Week 10: Refugee Education

Given the current social and political climate around refugee intake, what are some of the
issues you will need to be aware of, and what are some strategies for managing these in
your teaching?

In Australia, around 15,000 refugees are resettled every year, mostly from war-torn
countries in Asia and Africa (Windle & Miller, 2013). Beyond learning English on arrival,
refugee students face various other issues in pursuing education in Australia. The challenges
faced by refugee students are extremely different than for other migrants as they have been
forced to migrate; often they have experienced violence, trauma and ultimately disruption
of their daily lives (Pugh et al., 2012). Due to this trauma, they are likely to be emotionally
distressed, experience memory impairment, physical disorders and difficulties forming
positive relationships. Many refugee students also struggle with unrealistic social and
learning demands, as well as language barriers and cultural differences (Pugh et al., 2012).

Many refugees who come to Australia are negatively labelled as queue jumpers, terrorists
or bogus refugees (Windle & Miller, 2013). These accusations and stereotypes can have a
significant influence on the values and beliefs of students, teachers and the whole school
community. It was shocking to see how influential negative teacher behaviours and beliefs
such as stereotyping, blaming the students and labelling them as incapable can devastate
the progress of refugee students’ education and decrease their chances of reaching
University (Windle & Miller, 2013). Today’s educational policies and curriculum favour
privileged individuals who have economic, social and cultural capital, over those who do
not. Rather than explore the influence of social, cultural and economic factors on those who
have been forced to migrate, they focus on a student’s grades and behaviour.

I haven’t had the chance to teach any refugee students yet, but on my first placement more
than half the students in my class were EALD. The language barrier alone brought many
issues and challenges for students and myself, so I found this week’s topic really interesting
as refugee students are very complex.
Schools and teachers have a very important role in helping refugee students settle into their
new community and recover from past experiences (Christie & Sidhu, 2002). For this to
occur, teachers must provide culturally appropriate and inclusive education. Creating a
welcoming, inclusive, respectful and safe environment in the classroom is vital for all
students, especially refugee students. Pugh et al. (2012), highlight the greater benefits of a
whole school approach rather than programs which simply focus on teaching individuals
English language, for both mainstream and refugee students. This reading demonstrated the
positive effect integrating refugee and EALD students into mainstream classrooms and
school yards; it allows for a smoother transition.

Pugh et al. (2012), demonstrates the importance of looking deeper into behavioural
incidences especially with students who have experiences trauma. We need to be aware of
how our own background and knowledge can limit what we see, and how we respond to
different students. No two refugee students will have the same experiences; therefore, it is
crucial that teachers have a thorough understanding of their students to ensure that
learning is culturally appropriate and connects with the child’s prior knowledge. Not just
finding their weaknesses but also giving them an opportunity to showcase their strengths.