribute to refugee children’s language and literacy development.

Research Justification: To fully participate in Canadian society, refugee children need to achieve fluent language and literacy skills in English. At the same time, the maintenance of the first language, which in the context of this study is Arabic, is key to family and community relationships and may confer cognitive advantages associated with bilingualism.

Infographic Excerpt

Executive Summary

Full Infographic

Methodology:

Quantitative and qualitative measures were used to assess the bilingual and literacy development of Syrian refugee children (aged 6-13) over time. Data was collected, processed, and analyzed in 3 waves (one per year), with an initial year before data collection for research planning, determining measures and recruitment, and final year post data collection for data analysis and knowledge dissemination. Each data collection interval involved a parent interview, which gathered information on demographic, linguistic, and well-being factors, and the administration of 14 language and cognitive tests to the children in both English and in Arabic. In the final year, youth self-report was also collected on background factors and an acculturation questionnaire was administered.

Findings

Children’s English grew steadily across all three time points. Their Arabic grew from Time 1 to Time 2 but began to show signs of attrition by Time 3.
In general, stronger skills in the first language, Arabic, provided a better foundation for learning English. In other words, skills in one language did not take away from those in the other languages, instead they built on one another.
Children’s skills in English and Arabic were variable, with family demographics, age of arrival, language experience, and well-being accounting for much of this variance.
For example, older arrivals had stronger Arabic skills by Time 3 than younger arrivals.
Children who interacted in English with their siblings had stronger English skills, but poorer Arabic skills.
Children who had richer English experiences outside school developed English faster with stronger skills.
Children whose mothers had higher levels of education pre-migration had stronger skills in both languages.
Children with stronger cognitive skills in memory and analogical reasoning had stronger language skills in both languages.
Finally, pre-migration adversity and difficulties with well-being had a negative effect on children's skills in both languages.

Recommendations

Teachers and educators should increase their awareness of the multiple factors that contribute to challenges and successes in the bilingual development of refugee children as this could help teachers better understand why some children are developing their English faster and with better proficiency than others.
The study suggests that children who have lower richness in their language experiences outside school, have mothers with lower levels of education, and who have well-being difficulties, should receive extra support at school in order to ensure success in their bilingual development.