Education Interrupted: Enrollment, Attainment, and Drop-out of Syrian Refugees in Jordan

Maia Sieverding, American University of Beirut
Caroline Krafft , St. Catherine University
Nasma Berri, American University of Beirut
Caitlyn Keo, St. Catherine University
Mariam Sharpless, St. Catherine University

The Syrian conflict has displaced millions of children, who, as a result of school interruption due to conflict and displacement, are at risk of experiencing permanent deficits in their human development. We rely on nationally representative survey data from Jordan in 2016 and Syria in 2009, and in-depth interviews with Syrian refugee youth in Jordan in 2017, to analyze the dynamics of school interruption, (re)-enrollment and drop-out of Syrian refugee children in Jordan. School enrollment rates for basic education have largely recovered to levels that – while below universal – are near to those of this population in Syria pre-conflict. Enrollments in secondary school and among teenage boys, in particular, remain low and lower than pre-conflict. A complex nexus of supply- and demand-side factors contribute to dropout and non-enrollment among Syrian refugees, including the challenges of the Jordanian curriculum, interpersonal factors and integration in Jordanian schools, financial burdens and gendered household norms.

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 Presented in Session 2. Children & Youth