At the end of the school year, Destination Unknown member, Terre des hommes Hellas, together with Greek Council for Refugees and Save the Children have issued the Greek government with a report card on its work on refugee education in Greece.

The report Must Do Better: Grading the Greek government's efforts on education for refugee children, assesses how the government has fared in six key areas of refugee education this academic year: attendance; access to inclusive education; transportation to schools; adequate staffing and timely scheduling; and action to end community hostility and xenophobia.

The report shows that the government has made improvements in some areas but calls on it to do much more to meet its obligations to ensure all children are enrolled in and attending school. 

Melina Spathari of Terre des hommes Hellas outlines some of the challenges that families face: "As the number of families without access to asylum increases, we find more and more families in despair and destitution, with constant anxiety about finding food, shelter, and the future. Without a roof over their heads, without work, and hungry, how are families going to manage to send their children to school?".

The report outlines a number of clear and detailed recommendations. Children also share their own recommendations for the Greek government and schools regarding their education, such as: "We would like lessons with interaction and collaboration among the students. To show them what we know and for them to teach us what they know".

The report offers a roadmap and steps for the Greek government to do better and ensure every child's right to an education is upheld. As 10-year-old L from Congo says in the report: "School is a way for me to make my dreams come true".

Summing up the report card, Daniel Gorevan of Save the Children said: "It is clear there has been some progress on refugee and migrant education in the last year, but the government is still not meeting its obligations. The Greek government has the opportunity to build on progress and ensure no child is left behind, it should not waste it".

For more information and interviews, email Melina Spathari, Advocacy Manager and co-author of the report at melina.spathari@tdh.ch.