Examining Needs and Issues of Refugee- Receiving Schools in Turkey from the Perspectives of School Counselors

Abstract and figures

65.3 million people were forced to leave their countries in 2017 as a result of the conflicts all over the world (ECHO, 2017). 3.9 million people settled down Turkey according to the official figures in 2018 (ECHO, 2018). Turkey became the most refugee- receiving country along with this number (UNICEF, 2017). Refugee crisis exists around the world. Settling down a new country and meeting with new cultures bring along studies about refugee adaptation process. Schools are the inseparable part.of the adaptation process. Since school counselors are informed all school components’ needs and issues, they act as the key position in the school. The aim of this study is to analyze the needs and issues of most refugee- receiving schools from different parts of Turkey from the school counselors’ perspective. Data were collected during September- November 2017 by using qualitative data collection tool. Seven cities were selected considering the report that indicated the distribution of Syrian refugees according to cities in Turkey published by Republic of Turkey Ministry of Interior Directorate General of Migration Management (2017). These provinces are Istanbul, Hatay, Şanlıurfa, Mardin, Diyarbakır, İzmir and Gaziantep. Fifteen school counselors who are working at the most refugee- receiving schools in their cities were interviewed by using semi- structured interview protocol. Three main themes showed up as a result of the qualitative analysis as personal and professional experiences of school counselors, local students and refuge students. Every main theme involves needs, problems and facilitative factors sub- themes.