Abstract:

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, countries around the world have closed many activities including education. Indeed, Malaysia is one of the countries that closed schools, universities, and other educational institutions in order to reduce the spread of the virus. This closure forced the educational system to switch from traditional methods to e-learning using available educational platforms, which require electronic devices with strong Internet access. The primary focus of this study is to investigate the impact of a pandemic on the educational development of refugee children in Malaysia. The study employs semi-structured interview “open-ended questions” for all participants; the data then processed using thematic and content analyses. The findings indicate that the socio-economic status of the family, lack of digital facilities and skills as well ambiguity to the pandemic situation are among the constraints that have a big impact on children's education, and it leads some children to stop resuming their studies during the Movement Control Order (MCO). Thus, Covid-19 is another extra challenge for refugee children; it severely affected the educational development of those children. It is very important to create awareness among the world communities about this critical issue, which threatens the future of refugee children and widens the high risk of educational inequality. This study can provide insight into the landscape of children's development and ways to support refugee children. Hence, this research carries values to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) in enhancing the quality of education for refugee children.

Keywords:

Education, Covid-19, Children Education, Lifelong Learning.