As students across Canada prepare for a new school year, thousands of Syrian refugees are struggling to learn English and French due to long waiting lists for government-run language classes.
Only 5,433 Syrian refugees have enrolled in federally funded language courses out of more than 30,000 who arrived in Canada since last November.
The average waiting time to get into a course is about six months, and in some cases, the wait can stretch for years.
“Right now our wait list is about 108 students,” said Mita Basu, who runs an in-home tutor program through the government program. “There’s a wait time of about two years.”
With limited ability to communicate, some Syrian families feel they are struggling to adapt to their new lives in Canada.
Mohamad Al Mugharbel arrived in Canada with his parents seven months ago. Although he knows barely any English, he will attend elementary school in Ottawa next week.
His father, Abdullah, attends language classes three hours each day, but his mother remains stuck on a long waiting list. Speaking through a translator, Abdullah said his family felt “ashamed” by the situation.
The federal government has pledged to invest nearly $300 million for language training for 2016-2017 to help Syrian refugees adjust to Canadian life.
But critics say the need for more language classes is urgent.
“If we want these refugees to be an integral part of our society, to be integrated as quickly as possible, English is a must,” former citizenship judge Aris Babikian told CTV News.
A Senate committee expressed similar concerns in July facing Syrian refugees that need to be addressed.
The committee released a series of interim recommendations due to the “urgency of the situation,” including drafting a plan to provide mental health services, increasing federal funding for language programs and speeding up reimbursement of child tax benefits.
With a report from CTV’s Omar Sachedina in Ottawa
