The Art of Inclusive Exclusions: Educating the Palestinian Refugee Students in Lebanon (Refugee Survey Quarterly, Vol. 33, No. 2)

For more than 65 years, Palestinian refugees have been living in Lebanon in a “temporary” State in over-crowded camps, deprived of basic rights such as the right to have a professional job. It has been argued that these restrictions have had a major effect on the fair provision and quality of education, an effect manifested in the increasing number of Palestinian students who are dropping out of school. This article examines the quality of education offered in United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees schools and the impact of Lebanese legal restrictions on students’ educational motivation and aspirations.

A quantitative survey of the educational experiences and aspirations of 404 secondary students and 48 teachers in five secondary schools of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees was carried out. An in-depth study of a primary school also took place. The findings revealed that Palestinian refugee students are confronted by a paradox: forced inclusion because of having to learn the Lebanese curriculum, but exclusion because of simultaneously being pushed to the periphery of Lebanese society as a result of the Lebanon’s discriminatory laws and regulations.