“Listening to a refugee teacher describe how recognition would restore dignity sparked excitement in me to highlight their truths. It made me feel that our experience can inspire change.”
My name is AKITERETSE CLODINA, a refugee teacher living in Nakivale settlement, Uganda. I teach at a primary school and have 8 years of experience. My school is a lively place where children love to learn and we’re passionate about making a difference despite challenges like limited resources.
Clodina presents to her fellow peer researchers during a research training week.
Collecting interview and focus group discussion data was an exciting journey. Wearing the hat of a researcher alongside my identity as a refugee teacher made me eager to hear and highlight our stories. One moment that stands out is when a fellow refugee teacher said “Being heard gives me hope”. This sentence made me realise how important it is to give voice to our experiences. The interviews were different from what I expected because they were inspiring and participants spoke openly about their struggles, which surprised me and showed me the power of honest conversations that flow naturally. I noticed that refugee teachers shared experiences that showed their resilience and strength. And refugee teachers shared more personal experiences than national teachers, showing their unique challenges.
The part I enjoyed most about data collection was hearing stories that energised me. Listening to a refugee teacher describe how recognition would restore dignity sparked excitement in me to highlight their truths. It made me feel that our experience can inspire change. For instance, one participant said being part of research made them feel valued for the first time in years. Moments like these reminded me of the importance of highlighting refugee voices.
This research taught me that listening with empathy unlocks valuable insights. Refugee teachers need recognition and support to thrive. Highlighting our stories can build a more inclusive education community. By giving voice to our experiences, we can challenge stereotypes and create opportunities for collaboration and growth.
Ultimately, it’s about creating spaces where refugee teachers are heard, valued and empowered to contribute to the education systems that work for everyone.
This Think Piece is part of a series, featuring 18 refugee teachers from Chad, Uganda and Zambia. You can read the full publication here.
The contributors are peer researchers on a GERE study exploring refugee teacher inclusion, agency, and wellbeing. Read more about the study here.
“If there is one thing I want readers to take away, it is this: teachers, whether refugee or national, are the foundation of the future. But you cannot build a future on a foundation that is ignored, underpaid, and kept in the dark. We need transparency. We need information. We need to be valued.”
My name is Abraham Bashombana Aganze and I am a refugee teacher living and working in Uganda, in Nakivale refugee settlement. I have been teaching for five years now in my host country.
When I was asked to be a peer researcher for this project on refugee teacher inclusion pathways, I felt a mix of excitement and nervousness. I didn’t know what I would find by asking my colleagues to open up about their lives.
Honestly, what I found shocked me. It also changed how I see myself, my community, and the system we all navigate as teachers.
Abraham presents to fellow Peer Researchers and other colleagues in Uganda during a research training week.
Right from the start, collecting data was not easy. The research took place during the holidays, and I quickly learned that for many teachers, a “holiday” does not mean resting. Most teachers had left the settlement to look for other jobs of any kind just to survive because many are not paid during holidays. The people I needed to speak with were scattered, working hard in distant places just to put food on the table.
Then, when it was time to organise the Focus Group Discussions, another challenge appeared. Teachers live in different villages, spread far apart. Bringing everyone together in one place required money (money for transport refunds so they could afford to come and share their stories). I had to invest my own resources to make it happen. It was a logistical puzzle, and there were moments I worried we wouldn’t be able to do it at all.
Despite the difficulties, when we finally sat down to talk, the conversations were worth every effort. The biggest eye-opener was this: most refugee teachers have no idea what their rights are. I listened to colleague after colleague describe their struggles, and I realised that nobody had ever told them what they are entitled to. I kept asking myself: Why do stakeholders keep us ignorant? It feels like being left in the dark on purpose. We don’t know where to go for help, who to ask for support, or how to access the services that could fully include us in this country.
Before this research, I carried a heavy feeling that I was the only one who was not satisfied with my life. I thought my frustration was personal, something wrong with me. But sitting across from other refugee teachers, hearing their stories, I realised we are all struggling with the same dissatisfaction. Even more surprising? Some national teachers shared those same feelings. That moment revealed a hard truth: it isn’t just abongaged constructively with questions and suggestions from government representatives, responding with clarity and confidence.
I also learned about the obstacles that keep us stuck. Many refugee teachers told me about trying to get their documents equated, only to wait years for a result. The process is so long, it makes you wonder if corruption is pulling the strings behind the scenes. How else do you explain a system that moves so slowly that it keeps people from working legally in their profession?
Abraham receives a certificate of completion following the end of a research training week.
Even with all these challenges, this experience gave me something invaluable. The training we received as peer researchers has truly empowered me. I gained knowledge and skills that will remain relevant for the rest of my life; not just as a researcher, but as a teacher. I learned how to listen more deeply, how to ask questions that matter, how to solve problems that affected both my students and myself using the research methodologies and skills I learned and and how to see the bigger picture behind individual struggles. That training is a gift I will carry with me forever.
And the benefits keep growing. The gadget I was given to conduct this research, to record interviews and take notes, is now helping me in my classroom every day. I use it to find and prepare materials for my lessons. The skills I learned during the training have also improved my teaching practices. I find myself engaging with my students differently, asking better questions, and really listening to their answers. What started as a research project has made me a better teacher.
I always use the tablet to access French and Kiswahili courses on different online platforms (Alison, YouTube,..). I started using this teaching strategy after realising that many pupils in my secondary school don’t like the above mentioned languages. I had to use the research knowledge and skills I learned during Jigsaw trainings to find out the reasons behind their unjustified abhorrence. After conducting interviews with my learners, I realised that the content in the syllabus book is what scares them since they do lack basic knowledge. This made me look for French and Kiswahili lessons for complete beginners. Now my class is full of pupils who have taken French as an optional subject.
This research has reached deep into my awareness and brought things to light that I never saw before. I thought I was alone in my frustration, but I am part of a crowd. The challenge now is figuring out how we make our voices heard; and how we finally get the information and rights we deserve.
If there is one thing I want readers to take away, it is this: teachers, whether refugee or national, are the foundation of the future. But you cannot build a future on a foundation that is ignored, underpaid, and kept in the dark. We need transparency. We need information. We need to be valued.
This Think Piece is part of a series, featuring 18 refugee teachers from Chad, Uganda and Zambia. You can read the full publication here.
The contributors are peer researchers on a GERE study exploring refugee teacher inclusion, agency, and wellbeing. Read more about the study here.
This video was prepared for a roundtable debate at the Global Refugee Forum 2025. The participatory roundtable aimed to amplify the lived realities of refugee teachers, elevate their policy-relevant perspectives, take stock of progress and learning, whilst reinforcing the urgent need for sustainable and equitable financing for education and teachers in crisis settings. Our GERE-Research contribution included hearing from our refugee teacher researchers in Chad, Uganda and Zambia, as well as some emerging findings from our research.
The Scaling Refugee Teacher National Inclusion Models for Enhanced Agency and Well-being project is a 33-month research study as part of the GERE research initiative – a partnership between Jigsaw, Refugee Education UK and UNHCR. Running from 2024–2027 in Chad, Uganda, and Zambia, the project explores how refugee teachers can be more effectively included in national education systems in ways that strengthen both their agency and their wellbeing.
Across the three countries, 18 refugee teachers have been recruited as peer researchers. They play a central role in shaping research tools, conducting fieldwork, and bringing critical contextual insights to the study. Through an accredited training programme, they are being equipped not only as researchers but also as reflective, evidence-based practitioners.
The Scaling Refugee Teacher National Inclusion Models for Enhanced Agency and Well-being project is a 33-month research study as part of the GERE research initiative – a partnership between Jigsaw, Refugee Education UK and UNHCR. Running from 2024–2027 in Chad, Uganda, and Zambia, the project explores how refugee teachers can be more effectively included in national education systems in ways that strengthen both their agency and their wellbeing.
Across the three countries, 18 refugee teachers have been recruited as peer researchers. They play a central role in shaping research tools, conducting fieldwork, and bringing critical contextual insights to the study. Through an accredited training programme, they are being equipped not only as researchers but also as reflective, evidence-based practitioners.
The first round of training and data collection is complete in each country. Peer researchers took part in a week-long programme covering core research methods, and then each peer researcher administered 30 teacher surveys in their communities, contributing over 540 responses across the cohort.
At UKFIET 2025, we shared a short video in which peer researchers introduced themselves and reflected on the first phase of the project. They speak about their experiences of teaching in their host countries, and their first steps as researchers in this project. Their contributions were warmly received, and the video was especially appreciated for bringing refugee teacher voices directly into the conference space.
The voices of our peer researchers highlight the potential of refugee teacher researchers to shape more inclusive and equitable education systems.
