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Educators for Change: Supporting the Transformative Role of Teachers in Contexts of Mass Displacement

Year: 2020
Type: article
Abstract: Education in contexts affected by mass displacement is typified by political instability, \nthe marginalization of refugee learners, and a lack of educational resources, \nincluding learning spaces, relevant curricular materials, and mechanisms for the \naccreditation of learning that takes place outside formal educational institutions. In \nthese situations, teachers often become the students’ most powerful and inspirational \neducation resource. This paper stems from a qualitative study of how Syrian \nrefugee and Lebanese teachers understand “ future education” in the context of \nthe protracted crisis in Lebanon. Drawing from Aronowitz and Giroux’s (1993) \nconcept of transformative intellectuals, we argue that transformative approaches to \nprofessional development can enable teachers to capitalize on their local knowledge, \nprofessional abilities, and creativity to create spaces in which learners feel they \nhave greater control over their lives and can envision a better future. We propose \na transformative model for teacher professional development that is based on the \nideal learning space envisioned by teachers in a refugee context and on a critical \nunderstanding of their existing learning environments. The intention is to support \nteachers as they reshape the learning environments in which they work to bring them \ncloser to their imagined ideal. The use of available digital technologies enabled these \nteachers to create spaces in which they could harness and share the transformative \neducation practices already in place and facilitate change through massive open \nonline collaborations.
DOI: 10.33682/gtx6-u5q8
Language: English
Subfield: Education
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W3013301446
FWCI: 3.501
Cites: 21
Cited by: 31
Related to: 10