Thein Naing | Open Universities Australia (original) (raw)
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This chapter presents 3 models of online and distance education that provide university courses t... more This chapter presents 3 models of online and distance education that provide university courses to Burmese refugees (displaced ethnic minorities) on the Thai-Burma border. It analyzes the student selection process, the importance of appointing a local tertiary-educated Burmese coordinator, and the significance of practicing important graduation rituals. This work has begun a new movement in developing transformative relationships across ethnic and international boundaries and between refugees and university instructors and administrators, thus bringing academic resources to refugees in need of advanced education. We explore the cross-cultural, interethnic, and pedagogical dilemmas and challenges inherent in the process. In this chapter, we use the name Burma, rather than Myanmar, as this is used to describe the country by refugees living in Thailand. We use the terms refugees and displaced ethnic minorities to encompass the range of people from diverse ethnic nationalities who have fled from Burma.
This chapter presents 3 models of online and distance education that provide university courses t... more This chapter presents 3 models of online and distance education that provide university courses to Burmese refugees (displaced ethnic minorities) on the Thai-Burma border. It analyzes the student selection process, the importance of appointing a local tertiary-educated Burmese coordinator, and the significance of practicing important graduation rituals. This work has begun a new movement in developing transformative relationships across ethnic and international boundaries and between refugees and university instructors and administrators, thus bringing academic resources to refugees in need of advanced education. We explore the cross-cultural, interethnic, and pedagogical dilemmas and challenges inherent in the process. In this chapter, we use the name Burma, rather than Myanmar, as this is used to describe the country by refugees living in Thailand. We use the terms refugees and displaced ethnic minorities to encompass the range of people from diverse ethnic nationalities who have fled from Burma.