Go Back To Where You Came From helps students tackle refugee debate

To help teachers and students tackle the complex issue of refugees in Australia and around the world today, SBS, Amnesty International and the Refugee Council of Australia have again partnered to deliver a free education resource to all secondary schools across the country.

The Go Back to Where You Came From School Pack provides educational activities that allow a wide range of students to engage more deeply with the themes and issues featured in the award-winning documentary series, being broadcast over three nights August 28-30.

SBS Outreach Executive Bindi Newman said that today, perhaps more than ever, it is important for all Australians to understand the complexity of refugee life and seeking asylum.

“Go Back to Where You Came From provides unique insight into a topic so often hijacked by political campaigning and media headlines. We continue to receive feedback from teachers around the country about how they have been able to use the television series to break through the noise that surrounds the debate, and talk about these complex issues with their students.

“This unique collaborative education initiative helps take this important discussion beyond television screens and into classrooms around the country in an engaging and accessible way,” she said.

Suitable for all state curricular, the Go Back to Where You Came From School Pack contains classroom activities that are supported by fact sheets, links to additional information, and case studies that provide a human face to a very political issue, encouraging students to focus on the similarities they share with refugees.

Amnesty International refugee campaigner, Alex Pagliaro, describes the resource as an important way to equip students with the information they need to analyse the asylum seeker debate.

“We have created practical activities to help students understand the facts that are so often absent from Australia’s refugee debate. It is vital that young people get the opportunity to learn more about the human right to seek asylum and the reasons why people are forced seek safety and protection.”

Refugee Council of Australia spokesperson Andrew Williams added, “Today, more than ever before, it is important that we challenge students to think and communicate about refugees and asylum seekers in a more compassionate way. This initiative is an important step in educating ourselves about human rights and a reminder to act with compassion towards our fellow citizens of the world.”

The pack is intended to be used with interactive school resources available on the SBS Go Back to Where You Came From website  with feature clips taken from the TV series and accompanying curriculum-linked resources available after each episode airs. All this material will continue to be available online beyond the broadcast of the series.

The Go Back to Where You Came From School Pack has been distributed to every secondary school in Australia, and is also available to download online.

Visit www.sbs.com.au/goback and join the conversation on Twitter: #GoBackSBS

About Go Back to Where You Came From

Over three nights of television, Go Back to Where You Came From will help shed new light on the realities of life as an asylum seeker, through the eyes of six prominent Australians as they experience a gruelling three-week refugee journey, broadcast at 8.30pm Tuesday 28, Wednesday 29, Thursday 30 August, 8:30 pm on SBS ONE.

About SBS

SBS is Australia’s multilingual and multicultural national broadcasting service. Its principal function, as set out in the SBS Charter, is to provide multilingual and multicultural radio and television services that inform, educate and entertain all Australians, and, in doing so, reflect and promote Australia’s multicultural society. SBS broadcasts to a national television and radio audience and delivers content online on its website.

About Amnesty International

Amnesty International is a worldwide movement of people campaigning to protect human rights. It has a vision of a world in which every person enjoys all of the rights stated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human rights standards. To help Amnesty achieve this visit its website.

About Refugee Council of Australia

The Refugee Council of Australia is the national umbrella body for more than 150 organisations working with refugees and asylum seekers. It is actively involved in research, policy development, public information and representation on refugee and asylum issues. Along with A Just Australia, we have more than 10,000 supporters committed to seeing the fair and humane treatment of refugees and asylum seekers in Australia. Visit its website.