Challenges of Refugee Teachers in Malaysian Community-Based Learning Centers

Abstract

Because Malaysia is not a signatory to the 1951 Refugee Convention, the children of refugees living in Malaysia are deprived of any formal education. Children are taught mostly by the refugees themselves, many of whom are volunteers. Most of the community-based learning centers, which encounter many academic and management problems, are also sustained by the refugees. This qualitative study aims to apply the framework of resources and demands theory to explore the work demands encountered by these refugees' teachers and whether they have enough resources to meet the demands, as the learning centers are self-supported or supported by non-governmental organizations. This study collected data using the focus group method, recruiting participants through purposive sampling. Participants were organized into eight groups, each with seven volunteer participants, and open-ended questions were used for the participants to fully express their views and experiences. The data were analyzed using thematic analysis. The result showed that participants are burdened by academic and administrative tasks, lack of resources, poor infrastructure, and self-incompetence. The findings of the study proposed that more non-government organizations, local communities, and other stakeholders provide expertise and financial assistance to these communitybased learning centers as education is the human right of each child. Tantangan Guru-guru Pengungsi di Pusat Pembelajaran Berbasis Komunitas di Malaysia Abstrak Karena Malaysia bukan merupakan penandatangan Konvensi Pengungsi 1951, hak anak-anak pengungsi untuk mendapat pendidikan resmi telah menjadi sebuah masalah yang tidak begitu diperhatikan. Kebanyakan anak-anak ini diajar oleh guru yang terdiri dari para pengungsi yang bekerja sebagai sukarelawan. Pusat pembelajaran berbasis komunitas dikelola dan dikendalikan oleh pengungsi sering menghadapi pelbagai isu dari segi akademik dan manajemen. Studi pendekatan kualitatif ini menggunakan teori sumber daya dan permintaan sebagai kerangka kajian untuk mengetahui apa saja tuntutan pekerjaan yang dihadapi guru pengungsi dan apakah mereka memiliki sumber daya yang cukup untuk menghadapi tuntutan tersebut, karena pusat pembelajaran bersifat swadaya atau didukung oleh Lembaga Swadaya Masyarakat (LSM). Sumber pembelajaran yang tersedia perlu dikaji supaya cukup menampung serta memenuhi permintaan kerja. Pengumpulan data menggunakan metode focus group dan partisipan direkrut melalui purposive sampling. Partisipan dikumpulkan ke delapan kelompok, masing-masing kelompok terdiri dari tujuh partisipan sukarelawan. Pertanyaan terbuka (open-ended questions) digunakan untuk mendapat pandangan serta pengalaman berkaitan isu yang dikaji. Data dianalisis menggunakan teknik analisis tematik. Hasil temuan menunjukkan bahwa para guru memikul beban yang berat dalam menjalankan tugas akademik serta administrasi. Mereka juga menghadapi isu kurangnya sumber daya, keadaan infrastruktur yang serba kekurangan serta keyakinan diri dalam kompetensi mengajar. Temuan studi in...

Design and Development Research: Kounin Refugee Classroom Management Module for Limbongan Refugee Learning Centre

“…They say the lack of knowledge and training in proper management makes it difficult for them to handle students with behavioural and social emotional problems. Moreover, the teachers have difficulty helping the students due to differences in background, culture, and language [3]. According to Boru and Boyacı (2016a) [4], managing classes in which there are students from different cultures are located and having to cope with certain behaviours is a condition that puts strain on all stakeholders.…”