Civic education and the education of refugees

This essay explores the civic education of refugees within the context of a radical global policy shift to include refugees in national education systems. I argue that this shift has promoted structural inclusion of refugees in national schooling but has not adequately engaged with the relational processes of inclusion. I explore two central dilemmas for civic education in this context: the dilemma of nation-state-centric curriculum and national narratives that do not include refugees; and the dilemma of marginalisation of refugees within national education systems and limited spaces for refugees to imagine or enact civic behaviours. I examine these dilemmas through a synthesis of existing literature, both historical and contemporary, that addresses civic dimensions of the educational experiences of refugee children while also drawing on my original research with refugee children and in refugee-hosting schools and from interviews with national and global actors. I conclude with reflections on the implications of these dilemmas for future research to inform school-based practices in refugee education.