Education for Urban Refugees in Malaysia: Teachers in Learning Centers as Role Models

Abstract

Although the “Education for All (EFA)” trend has greatly improved people's access to education, it remains inadequate for vulnerable and marginalized populations. As a result of the quantitative expansion of primary education due to the universal education policy, there are serious concerns about the quality of education, including low completion rates due to lack of meaningful learning. Furthermore, enrollment rates for refugee children are only 65% in primary education, 42% in secondary education, and 7% in higher education respectively.

Although accepting more than 200,000 refugees, Malaysia has not ratified the 1951 Refugee Convention; therefore, refugees are treated as illegal workers, with no freedom of movement and no access to formal education, employment, and medical care. The learning centers (LCs) for refugee children are severely constrained financially due to lack of government support. Refugees, who have been displaced for protracted periods of time over generations, need access to quality education on a permanent basis, but the quality of education at such LCs is reported far below the minimum standards in emergency.

The study focused on how role models produced within the LCs can serve to complement its vulnerabilities. This study investigated the influence that teachers exert as role models on children, through a questionnaire survey of all LCs situated in Malay Peninsula, and interviews and participatory observations at six LCs in the vicinity of Kuala Lumpur.

The results revealed that teachers as role models had the following aspects: 1) embodiment of diversity, 2) community solidarity, 3) hope for the children, 4) parental role, and 5) community representation. These perspectives are difficult to realize within Malaysian public schools. Rather than viewing the LCs as merely vulnerable, the study results can be presented as a form of sustainable educational development in terms of the self-help and mutual support needed to reduce dependence on humanitarian aid.