Selma’s Story
interviewed by Nergis Curtis, Turkey
Nergis Curtis is a teacher of English from Turkey. She is currently teaching asylum seeker adults one-to-one in the UK while studying for an MA in TESOL.
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Introduction
Interviewing Selma
Selma’s poem: Beyond survival
This interview was between the author, an MA student and experienced teacher, and Selma, a 35-year-old refugee in the UK from Iraq. She was born in Baghdad and her mother tongue is Arabic but she also understands Kurdish. When the interview took place Selma had been living in the UK for fifteen years; she was twenty years old when she arrived. After leaving Iraq, she spent three months in Turkey and three months in France. Selma has a degree and qualifications in history from her country and worked as a qualified teacher before she was forced to flee to England. She started learning English at the age of ten and has been learning English for twenty-five years. She studied Arabic and Kurdish at school. Selma successfully completed ESOL (level 2) and IT courses, and volunteered in a charity shop for eight years. Selma meanwhile has been preparing herself for numeracy and literacy skills tests in order to apply to teacher training program in early childhood education in the UK. The interview was conducted on 20th of October 2016 to find out about Selma’s attitudes to language and language learning and her feelings about living in the UK. At the end of the interview, Selma wrote the poem about her experience as an asylum-seeker in the UK.
1) What did you feel when you first arrived in England? Can you tell a story about this?
I had felt very strange as I found myself in a strange country. Because of the different norms, different culture, different language. Nevertheless, the first thing that I felt was “being safe, secure. I had a very normal constant life before Iraq was invaded. Unfortunately, my whole life changed in seven months.
2) When do you use your mother tongue? When do you use English?
I have a few friends from Iraq. I met them after I had enrolled ESOL course. Although our teacher didn’t recommend us using our mother tongue but there again we had to use it because my friends’ English level wasn’t that good comparing to mine. So, mostly I use my mother tongue outside the classroom when I meet them twice a week.
3) Which language do you enjoy using most? Why?
English of course! Although I feel certain freedom with my language when I talk to my Iraqi friends but I find more flexibility with English language. To be able to reach my goals I always force myself that I must speak English all the time. My dream job was to become teacher when I was a child so I want to accomplish my dream. One person who really inspired me was my father because he was a good teacher. Although, I have a strange accent but there again English people understand me better now than ten years ago when my English was limited. Thank God” (She smiles)
4) How often do you switch between your first and your second language in a conversation?
Thinking in English is very important to be able to connect with people around you. I have been working in a charity shop for eight years now and most of our customers are English. So I mostly I speak English and practice all day with my customers as my brain operates English all the time. But when I study English towards my professional skills test, some of the questions from reading section (academic vocabulary) make me think in Arabic as I need to translate it in my language first. So depending on the context, if I am in a context of work I think and speak English, if I am in a context of study academic English then I think in Arabic first then switch.
5) What level was your English when you arrived in London?
I studied English in high school and University but there again it was solely based on theory rather than practical. My level was B2 when I came to England. When I was in high school and university, developing speaking skills in classroom was not easy, so listening English songs have improved my listening English skills. Therefore, music has helped me to learn vocabulary quickly. I also increased my English level through reading. I enjoyed reading short English stories when I was in secondary and high school even though I didn’t understand some of the words. But there again it was limited. So I can say my speaking, listening and reading skills are a lot better than my writing skills. Now I have completed my ESOL course successfully so my level is now level2 which is equivalent to higher intermediate.
7) Did you have problems learning English? How did you deal with them?
Yes, I did. I certainly learnt a lot from the letters that I received from Home Office, hospital and the council. I also learnt through sorting out problems face to face; She describes how particular experiences led to the widening of vocabulary: “And by my situation, every time I get evicted, by those letters, I forced myself to take some words which was very important for use. Like ‘procedure’, ‘homelessness’, ‘ circumstances’, ‘ priority need’ which it was very difficult for me to deal with. When I received appointment letters from hospital or the local council, I would memorize the words that I was unable to understand and write them in my hands including Arabic translation so I could speak better.
8) Were you motivated to learn English?
For me, learning English has always been fun and a duty of course. I think, if you love English, English will love you back. So I love English. For example, I like reading English and I enjoy it, I love learning new words and discover their meanings, and I also love practicing with my English customers and neighbours. But clearly, my ESOL teacher influenced me and motivated me a lot, as she taught her students more than just the language. She would help me with my letters, bills, doctor and home office appointments, etc. She also showed us how to access to wonderful learning materials online. She always encouraged my speaking enthusiastically as well.
Although I had to face with lots of problems and challenges in the past, I have always pushed myself to learn this language so I would get my dream job in future and fulfill my expectations. I am from an academic background and have a good degree in history from my country so I wish to take my education further and become a valuable teacher one day. She also says “ I also had encouragement from my friends and neighbours. In my situation, even though it was hard for me to get motivated to learn, I was lucky to find good people around me and I must say God has been very good with me.
What shall I tell about my life?
My life has been full of surprises, and shocks but I kept praying,
My life has been full of tragedies but I was patient.
My life has been destroyed but God saved my life.
I remember when I was young in Baghdad,
I remember when I was free in my home,
I remember when found myself in merciless war.
The ugly war suddenly changed my life when Iraq was invaded,
The ugly war that made me a refugee and unhappy,
The war that excluded me from my own country permanently.
Maybe God was testing me and my family by letting hard times happen,
Maybe God was punishing us by showing us our weakness,
Maybe God was testing us to see if we are faithful to him.
I just want a beautiful life with love and respect,
I just want to live like normal people without stress and fear,
I just want to become a teacher and make a difference for children.
Please check the Creative Methodology for the Classroom course at Pilgrims website.
Please check the How to be a Teacher Trainer course at Pilgrims website.
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