Intercultural competence for peaceful communities: The role of blended learning higher education in refugee camps

Abstract

This research investigates how refugees living in camps who graduated from a blended higher education programme have described their journey in building intercultural competences, by analysing the voices of almost 100 refugee graduates of the Diploma in Liberal Studies programme, accredited by Regis University and delivered by Jesuit Worldwide Learning. Focusing on the geographical scope of Dzaleka camp (Malawi) and Kakuma camp (Kenya), this article unveils the transformative intercultural learning that occurs in the Diploma programme, mostly appearing in the elements of knowledge and skills, attitudes, behaviour and outcomes. By anchoring this research in a context of social and geographic marginalisation, this paper contributes to the literature by investigating how a blended learning Diploma programme in Liberal Studies can serve as means to overcome physical barriers faced by students to access higher education and inner ones as graduates develop intercultural competence for their benefits and the ones of their community. Lastly, by bringing seldom heard voices, this paper reconciles the characteristics and values of intercultural competence with the intercultural needs of refugees living in camps to transform this competence into a peacebuilding tool.