Comparative Assessment : Turkish curriculum and Syrian curriculum in Temporary Education Centres

Turkey is hosting the world’s largest number of refugees. Children make up half of this population. However, less than one-third of Syrian children in Turkey are in formal education. There are two formal education opportunities for Syrian children in Turkey; public schools and Temporary Education Centres (TECs).  Refugee children are entitled to access education in camps and in host communities through primary and middle school TECs, which provide instruction in Arabic using a modified version of the Syrian curriculum. During the 2015-2016 school year, 247,000 Syrian children were enrolled in TECs. Another 73,000 Syrian refugee children are enrolled in Turkish public schools where they follow the Turkish national curriculum,

Currently, approximately 76% of Syrian refugee students attend TECs, and 24% attend Turkish public schools. Of the nearly 1 million school-aged Syrian children living in Turkey, around 311,000 are receiving formal education, while over 600,000 Syrian school-age children remain without access to formal education opportunities. Syrian refugee children who access formal education face many problems in making the transition to Turkish public schools. Language problems are more obvious than in other countries, especially for students seeking access to public schools. Refugee children face additional challenges in adapting to a new curriculum.

This report undertakes a comparative analysis of Turkish and Syrian curriculums, to enable improvement of curriculums for Syrian refugee children in terms of both their content and implementation.