My migration story

The “My migration story” workshop is designed to help participants enhance their reading, grammar, and writing skills by engaging with migration stories, identifying syntactic and grammatical phenomena, and learning to construct coherent paragraphs. Participants will write and present their own migration stories, fostering confidence in speaking and promoting empathy by discussing shared experiences and challenges related to language learning, integration, employment, and training.

The “My migration story” workshop uses autobiographical storytelling techniques to support migrant women and migrants in self-awareness and empowerment. By engaging in educational activities that combine language learning and storytelling, participants will improve their language skills, share personal migration stories, and foster social inclusion.

The workshop addresses people in transitional phases who are in need of orientation and counselling. The simple language in all the activities facilitates the work with new immigrants as it has been particularly adapted to their situation and needs – both regarding language, content and layout.
More specifically, working with the MILMET project’s autobiographical story-telling tool requires a more integrated use of the language, but it can be adapted to participants’ language level. The MILMET project’s language learning tools can be used with adult individuals of all ages and backgrounds.

The objectives of the workshop are for the participants:

• to improve their reading skills by engaging with various migration stories, developing a deeper understanding of the content and context;
• to recognize and identify syntactic and grammatical phenomena within the text, enhancing their grammatical knowledge and analytical skills;
• to gain a thorough understanding of different syntactic and grammatical structures and their applications in written and spoken language;
• to learn how to construct a basic paragraph, focusing on structure, coherence, and clarity;
• to use storytelling techniques to develop their personal narratives and express themselves;
• to build confidence in speaking and presenting in a new language and
• to promote empathy and understanding and highlight common issues related to language learning, integration, employment, and training.

The materials needed for this workshop are a pencil or pen and erasers, a piece of paper or notebooks, writing pads and the “My migration story” worksheet available for all the participants. Also, a whiteboard and markers or a flip chart and markers for the facilitator to take notes and highlight important tips and to explain the steps of the activity.

In addition, printed or digital copies of the different migration stories for reference and a PC or laptop and a projector or screen (if available) for displaying key points.

The facilitator should select a location for the workshop that is a space considered safe by all participants. A place that provides a physically and emotionally safe environment for all participants, especially a place where people can freely express themselves without fear of prejudice or any negative judgment. The process of sharing personal information may be stressful for some of the participants, so the facilitator should be alert to understand any inconvenience, take the lead and handle the situation.

In addition, the educator should be familiar with teaching the language of the host country in order to be able to adjust the workshop to the language learning level of the participants.

1. Participants read the migration stories from the cards.

2. Participants identify all the syntactic and grammatical phenomena on the migration story cards.  

3. The educator presents all the syntactic and grammatical phenomena and explains their use to learners.

4. The educator explains how we form a basic paragraph and learners form basic paragraphs titled “my migration story”.

5. Participants present each short paragraph titled “my migration story” to one another and identify common points and experiences, as well as common problems and difficulties faced regarding language learning, integration process, employement and training.

The last step of the workshop includes the reflection and evaluation process. Participants share their paragraphs titled “My migration story” to the group and they receive constructive feedback from their peers and the educator, focusing on the use of syntactic and grammatical structures, paragraph coherence, and clarity. After all the presentations, participants engage in a group discussion identifying common points and experiences shared in their stories, such as language learning, integration challenges, employment, and training difficulties.

Then, participants are asked to express their thoughts and feelings about the exercise, reflecting on the following questions: “What did you learn about your peers’ migration experiences?”, “How did identifying common themes help you feel more connected to the group?”, “What new insights did you gain about the challenges faced in language learning and integration?”.

Also, the educator can encourage participants to suggest actionable steps or strategies that could help address the common problems and difficulties identified. This may include forming study groups, sharing useful resources, or developing new learning techniques.

The workshop can be adapted to suit coherent and diverse groups of learners. Participants may share personal information and this process may be stressful for some of them, so the facilitator should be alert to understand any inconvenience, take the lead and handle the situation. Also, they should be aware of and respect cultural differences among participants, avoid making assumptions about their experiences or backgrounds, use inclusive language and be mindful of cultural norms and practices, and emphasize the importance of confidentiality. It should be ensured that participants understand that personal stories shared in the workshop should not be discussed outside of the group.

The facilitator should provide clear, step-by-step instructions for each activity and use visual aids if possible to enhance the understanding, as well as encourage participants to ask questions if they are unsure about any part of the activities. In addition, it is highly advisable to the educator to use use examples from real migration stories to illustrate grammatical and syntactic phenomena to make the learning process more relatable and meaningful.

Another part, which should be given full attention by the trainer is to be prepared to provide constructive feedback throughout the workshop, highlight strengths and provide specific suggestions for improvement, and also encourage peer feedback during presentations to foster a collaborative learning environment.

The group size for this workshop does not matter, but it is more challenging to manage the workshop with the participation of many individuals. Working with a big group of people makes it harder to make people feel safe to share about themselves. 8 to 10 participants would be the ideal group size.

The complexity of the workshop can be rated at 3. The facilitator needs to take some time to prepare the different phases of the workshop and all the necessary material, review the methodology and prepare the workshop’s reflection phase. Also, the educator should be familiar with teaching the language of the host country in order to be able to adjust the workshop to the language learning level of the participants.