Since the beginning of March, the Fraternity – International Humanitarian Missions (FIHM), through the Indigenous Cultural and Training Centre (CCFI), has been carrying out the Literacy Course for Indigenous Migrants and Refugees. An initiative that seeks, through training in basic knowledge, to provide tools that allow the Venezuelan indigenous population to adapt to the Brazilian society and to seek a better quality of life in the new sociocultural context.
The course is given by teachers from the Macunaíma Educacional Centre, a partner institution of the Fraternity – Humanitarian Missions (FIHM), who transmit knowledge of reading and writing in Portuguese, in addition to some mathematical fundamentals.
Juan Diego, a volunteer humanitarian server, highlighted that the course lasts 3 months, is attended daily and has a workload of 200 hours. The course is recognized by the Ministry of Education (MEC) and, upon completion, students receive an adult literacy certificate.
Education for refugees as part of the humanitarian response
In Brazil and in other international legislation, education for refugees is mandatory, in order to prepare them for the exercise of citizenship in the host country, providing qualification for work and guaranteeing human dignity as a fundamental right.
It is precisely this human aspect that is the most essential part of the Literacy of Indigenous Migrants and Refugees course, and this is also perceived by the team of teachers in charge of developing the dynamics in the classroom.
In this sense, teacher Larisse Santos, educational advisor at the Macunaíma E. C., states that “education and literacy are vehicles for social inclusion; and this begins at the moment when the individual manages to communicate with the members of the society in which he is inserted”.
On this point, Larisse shares what she considers to be the contribution of this training: “Ensuring that those who come to our country learn, feel part of it, can communicate; that, regardless of their origin, they can use the Portuguese language. This is our greatest legacy”.
Diversity in the classroom
The course, in its first edition, is being offered to young people and adults, including the elderly, so that the age range of participants varies between 14 and 70 years old.
In addition to age-related differences, teacher Larisse mentioned that, in the same classroom, we can find people from different backgrounds, and this is something unprecedented that presents some challenges: “In a classroom, there can be three, four or five different ethnicities. Five different communities, five different ways of relating anthropologically and culturally”.
Teachers have understood this challenge and are embracing this learning process, adapting the pace, material and pedagogical techniques to the students’ needs. Also, as Juan Diego pointed out, students also receive individualized attention to support and encourage the development of each one, at their level.
In the case of indigenous education, the technique focuses on the process defined as “sensory-motor-constructive”, that is, feeling to learn, perceiving to understand and building new references.
Under this holistic and living experience, the literacy process takes on a new perspective. It’s not just about reading and writing, but about bringing new experiences into the social context you want to learn about.
Building a better life
But beyond the academic results, the opportunity to participate in the literacy course strengthened the indigenous Venezuelans’ sense of self-confidence and hope for future improvements.
Valentín Mene, a Warao indigenous person, says: “I’m proud of learning to write and read. I want to go ahead and get a job.” For others, like Romeo Morillo, it’s a unique opportunity: “We’re learning what we’ve never learned before.” And he clarifies that this does not only refer to literacy, but to the possibility of learning from a new culture, such as the Brazilian one.
Gratitude is a common factor among the indigenous students. They also see this opportunity as the beginning of a life with new possibilities, as highlighted by Justo Tovar: “I am learning to read, write and all the numbers. I am happy taking courses. I am going to finish this course and then I want to take another one to look for improvements”.
In addition, the fact of having a certificate that endorses the knowledge acquired in the course gives them the possibility to assert themselves more securely in society, knowing that they have the tools to interact successfully in their new environment. For some, that means getting a new job; for others, it means being able to explain themselves in a doctor’s office, as the needs of this population are very diverse.
Overcoming challenges with persistence
This is certainly an unprecedented initiative in Brazil. While other initiatives in the country have included indigenous literacy, the situation of indigenous Venezuelans poses an additional challenge: the fact that they are foreigners. In addition to their native languages and sociocultural references, they also speak Spanish and this needs to be taken into account.
Thus, the course is proving to be a valuable learning experience for both students and teachers.
Teachers shared that in addition to learning from their students through the cultural exchange resulting from classroom interaction, they are also learning about “persistence”.
They are positively impressed with the fact that indigenous Venezuelan students do not give up. They face difficulties as the course progresses, but their determination allows them to overcome obstacles.
As Teacher Larisse says: “It is a great learning laboratory, the indigenous learning laboratory”. And, after the first few weeks of classes, both teachers and students agree that this has been a very successful experience.
