Turkish Language Courses continue at our Women’s Counselling Centre

Turkish Language Courses continue at our Women’s Counselling Centre

Refugee women have shown great interest in the Turkish courses held at MaviKalem Esenyurt Women’s Counselling Centre since 2019. While Turkish courses continue every year due to the intense demands of refugee women; refugee women who want to go to the market, hospital, or their children’s school in daily life benefit from our courses. Thus, women from different cultures come together to communicate and social cohesion is supported.

Refugees are required to know Turkish at a beginner level to apply to employment agencies in Turkey, and Turkish language skills are also required to obtain a work permit. Refugee women attending the courses at MaviKalem Esenyurt Women’s Counselling Centre also supports women’s participation in working life. We observe that especially women who want to work apply to the relevant employment agencies immediately after the final exams of the courses. We receive news that some refugee women go for job interviews. Our female trainees who are accepted for employment and enter the registered labour process show the success of our Turkish courses.

Turkish language courses are held every weekday from morning to noon. On average, 15-20 refugee women learn Turkish together for four hours every day. Especially when we look at the gender roles of women, they spend most of their time at home cleaning and childcare. The fact that women come to the Turkish language course every day enables them to get out of the house and helps them to meet other women. We witness that women communicate with each other in Turkish courses and start to meet as a family. In this way, they create their new social circles under a safe roof.

On the other hand, to alleviate childcare responsibilities that may prevent women from attending the language course, we ensure that while the women are learning Turkish in the language course, their children can do activities and work with the child development teacher in the child safe area adjacent to their mothers’ classrooms.

In the Turkish courses organised by MaviKalem, 190 women successfully completed the courses until the beginning of 2024 and received their certificates, while refugee women want to continue learning Turkish in 2024.