Refugee Language Education Unit

Refugee Language Education Unit, Cambridge Refugee Hub

Mission:

To clearly define the interdisciplinary field of refugee language education and support scholars in expanding the scope and knowledge of this field;

To strive for people experiencing displacement to gain access to high quality language education.

Vision:

• Advance scholarly understanding and knowledge on language education for asylum seekers and refugees;
• Create an environment that facilitates scholarly collaboration and deepens the debate on language education and displacement;
• Investigate current education policies and work with policymakers to create innovative systems and interventions;
• Expand academic knowledge of underrepresented refugee populations, including by identity (nationality, age, documentation status, social group, gender, sexuality, ability) and context (i.e., asylum seekers in transit countries, outside of refugee camps, and in low- and middle-income countries);
• Engage with experts with lived experience of asylum and exemplify the importance of refugee expertise in scholarly efforts in this field.

About Us:

The Refugee Language Education Unit (RLEU) of the Cambridge Refugee Hub is an interdisciplinary collective of scholars creating groundbreaking research on refugee language education. This unit strives for people experiencing displacement to gain access to high quality language education. While in displacement in a foreign country, language proficiency is arguably the most pertinent skill to survival and wellbeing. Host country language as well as home/heritage languages will allow children to continue their studies and adults to see their needs and the needs of their families met. The RLEU is committed to designing high-quality interventions that empower teachers and governments to advance the wellbeing of people in displacement and provide them with the resources necessary to thrive in resettlement through language education.

To advance its vision, the Refugee Language Education Unit organizes under three themes:

Theme 1: Collaborate with partners to advise the University of Cambridge on the language issues as it becomes a sanctuary university.

Theme 2: Define refugee language education as a field; create an infrastructure for scholarly debate about refugee language education and the creation of novel research.

Theme 3: Collaborate with policymakers (Governments, UN, civil society, refugee community) to construct evidence-based interventions to improve the language acquisition, social integration, and wellbeing of refugee learners.

Participants:

The Refugee Language Education Unit (RLEU) is a scholarly collective of experts in Linguistics, Anthropology, Sociology, Political Science, Middle Eastern and North African Studies, Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, Latin American Studies, Education, History, Engineering, and Computer Science. The unit engages with multilateral stakeholders, including governments, educators, and refugees to design responses to challenges faced by those in displacement. 

Activities:

Organize the construction of research that advances knowledge of refugee language education in different contexts;

Convene policy exchange activities involving partners in different countries and contexts;

Host seminars and webinars for information exchange and creative interventions;

Advance meaningful refugee participation in academic spaces;

Create a runway for new scholars to advance in the field of refugee language education.