Sciences Po Refugee Help’s French Lessons Team operates in various housing centres and teaches the asylum seekers living there language skills, as well as key cultural elements, in order to facilitate their social integration within French society. The main objective is to return a sense of autonomy to asylum seekers’ daily lives, overcoming language barriers as they learn to interact with French speakers and gain a better understanding of the environment they live in.
Approximately 15 volunteers teach one-hour-lessons to asylum seekers on a weekly or more basis. Our team works in two housing centers, running lessons on multiple days of the week. These centers are :
Our priority is to help asylum seekers develop solid communication skills which will facilitate their integration in society . As such, a particular emphasis is placed on oral communication; our sessions are rooted in oral exchange, and are constructed in a highly interactive manner. We put effort in ensuring the lessons’ continuity so as to provide asylum seekers a logical and coherent progression throughout the French language.
Our volunteers, led by two coordinators, use teaching material provided to them by the association or the centers. Both students and teachers are in constant communication throughout the academic year to monitor class progression, and discuss the various obstacles encountered. Meanwhile the coordinators ensure fluid communication with social workers and the centre's administration by handling material purchases, organising class schedules, and assessing the needs of asylum seekers in the Paris region during classes. Activities are then reported to the Administration Team of Sciences Po Refugee Help, and communicated to other branches for discussion and feedback.
Contact us! Write to french.lessons@refugeehelp.fr
Hi! I am Alice, I am a French M1 student in Human Rights and Humanitarian Action. Through my studies and volunteering experiences, I got the opportunity to get acquainted with asylum law and provide material support to people on the move in the North of France and in Serbia. Each time, I realized how much the language barrier can be an obstacle for newcomers. That’s why I am very happy to be part of SPRH and coordinate the French lessons team this year!