“I am mostly concerned about their education”: Syrian refugee families and the right to education in Lebanon

Abstract

Ongoing since 2011, the conflict in Syria is considered to be one of the largest humanitarian crises in modern history. With a large number of Syrian families fleeing the war to resettle in neighboring Lebanon, Lebanon’s education system has become overwhelmed. In this paper, we will describe how Syrian families and community stakeholders experienced education in Lebanon and highlight barriers to education, suggesting potential interventions to ensure that the right to education is upheld. The findings underscore the multiple challenges that Syrian families face in seeking education for their children. At the same time, the findings point to the importance of education in the lives of Syrian families both in Syria before the war, in their current contexts of displacement in Lebanon, and in their future hopes and dreams for their children.

Exploring stressors impacting the mental health of refugee mothers in Lebanon during COVID-19 pandemic: A qualitative study

“…This is supported by previous research that showed that 30 percent of Syrian families assessed did not receive any support from aid organizations during the pandemic (Hajjar and Abu-Sittah, 2021). Mothers in our study described a feeling of desperation and helplessness due to their financial situation and their inability to provide for their children, which echoes previous research on the impact of economic precarity on parents (Akesson et al, 2020).…”

“…Therefore, social workers should be encouraged to advocate for policies that will remove barriers to mobility, such as restrictions related to not having the proper refugee documentation and the high cost of transportation. To address the issue of economic precarity facing this population, policies that address economic precarity – such as providing families with cash, so that, they can determine their own financial priorities and how to best address them (Akesson et al, 2020) – would go a long way in supporting mothers and their families. Finally, the research noted the importance of offering alternatives to COVID-deferred education for school-age children who may not have access to the Internet or a computer, so as to alleviate the caregiving responsibilities of their parents when they are at home caring for a new baby.…”