Life as a refugee student in Malaysia: Part II of an interview with Emily
IN PART TWO OF OUR INTERVIEW WITH EMILY, SHE SHARES HER EXPERIENCE AS A STUDENT AT THE ALLIANCE OF CHIN REFUGEE (ACR) SCHOOL IN KUALA LUMPUR. THIS ARTICLE IS WRITTEN BY WRS VOLUNTEER IAN COVERDALE. Read part 1 here.
I’m talking to Emily about school. She says “I love school. Every day I get to learn new things. I also get to hang out with my friends which is great. I don’t know what I would do if I couldn’t see them each day. They are so important to me.”
People who flee Myanmar and come to Malaysia are not able to access many services including public schools, healthcare, nor are they legally allowed to work (although they do work in the burgeoning informal economy). People live a “shadowy” existence as illegal immigrants without many rights and often are subject to exploitation.
People from the same ethnic minority groups have formed community groups to provide mutual support for their members. Many of the ethnic and dialect based community groups provide schools, one of these is the Alliance of Chin Refugee (ACR) School, which Emily attends.
Emily explains that she is doing the International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) which is equivalent to the British General Certificate of Secondary Education and prepares student for further pre-university level study, such as A-levels. I ask about Emily’s favourite subjects and with a broad smile on her face she responds, “my favourite subjects are social studies and geography.” She continues, “I also like reading, including manga. I really enjoyed the Harry Potter series as well as all the Percy Jackson books.”
Emily says the teachers at the ACR School are good. I ask what makes a good teacher? Emily thinks for a moment and then says, “They have to be able to enforce rules and have discipline but to do it in a fun way. Sometimes classes can get noisy or even get out of control. I like teachers who are strict and can make sure students stay within reasonable boundaries but do it in a good-natured way.”
I ask Emily what she would like to do when she leaves school? Emily says, “I would like to go to drama school and become an actress.” I follow up with “What’s the appeal of acting?” Emily responds, “You get to be someone different in every role, that sounds interesting and challenging to me.” She then goes on to say “The other thing I think about is becoming a lawyer. It is a very honourable job, and you get to help people out.”
Emily points out, “Getting my IGCSSE is important because it will provide me with the possibility of going to university. I won’t be able to do that here in Malaysia but if our family gets resettled to another country, I may be able to go to university or drama school.” I say, “I hope to see you on the screen one day or to hear about her arguing a major case.” Emily says, “Maybe it will happen, in the meantime once I leave school here in Malaysia, I will need to get a job to help the family.”