HEALTH AND WELLBEING – A HOLISTIC APPROACH TO LEARNING
Financial stress , psychological trauma , medical concerns , domestic violence , lack of family support , migration concerns , unemployment , community isolation ... these are some of the factors that affect our students on a daily basis . The culmination of these stresses severely impact the ability of a student to perform to their full potential , retain information , and concentrate . They can also exacerbate pre-existing frustrations which come with migrating to a new country , learning a new language , and absorbing a new culture .
To alleviate these stresses FLN ’ s Refugee Support Program has been working with the Volunteer Program to strengthen our student ’ s resilience by offering workshops and seminars designed to address student needs and encourage self-agency .
In response to a high volume of student interest , the Refugee and Volunteer Support programs hosted a Legal Workshop in April , which was conducted by a legal representative , Sally , from the Refugee and Immigration Legal Centre . The seminar ran for over an hour focusing on family visas and was attended by 20 students with four interpreters interpreting seven main language groups which included : Somali , Mandarin , Farsi , Arabic , Vietnamese , Dinka , and Oromo .
Feedback regarding the seminar was overwhelmingly positive and expressions for additional legal seminars have encouraged the Refugee Support , Education , and Volunteer Programme coordinators toward organising ongoing legal seminars in the beginning of every term .
Similarly , workshops and seminars addressing family support , Centrelink payments , and health and welfare support will be an ongoing feature in the beginning of every school term . We hope this will assist our students toward independent living and a more positive learning experience at FLN .
CASE MANAGEMENT AND DROP-IN SERVICE – PROVIDING A UNIQUE AND TAILORED APPROACH TOWARD SERVICE DELIVERY .
In conjunction with workshops and seminars , the refugee support program ( RSP ) continues to provide case management services for our members . At present , 15 families and individuals from a range of cultural and socio-economic backgrounds receive ongoing case management support .
Members meet with the support worker on a regular basis ( weekly or fortnightly ) to resolve and discuss their interrelated issues , challenges , and needs .
Additionally , the RSP continues to provide a dropin service to all members of the City of Yarra CALD community assisting on average 3-4 people a day . This service varies greatly from information , advocacy and referral or a cup of tea and a confidential chat about all matters relating to them and their families .
FITZROY CLUBHOUSE
The Fitzroy Clubhouse re-opened its doors in March and has been engaging its members in a wide variety of technical and creative activities throughout the year . Clubhouse members have been given the opportunity to write and record music , design videogames , create music videos , learn basic circuitry , investigate electronic engineering , experiment with 3D printing , practise photography , design clothes and much , much more . One of our aims is to develop our members ’ overall proficiency and familiarity with technology , encouraging their engagement on both a scientific and creative level . Building this familiarity will prepare our members for the realities of the 21 st century , a time in which every aspect of life is becoming deeply integrated with technology and the digital industries .
One of the strongest areas of activity within the Clubhouse has been in the field of music production and recording . Since re-opening in March , our members have created over 20 songs , with at least fifteen of these songs involving original vocal performances and lyrics . Remarkably , the vast majority of these songs were made by members under eleven years old . While the instrumental parts in many of these songs were either borrowed or composed by our mentors , the lyrics and vocal ideas were written entirely by Clubhouse members . In some cases , every element of the song was built from scratch . The software we use for music production is industry-standard and generally aimed at much older age groups , yet even our youngest members are proving that hard work and concentration can overcome steep learning curves . You can hear some of the songs made by our members here : https :// soundcloud . com / fitzroy-clubhouse
We have also been running a series of lessons developed by the Clubhouse network which introduce members to basic circuitry , coding , crafting , and engineering . These sessions have been led by one of our mentors , Mukesh Mittal , a professional electronics engineer with over 24 years of technical experience . In these sessions our members have been turning pieces of fruit into playable instruments , designing simple paper circuits , building flashlights from scratch and engaging with computer coding .
3D and graphic design is also very popular at the Clubhouse . Our members have created a range of captivating images using graphics tablets , Photoshop and basic architectural design software . Many of these images are now on display throughout the Clubhouse .
Overall it has been a fantastic year of creative exploration and we hope it will carry on into the future .
Alex , Clubhouse Coordinator
Thanks to our current mentors : Ash , Ruby , Camille , Hanna , Mukesh , Thao , Stuart , Henry , Aisha ,
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