Views of Teachers and Students on the Problems of Syrian Children in a Refugee School in Turkey

Abstract

The aim of the study was to shed light on the situations of teachers and students and their perception of the atmosphere in a school where Turkish children were educated in the morning while Syrian refugee students were educated in the afternoon. In this study, the features of the school, and the scope of curriculum applied to Syrian children, and the problems within the education process were examined according to teachers’ as well as to students’ views. Interviews were conducted with 12 refugee students and 4 Syrian teachers at the school. It was found that teaching had not been the original job of most of the teachers who were teaching due to their economic difficulties. It was also ascertained that teachers had problems, especially with the curriculum as well as with teaching materials; their students had forgotten some part of what they had learned due to several years of gap in their education; and that most of these students carried with them the psychological effects of the war. Based on the results of the study, it is suggested that refugees’ education be carried out along with the students of the hosting country, that the curricula be prepared according to their needs, and that teachers working at these schools be equipped with an acceptable level of teaching skills.