ABSTRACT

Of the 70.8 million people forcibly displaced from their original countries globally, 28.9 million are refugees. More than half of this refugee population are children under the age of 18, with a sizable representation from countries in Africa that have experienced continued conflicts. In resettlement countries, African refugee youth have encountered a host of challenges that affect their schooling in preparation for their future careers. For the majority of refugee families, safety in resettlement countries and particularly the schooling opportunities for their children provide glimpses of hope for a better future. To mitigate some of the challenges and barriers towards a better career future, a school-based career exploration group conducted collaboratively by representatives from within the refugee group community, school system, and the larger society provides these youth with a safe and collaborative way to discuss their challenges or difficulties in their journeys towards achieving career goals. In this group, youth are able to share narratives of their experiences while also learning the social-cultural capital and skills needed to successfully navigate school, college entry, and work environments. Since career decision-making may not be an individualistic endeavor for people from Africa, suggestions for responsively including culturally congruent values are presented. Across eight groups, specific topics related to social-cultural considerations, skills building for career planning, barriers and challenges are addressed. Implications for counseling are also discussed.

摘要

在全球范围内从原籍国家被迫流离失所的7080万人中，有2890万是难民。该难民人口中有一半以上是18岁以下的儿童，来自经历了持续冲突的非洲国家的代表相当大。在安置国，非洲难民青年遇到了许多挑战，影响了他们的学业，为他们的未来职业做准备。对于大多数难民家庭而言，安置国的安全，尤其是为其子女提供的上学机会，给人们带来了美好未来的希望。为了减轻更好的职业前景带来的一些挑战和障碍，由难民团体社区，学校系统，更大的社会为这些年轻人提供了一种安全的合作方式，以讨论他们在实现职业目标的过程中面临的挑战或困难。在这个小组中，年轻人可以分享自己的经历，同时还学习成功地驾校，大学入学和工作环境所需的社会文化资本和技能。由于职业决策可能不是非洲人的个人主义事业，因此提出了相应的建议，以包括文化上一致的价值观。在八个小组中，讨论了与社会文化因素，职业规划技能建设，障碍和挑战有关的特定主题。还讨论了咨询的含义。