Stories

Step by step

Tutoring program helps newcomer families find a path to a brighter future

The room is remarkably quiet, considering its four walls contain the energy of 45 Grade 1 to 10 students.

On paper, they’re refugees from Somalia, Sudan, Chad and Syria from low-income families in the lower city. In reality, they’re young people who spend Monday to Thursday after school at Stepping Stones — a program run by Munar Learning Centre — practising social skills, proudly showing their work to trusted adults, quietly listening to instructors and working one on-one with tutors.

It’s not just the children who learn at Stepping Stones. Next door are their moms, who drink coffee and chat. Before Stepping Stones, these women were strangers. Now they’re friends. The program helps them understand how school works in Canada. Workshops cover everything from parent rights and responsibilities to how to communicate with teachers; program volunteers offer help with letters, forms and in-the moment questions; a YWCA settlement worker provides newcomer resources; and program staff accompany parents to teacher meetings.

“These parents need someone to hold their hand,” says Madina Wasuge, chair of Munar. “This is a place where they feel their children are okay and they’re okay.”

Programming for the middle school students has been supported by HCF’s ABACUS initiative since 2022. Stepping Stones uses a whole-child approach — focusing on family, community and school — which HCF has learned is critical to increasing the likelihood that young people who face multiple barriers will graduate high school and access post-secondary education.

The moms, speaking through an interpreter, are vocal about their appreciation for the program. “Before my children were getting lower grades,” says one. “Now they’re getting Bs instead of Cs and As instead of Bs.” Another shared the importance of having an interpreter accompany her to teacher meetings. “At first I was discouraged. I felt like I just had to accept what they told me,” she says. “Now I have someone who speaks the language and I can share my opinion. That’s when things changed.” “I never have to tell my children to hurry up and get ready,” a third mom says. “Everyone has their backpack and shoes on and are saying ‘let’s go!’”

“Continuity is what makes the program a success,” Madina says. “Students come almost every day for three or four years and we see the improvement. Teachers are asking parents, ‘What are you doing with this kid? Where are you getting help from?’ Because they’ve seen the change.”

“This is an investment in the future,” she says. “If these students finish high school and go to higher education, we all benefit.”

Excerpt from 2023-24 annual report