Beyond the classroom: The struggle for refugee teacher professionalization amidst national inclusion efforts.

• In Event: Highlighted Session: From afterthought to action: Putting teachers at the heart of the global refugee response

Proposal

The global push for inclusion of refugees into national systems primarily focuses on refugee learners, while their teachers who are also refugees in many contexts have received less attention. While some refugees were teachers prior to displacement, others may become teachers while residing in refugee-receiving countries, in either case often working for years, if not decades, to support efforts to provide schooling opportunities for refugee children and youth. Teachers in these settings also form one of the largest workforces striving to uphold the right to education in emergencies and protracted conflicts. Amidst these realities, this study seeks to ask: What are the responsibilities of national and international education actors to refugee teachers working in displacement settings? And, what are the policy barriers and breakthroughs for ensuring their continued work, recognition, and professionalization?

To answer these questions, this presentation will draw on a global survey of 16 refugee-receiving countries, illustrative case studies from Chad and Uganda, multiple key informant interviews and teacher focus groups to identify the policy constraints and opportunities for refugee teachers in the global push for inclusion. The theoretical framework guiding this study and informing data analysis draws on the “racialization of expertise” (Bian, 2022) and notions of “inclusionism” (Mitchell & Snyder, 2020), whereby seemingly promising policies and practices aimed to improve teacher management systems in these contexts mask intentional and/or unintentional efforts, including technology-driven “solutions”, to exclude refugee teachers from improving their situations.

Emerging findings indicate that more attention is needed to ensure committed refugee teachers can pursue a pathway toward professionalization and job continuity. The study further demonstrates that while many of the policy and practice responses that are needed are highly context-specific, there are promising examples that can inform both humanitarian responses and education sector plans across different contexts. It will further demonstrate how teacher management and development policy decisions made today carry sweeping implications for both present and future workforce sustainability for refugee teachers and educational opportunities for displaced learners. Overall, the findings will illuminate the social injustices experienced by teachers working in these settings and how the humanitarian sector is contributing to the overall devaluation of the teaching profession that we see in both crisis contexts and beyond.

Author

• Mary Mendenhall, Teachers College, Columbia University