학술논문

Educational Challenges That Syrian Refugee Students with Disabilities Experience
Document Type
Journal Articles
Reports - Research
Author
Abdullah Eker (ORCID 0000-0002-6409-7732); Mustafa Karnas (ORCID 0000-0003-0304-1791); Beyza Alpaydin (ORCID 0000-0003-1470-1935)
Source
International Journal of Modern Education Studies. 2023 7(2):545-561.
Subject
Syria
Turkey
Language
English
ISSN
2618-6209
Abstract
Since the beginning of the civil war in Syria, Türkiye has been receiving millions of Syrian refugees. Based on the reports of the Ministry of National Education (MONE) of Türkiye, more than one million refugees in Türkiye are of school age. Children are one of the most affected groups from the refugee flow. The literature indicated that lack of communication and language skills, limited support by parents, and economic and cultural differences were educational challenges that typically developing Syrian refugee children in Türkiye have been experiencing. However, very few studies have explored the educational issues that Syrian refugee children with disabilities have been experiencing. This study was conducted to contribute to the literature by exploring the educational challenges that Syrian refugee children with disabilities have been experiencing. Structured and semistructured interviews were conducted with eight parents of refugee children with disabilities and eight teachers of the students. Findings of the present study indicated that most of the educational issues that children with disabilities have been experiencing were the same as those experienced by typically developing Syrian refugee children. These common issues included language and communication barriers, cultural differences, and economic issues. The present study added that limited cooperation between parents and teachers, lack of educational materials designed for bilingual children with disabilities, and lack of expectations of parents from their children with disabilities were the issues that Syrian refugee children with disabilities have been experiencing. This study provides implications for practice and suggestions for future research.