Challenges to the education rights of children on the move in Latin America: A scoping review

Abstract

Research on education in emergencies underscores the significant structural obstacles refugee children encounter in accessing education within low- and middle-income countries. However, there remains a notable gap in understanding the challenges confronted by transnational migrant children and the evolving nature of these challenges amidst shifting migration dynamics. To address this gap, we conducted a scoping literature review of 144 articles written in Spanish, Portuguese, and English examining transnational migration and education in Latin America, a region undergoing profound shifts in immigration patterns. Our analysis reveals that changes in these patterns activate new challenges for education rights. As migrants gradually relocated to other Latin American countries, their children encountered barriers to education compounded by instances of assimilation and discrimination within schools. With migration waves intensifying, discrimination evolves, influenced by governance structures fostering diversity but enabling physical segregation and ongoing marginalization of migrant children. These findings anticipate challenges in implementing current policy recommendations for integrating refugees and other groups of children on the move into the regular education systems of Global South countries.