The world is currently facing a worsening refugee crisis, where roughly 1.1 million people, who fled their homes due to violence, drought and food insecurity, are needed to be relocated this year. Fortunately, United Nations is making efforts to raise awareness about refugees, particularly in refugee education and learning.
Previous researches on education technology (EdTech) have underscored its potential to revolutionize the opportunity limits and access of less fortunate students to education through the influence of new digital tools as educational resources. That's why experts believed that education technology can help transform and improve children refugees' education.
Education Technology Revolutionizes Education For Children Refugees
For refugees, technology is currently a luxury that will allow them to contact their families and relatives in other parts of the world. But technology is also a profound necessity that can have a positive influence in their lives, especially in education.
It is not a surprise that several schools in refugee camps have inadequate educational resources. In fact, student refugees don't have access to most if not all tools needed for learning and development. Hence, education technology-based learning is seen as an effective solution to provide the much-needed educational resources in refugee camp schools.
The Positive Impact Of Education Technology In Refugee Education
According to Huffington Post, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has collaborated with Vodafone Foundation to launch the education technology-based teaching called, Instant Network Schools program. Ever since the program was introduced in Kenya's Dadaab refugee camp, one of the world's largest refugee settlements with 350,000 inhabitants, teachers have reported a positive change in students.
Education is crucial for refugee children who have already lost so much https://t.co/wJKOhO9GHi #EducationCannotWait pic.twitter.com/ef8Am3A2aO
— UNICEF Education (@UNICEFEducation) June 22, 2016
Teachers noticed that education technology-based programs have improved the overall well-being of students. Their confidence level also increased as EdTech learning model encourages child-centered education.
In addition, school enrolment and attendance levels have also risen, noting the eagerness of students to go to class on-time or earlier. EdTech also motivated students to learn with excitement as interactive resources provide better and up-to-date information compared to outdated textbooks.
Education technology-based learning also helped Vodafone's Instant Network Schools, mobile classrooms in refugee camps. Even though language barrier for both students and teachers has been a major factor that affects education and learning in refugee camps, EdTech was able to provide better communication and more effective teaching styles through the help of translation apps.
The Significance Of Education Technology In Refugee Learning
With the worsening refugee crisis in the world today, almost 30 million children are deprived of education due to violence and conflict that destroyed the infrastructures in their respective areas. Due to war, children were left with little or no access to education.
Fortunately, digital technologies such as education technology-based programs are perceived to be a way of making education more available to children displaced by violence and war. UNICEF's Global Innovation Center's Product Content Strategist Becky Telford highlighted the major advantage of education technology, which is making education more accessible to refugees.
"A key benefit is that digital approaches to education can provide access in places where access wouldn't otherwise be possible," Telford told Deutsche Welle. "There is a huge number of children in the classroom with very little additional resources. Being able to put things together digitally would mean... you can provide resources like textbooks and teacher tools very quickly, as well as resources that children can use as enrichment."
Telford, however, emphasized that access to education is not the only important thing that education technology can provide. Aside from access, Telford said EdTech can also offer great projects that can help integrate psychosocial support and life skills into educational resources, citing UNICEF and War Child Holland's collaborative project called Can't Wait to Learn, a gamified version of basic literacy and numeracy that also provide identity and psychosocial support so students can take charge and make positive choices.
Major Challenges Of Education Technology Projects In Refugee Schools
The introduction of education technology has also brought major challenges before it can be successful and effective. In fact, EdTech projects are complicated and time-consuming to design, not to mention expensive. But Telford said the effective strategy when it comes to digital innovation principles is not always on building something new but on boosting existing ideas and projects.
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