How and Why Do Syrian Refugees Maintain Their Schools in Turkey? Understanding the Particular Role of Schooling under Conflict

Refugee children lack opportunities to access to social welfare. Although providing education for them is essential in the context of EFA, it is challenging especially for those who live in urban settings. Ever since 2011, 1.7... [ view full abstract ]

Refugee children lack opportunities to access to social welfare. Although providing education for them is essential in the context of EFA, it is challenging especially for those who live in urban settings. Ever since 2011, 1.7 million of Syrian refugees fled to Turkey. Active players among them independently establish and manage schools on their own initiative. The enrollments at those schools remain unclear while over 500 schools are estimated to have been established in Turkey. This study examines the roles of those refugee-managed schools, focusing on how and why they make their schools sustainable place in conflict situation. The fieldwork was carried out for the total period of 10 weeks in 2013 and 2015. Qualitative approach, peculiarly participant observation as well as semi-structured and narrative interviews, was applied to collect data at two refugee-managed schools in the Syria-bordered city in Turkey. The schools contribute to mitigate the refugee children’s instability caused by the loss of stable status and human networks. One of the school roles is to provide internationally recognized diploma with the Libyan government’s assistance, which enabled access to higher education. The other role is to serve as the place of belonging. The students continue to go to the school partly because of the sense of belonging while they are socially and psychologically isolated. The schools can rebuild face-to-face relationships and replace the original community which refugees have lost. The refugee-managed schools appear to be sustainable when they minister to both the pragmatic and sensuous needs of their children.