GIRL p o e t

Assignment three – Design a learning space for the future that addresses the needs of young learners in a refugee camp. I have changed my mind many times trying to decide upon a concept for this project. I very much wanted to do this task justice but I feel overwhelmed at the magnitude of what life must be like for a refugee. Tonight I read about a young girl called Khawla and she has helped me to commit to an idea…

Khawla Hassan Ghaysaniya is a  15 year old Syrian refugee. She left her home in Syria on January 27, 2012 at 7 in the morning, she remembers the exact day and time clearly because this is the moment her life changed.

I love reading and writing poetry, I’ve loved it ever since I was little. When I read something that has a ring of truth to it, it gives me a hint or a feeling about how to deal with my own problems.

I love poems, stories, everything. My favourite writer is Al-Mutanabbi – he’s an old Arabic poet from over 1000 years ago. His poems are so beautiful.

We used to have his collected works at home in Syria. I used to read it and it inspired me to start writing my own poetry and then I found I was good at it.

I write about everything I have experienced – war, suffering, pain. It’s a way to express myself. When I’m feeling bad I write and whenever I write I feel better. Khawla.

Khawla is my inspiration for developing a future learning space centred on girls education and built around my understanding of the liminal space, personal space and e-space to enhance learning.

My hope is to develop a safe space in which children can heal and connect through creative pursuits using poetry and to promote literacy in a fun way. Poetry is a tool we can use to think about the world around us but to also escape it.

The elements my space will be designed around are reading poetry aloud in public, writing poetry and publishing poetry using technology. 

Reading and writing poetry expands the imagination of a child and allows her to dream, to draw upon experiences and to express herself. Exploring poetry may help her to understand her feelings, learn success, cope with failure and find the courage to make a difference. She will learn to listen and communicate with others, learn to empathise and respect others. Facebook and twitter are used for communication within the Za’atari Camp. All of us are global citizens, we can connect through technology and refugees are no exception. If done safely and respectfully, I hope that the girls may be able to use a social network method to publish their poetry. For example, Haiku and micro-poetry have developed a large following using twitter as a publishing platform.

This is an extract from one of Khawla’s poems, which she has translated herself into English…

Oh God, my God

Preserve those hearts that I love

In short – me, my family,

The fear flying over my head does not shock me as much as that which has

Been robbed from me

Those I loved the most are now closest to you

So much loss has followed this that love has escaped from my heart

And I cannot make new friends

Fear of loss binds me

My love of reading and poetry helped me a lot in my studies.

If I didn’t love reading I might have dropped out of school when it became difficult because I didn’t care or it was hard. It helps me in exams, I pushed myself to read and I have a good level, I can read and understand and analyse quickly. And of course it helps me in everything in life. Khawla.

I hope that this future learning space could empower and support recovery of girls within Za’atari. For me, recovery means normality, being productive and looking forward, and though this may seem like an impossible task within a camp I believe it should be how we aim. Khawla had a passion for poetry before the war, poetry gave her pleasure, inspired her, gave her a voice and allowed her to express herself and expand her mind. I would like to think there is a way for her to experience these joys again even though at this point in time she’s called a refugee.