Responses to young children in post-emergency situations

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Save the Children’s experience ecd in emergencies J.R.A. Williams (Education & ECCD Advisor Middle East & North Africa Region); Tina Hyder (Diversity Advisor) and Susan Nicolai (Education Advisor (Children in Crisis)), Save the Children UK For one moment, imagine a reality made from the nightmares of childhood – parents dead, house collapsed, friends missing, favourite playthings crushed in rubble. In recent years, thousands of children have woken up to this picture: mudslides in Colombia, earthquakes in Iran or victims of the Asian tsunami. Even more children living in war zones around the world have experienced similar realities; Palestinian, Afghan and Sudanese children grow up with these nightmares as part of their everyday lives. This article draws on Save the Children’s early childhood development (ecd) in emergencies work in the Middle East, Asia and the Balkans. While these examples offer a picture of ecd responses within a range of emergencies, we believe that many of the principles of good ecd work remain the same whatever the context. Why ECD in emergencies? Both acute and chronic emergencies can have devastating effects on the people caught in their wake. Those working in emergencies build their responses around two core beliefs, codified in the Humanitarian Charter: (1) that all possible steps should be taken to alleviate human suffering arising and (2) those affected by disaster have a right to life with dignity . While education – and ecd – are not traditionally prioritised in such contexts, education responses in emergencies do have an important role to play both in alleviating suffering and strengthening the dignity of those affected. Many of those working with children and families in emergencies share a commitment to make a reality of children’s rights. Like all people affected by emergencies, children have basic physical needs – shelter, food, water and medicine – essential for their survival. However, informed by the un Convention on the Rights of the Child, an analysis of the rights of children would also stress developmental support – social, cognitive, creative and emotional – as being as fundamental as physical assistance. This commitment to children’s rights has led Save the Children to increasingly focus on education support during the early phase of an emergency and beyond. ecd is one of a range of education and care contexts that we find important in helping communities cope and recover. ecd programmes assist young children in maintaining a sense of normality and control in their lives. These efforts are built around a philosophy that children are not necessarily passive victims. Much can be done by working with them in constructive ways, drawing on their own resilience and on the strengths and assets of their communities. What happens to young children in emergencies? The damage of war and natural disasters is easy to see in terms of damage to the material aspects of life. However, the impact a crisis can have on the social, economic, political and cultural fabric of communities can be just as damaging for children’s development. For young children, the most profound impact is often that their carers are missing, dead or wounded – or perhaps emotionally and physically exhausted – and that they are unable to call on the usual support networks that are available at times of family crisis. In this instance, play can be an essential support for young children; not just because play in itself is a formative experience for the individual child – but because play itself is often rooted in the experience B e r n a r d v a n L e e r Fo u n d a t i o n 16 E a r l y C h i l d h o o d M a t t e r s • Ju l y 2 0 0 5
and representation of events and objects within a family and a community. Moreover, play can enable children to come to terms with past events. Evidence suggests that in many cases, young children who have experienced the trauma of conflict or displacement do not need specialised therapy or intervention (Richman 1993). The majority of children who manifest distressed behaviours (e.g., disrupted sleep, increased alertness, bed-wetting, profound sadness or increased aggression) will benefit from the routine, familiar environment and materials after a short time in an early years group. Children acquire a ‘safe space’ in which to establish relationships with sympathetic and supportive adults. What can we do? For practitioners concentrating on young children in emergencies, the Inter-agency Network for Education in Emergencies (inee) presents a checklist specifically concerning ecd in crisis situations to supplement the more general Minimum Standards for Education in Emergencies (msee) guidelines . This assessment protocol enables agencies to map out what early childhood services existed before and therefore what practices can be built upon. A selection of these questions includes: Pre-emergency: • Did early childhood education exist before the crisis? Was food provided? Was the service halfday or full day? • Did parents pay for their children to attend? Was the service only for people who belonged to a certain company of the government? Existing activities in ecd centres: • Are there any ecd activities presently within the community? Are all children able to access these activities, including minorities and children with disabilities? • Is there a system of referral in place for traumatised children or children with special protection needs? To whom are they referred? What cases have been referred? Parent training: • Who traditionally takes care of young children within the household (older siblings, STOP: A framework for ECD in emergencies This framework for working with young refugees was first devised by Swedish Save the Children (Gustaffson 1986) and has been subsequently adapted. It sets out an easy-to-remember way of ensuring that the key principles of good early years practice to support children affected by conflict are in place, and can apply to the provision of early years services not only in an emergency situation, but also once children have sought refuge. S – space and structure T – trust, time and talking O – opportunities to play P – partnership with parents Space and structure are vital to any early years programme. For a child affected by an emergency, getting to know the predictable routine of the early years setting will be an antidote to the chaos they may have experienced. For families living in temporary housing, conditions maybe cramped and children also benefit from the physical space of the setting. Trust is often the primary casualty of emergencies, from the perspective of the young child. Time is needed to re-establish trusting relationships with (a) key carer(s), through talking, play and creative activities. Young children often feel that they have enormous power, because their feelings are so strong and overwhelming. This may, in turn, make them feel guilty or responsible for the enormous changes that have befallen them and their families. By creating a place of safety, it is possible to explore a child’s feelings and to begin to explain and give meaning to events – so helping to remove feelings of guilt. Opportunities to play are some of the defining features of childhood. These can range from organised group activities such as games, dancing and singing, to explorative play with a wide range of materials. Parents and other carers will themselves need support and opportunities to talk, or just to sit and feel safe in the setting. It is vital to welcome carers and let them participate as little or as much as they choose. ECD provides an opportunity to support carers’ ability to care. B e r n a r d v a n L e e r Fo u n d a t i o n 17 E a r l y C h i l d h o o d M a t t e r s • Ju l y 2 0 0 5
Page 2 and 3: Early Childhood Matters is a journa
Page 4 and 5: Guest Editorial Margaret McCallin*
Page 6 and 7: The general context within which pr
Page 8 and 9: understand the meaning of any event
Page 10 and 11: Protecting children in emergencies
Page 12 and 13: A view from the Christian Children
Page 14 and 15: Photo: CHANON BERNSTEIN / CCF CHAD
Page 18 and 19: grandparents, others)? Are these pe
Page 20 and 21: An investigation of the history of
Page 22 and 23: Bernard van Leer Foundation’s res
Page 24 and 25: “You have to look at the needs”
Page 26 and 27: Photo: BICE/ NANBAN / RTUT to what
Page 28 and 29: Guiding principles Addressing the r
Page 30 and 31: • Identify referral services for
Page 32 and 33: and support to foster families. •
Page 34 and 35: have the capacity to trace the prev
Page 36 and 37: including: • with extended family
Page 38 and 39: or even in the same compound. Child
Page 40 and 41: Community-based care for separated
Page 42 and 43: Institutional characteristic Releva
Page 44 and 45: within a family setting is almost a
Page 46 and 47: for the children’s future and wor
Page 48 and 49: Photo: M. MUTHU (SIDT) Through dire
Page 50 and 51: Young children promoting health in
Page 52 and 53: The importance of play For younger
Page 54 and 55: stressful, this capacity might be s
Page 56 and 57: • Equalisation of opportunities:
Page 58 and 59: Primary and secondary causes of dis
Page 60 and 61: Child soldiers in the Democratic Re
Page 62 and 63: newly weaned infants are highly vul
Page 64 and 65: Further reading Websites The Child-
Page 66 and 67:
Education in emergencies A tool kit
Page 68:
Bernard van Leer Foundation Investi
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Responses to young children in post-emergency situations

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