Page 36 - MY Book - My Voice

Five girls in SaidaIn the rst workshop in April 2014, most participants were girls between 13 and 15 years old. All of them had been out of school since they ed Syria, or had dropped out for other reasons. In the beginning of the workshop, I tried to learn a bit about the participants by handing out a pre- test. I asked them to draw and to answer some questions about their relation to books.They were asked to write the rst word coming into their mind when I said the word “books”, they all wrote “school” or “studying”, except for one girl. She answered “sadness”. I also asked if they had books at home. Most participants didn’t have any books, except for the Koran.At the end of the workshop, they were asked to write an evaluation. I have picked some of the evaluations made by ve of the girls. I have also followed up and found out how they are doing today, two years later.Aala K.Aala K., 15 years old. Her father is Palestinian; her mother is Syrian, and the family comes from Yarmouk camp in Damascus. During the workshop, Aala was quiet and looked sad. She hadn’t been to school since the family ed Syria in 2011. Aala really wants to go to school, but she can’t.Evaluation: It was a perfect and beautiful course. I bene ted a lot by making this book, and I lled in many things in this book about my life and all the drawings. I like this course, and when I realized it had nished, I got sad. But I was happy during the course. Thanks to everyone who helped us and also to the teachers Ghada and Sophie.February 2016: Aala is 17 years old and is happy to nally be back to school. Bacause she lost several years, she is now in grade 8. She is at Nables school, the best UNRWA-school in Saida. She is doing well and is proud that she got 76.5 points out of 100.Because her mother is of Syrian nationality, the family believes that she will get the permit to stay in Europe, and her mother has travelled illegally through Turkey and is now in Germany. She lives with her brother. The rest of the family is hoping and waiting to be able to reunite with the mother in Germany.Alaa is still coming to The Mada Center, she is an active girl and has just suggested forming a girls club.Aala J.Aala J., 13 years old, from Syria. She hasn’t been to school since the family ed Syria in 2011. Evaluation: I have learned many things that I didn’t know before, especially how to create a book which has become a part of my life. I wish the book was my diary.February 2016: 15 years old. Aala is engaged to her cousin. She is not attending school because her ancé don’t allow her to.HasnaaHasnaa, 13 years old, from Syria. She hasn’t been to school since the family ed Syria in 2011, when she was 10 years old.34