Education and Psychosocial Support in Forced Migration Contexts

Ubumwe, a Kinyabwisha term meaning “unity,” integrates the arts in education and community spaces in refugee settings to bolster psychosocial and educational outcomes, and examines their contributions to making communities safer and healthier for children and young people. Building on an earlier pilot during which we tested the proof of concept for this approach, Ubumwe 2.0 reimagines how schools can meet the needs of children whose lives have been disrupted by forced migration.

This project is situated in the Kyangwali refugee settlement in southwestern Uganda, home to over 135,000 refugees coming from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Burundi, Rwanda, and South Sudan. Our diverse project team works together to further develop and expand the arts curriculum for children in primary school (grades 3-6), collaborating closely with national Ugandan authorities responsible for curriculum development. Teachers and school leaders working in the refugee settlement participate in teacher professional development on art education and psychosocial support, led by local teaching artists and mental health practitioners. We also carry out complementary monitoring, evaluation, and research to help us understand the impact of the arts and to advocate for broader integration of the arts into school programming for refugee and community children.

Ubumwe benefits from a dynamic, multi-agency, and interdisciplinary team centered around refugee-led and national organizations that are embedded in and/or connected to Kyangwali refugee settlement, including: Africhild, Arts Ignite, Artolution, CPC Learning Network at the Mailman School of Public Health, HAF Uganda, and Teachers College’s Center for African Education.