Our Paticipatory Researches
Education Reimagined: COVID-19 Emergency Response for Migrant Education
For the educators working in Migrant Learning Centers (MLCs) on the Thai-Myanmar border, teaching was already a demanding profession. Resources were already scarce. Uncertainty was already a constant.
Now, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, education as we know it is being redefined. For Education Reimagined, 64 MLC headmasters participated in a rapid assessment focusing on school readiness, home-learning support and safety in response to COVID-19. As part of the assessment, all learning center classrooms were measured to determine student capacity with social distance guidelines. Most MLCs will need to implement a rotating schedule or reallocate students in order to accommodate all students in the 2020-2021 academic year.
The upcoming academic year will look and feel completely different. New solutions, strategies and support mechanisms will be essential in helping migrant educators to navigate the “new normal” of their classrooms.
Bridges: Participatory Action Research on
the Future of Migrant Education in Thailand
It is estimated that of the 350,000 migrant children living in Thailand, over 200,000 are currently out of school (Ministry of Education and Migrant Working Group, 2018). In recent years, powerful strides have been made to ensure migrant children from Myanmar receive a government-recognized education either from the Thai or the Myanmar Ministry of Education. A large-scale participatory action research project was undertaken to identify the perspectives of parents, teachers, educational leaders, and children enrolled in both Thai Formal Government Schools and Migrant Learning Centers. Over 1,700 participants were surveyed ranging from Tak to Ranong province by 26 leaders from 7 organizations supporting education for migrant children. The report provides critical insights from the ground on the future of education for migrant children in Thailand.
Download Full Report
Download Summary Report
Download 2019-2020 Report
Download 2018-2019 Report
Education Quality Framework:
Documenting Education Quality in Migrant Learning Centers on the Thai-Myanmar Border
The Education Quality Framework (EQF) was developed to provide consistent standards of educational quality in MLCs, through a comprehensive process of consultations and workshops with migrant education stakeholders beginning in 2015. Following a pilot of the tool in the 2016-2017 academic year, the EQF was used to assess systems-level educational quality in 38 MLCs in 2017-2018, 54 MLCs in 2018-2019 and 65 MLCs in 2019-2020.
The EQF assessment tool is available in Myanmar, Thai and English languages and is annually reviewed by both participating MLC headmasters and partner organization staff to ensure continued relevance in the dynamic context of the Thai-Myanmar border. The EQF seeks to identify contextual challenges faced by Migrant Learning Centers and develop solutions to help MLCs mitigate them in the future. Specifically, the EQF focuses on systems-level structures and policies in place within the learning centers.