Empower Empathy- Unite - Cooperate

<< Background >>All of us applied because we have growing numbers of refugees from not only the Ukraine but lots of different countries. We also feel sometimes helpless to ensure that these students will succeed in school.So far many of them drop out or only achieve the lowest school degree. A huge part of the problem is the language barrier and different registers of language. Also many of these students tend to shy away from having closer contact to German students. Therefore we also need social empowerment to include everyone. They also feel misunderstood from time to time because of cultural differences unknown to us and a misinterpretation by their peers.<< Objectives >>STEAM fosters critical thinking and problem-solving abilities, enabling students to adapt and thrive in new environments. Through hands-on activities and projects, they develop practical skills applicable, enhancing their employability and self-sufficiency. STEAM encourages creativity and innovation, providing a platform for self-expression and cultural exchange, fostering a sense of belonging and confidence among refugee students. STEAM education transcends language barriers, offering a universal language for communication and collaboration, facilitating integration and social cohesion within diverse communities. ICT provides access to educational resources regardless of geographical constraints, enabling refugees to continue their learning journey even in displacement. Through online courses, educational platforms, and digital libraries, they can access a wealth of knowledge and skills to support their academic and personal development. Additionally, ICT facilitates communication and connectivity, allowing refugee students to stay in touch with their peers and educators.Creative drama on the other hand helps to socialize in a playful way and reduces tensions and misunderstanding of cultural differences.<< Implementation >>We started to implement all of these three approaches but due to the short time of the project we only started to implement STEAM, ICT and Creative Drama as small projects. Our next steps are to involve more teachers and do more workshops. In the long run we want that to be part of our curriculum, but we estimate 3 more years for all of that.<< Results >>We created guidelines for the different approaches. Meaning that we have handouts on the various advantages and disadvantages, the problems one can face and the steps of how to implement them.Also we started regular feedbacks for refugee students and keep an eye on social behavior and conflict. The years will show if we can lower conflicts which arise from a cultural misunderstanding. But again we will need more time to really see if our ideas have worked.