UNITED IN THOUGHT & ACTION: Education at the heart of the conflict 

How did the 2021 coup impact the education sector in Myanmar?

Since the military coup on 1 February 2021, Myanmar’s education system has been deeply affected. Already politicised, education has become a key battleground. From the start, teachers and students joined the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM), boycotting junta-controlled schools and rejecting what they called a “slave education system,” a term from the anti-colonial era. In response, alternative education options have emerged, both in person and online, many linked to the parallel government, the National Unity Government (NUG). 

Has this situation affected access to education? 

The impact is huge. Before the coup, nearly sixty-nine percent of young people aged six to twenty-two were in school. Today, that number has dropped to fifty-six-point eight percent. Many schools have been destroyed by bombings and armed conflict, while massive displacement—up to three million four hundred thousand people—has left entire regions without access to education. The boycott of schools controlled by the military junta (SAC/State Administrative Council) has made the situation even worse. Public universities, for example, are almost empty, with fewer than eighty-seven thousand students in 2023, compared to more than one million before the coup. 

In your book, you talk about a number of educational alternatives. Could you share some of them with us? 

This resistance has led to a fast-growing alternative education sector. Several initiatives have emerged. First, education systems linked to ethnic minorities, often connected to armed groups, have expanded significantly, with an estimated five hundred thousand to one million children currently enrolled. Monastic and private schools have also seen a sharp rise in students, mainly due to the boycott of junta-run schools. Lastly, online universities like “Spring University Myanmar” and “Virtual Federal University” have become key for higher education, relying on teachers who are part of the resistance. 

How is national identity integrated into these parallel education systems? 

Identity is at the heart of this education battle. The military regime uses schools for national propaganda, mainly promoting the Bamar ethnicity. In contrast, the NUG and ethnic groups support a more inclusive, federal approach, where minority languages and cultures matter. In ethnic education systems, local languages are often used for both learning and political reasons. This supports the federal vision but also creates big challenges, as Myanmar has around one hundred and twenty languages and complex ethnic identities. 

What impact does this have on education in border regions and abroad? 

Border areas, such as those near Thailand and India, have become safe places for exiled teachers and students. For example, Thailand is accepting more refugee children into its schools, as well as migrant workers looking for better job opportunities. Educational centres for migrants in Thailand are also helping to fill the gap in education. A large migration, made worse by the military conscription introduced in 2024, is also contributing to Myanmar’s “brain drain.” 

The education initiatives following the 2021 coup show the incredible courage, determination, and resilience of Myanmar’s diverse populations. However, the challenges are just as great. Access to education is still highly unequal across the country, worsened by poverty and conflict. The limited resources of alternative education systems make it hard for them to grow and maintain quality, particularly in ethnic regions where classrooms are often overcrowded. 

Finally, the politicisation of education, particularly around identity issues like languages of instruction and “national narratives,” along with the involvement of various armed groups, makes it difficult to build a federal, inclusive, and sustainable education system. A scenario in which the junta collapses, or at least sees its influence on the national territory drastically reduced, now seems plausible. However, a key question is how the many educational programmes, created or strengthened after the coup, will contribute to peaceful and sustainable political solutions. 

Education, a crucial part of the “solution,” could also become part of the “problem,” with the risk that schools may be used to promote a national identity based on ethnicity, shaped by the views of armed groups. It is hard to see how this could lead to political consensus or a peaceful future. Regardless of these crucial questions about the country’s future and the emergence of political solutions, possibly federal in nature, one thing remains certain: Myanmar will be supported by many education actors, as courageous, resilient, and determined as ever, who will, in one way or another, play a key role in the country’s future.