As a new academic year begins in many places around the world, students in the Gaza Strip are facing their third consecutive year without full access to education due to Israel's war on the enclave.
Despite this, education authorities and schools are striving to give children in the Palestinian territory a chance to continue their studies.
With about 65 per cent of Gaza’s schools either destroyed, damaged or converted into shelters for people displaced by the conflict, most of the nearly 650,000 children of school age will be unable to attend classes, said Majdi Barhoum, spokesman for the territory's Ministry of Education.
“For the third year in a row, our students are still deprived of their right to sit in classrooms,” Mr Barhoum told The National. “This situation worsens the learning loss crisis, and some kindergarten students, that is, pre-school children, may end up facing illiteracy. This will inevitably affect the future educational cycle of this generation.”
Mr Barhoum said the toll on Gaza’s education system has been devastating. More than 15,000 school students and hundreds of university students have been killed, along with more than 950 teachers, principals and educational supervisors.
Material losses are also severe: 95 per cent of the education infrastructure is out of service, including the ministry headquarters, district offices, warehouses, book centres, training facilities and schools.
The psychological toll is equally alarming, with children experiencing trauma from the loss of relatives, neighbours and friends, he said.
To cope with the crisis, the education ministries in Gaza and the occupied West Bank established emergency committees last year to explore alternative ways to help children continue learning.
Individual initiatives to teach children in tents have been expanded into what are called educational points. These makeshift classrooms, which are officially recognised by the Gaza ministry, are run by volunteer teachers who work without pay and with minimal resources. Pupils often sit on the ground with no desks. Teaching facilities set up in buildings are recognised as learning centres.
Around 4,500 educational points and learning centres were operating across Gaza before Israel began a military offensive on Gaza city, home to about one million people – about half the territory's population – last month. Israel's intensified attacks on the city and surrounding areas in northern Gaza have forced many residents to follow the military's orders to leave and move south.
The authorities have also turned to online education, using platforms such as Teams or the WideSchool app. However, this is limited to students who have access to electricity, internet and electronic devices, which excludes many families. The new academic year is scheduled to begin online on September 15.
“About 70 per cent of students managed to follow last year through either in-person educational points or online alternatives,” Mr Barhoum said. “But the quality is not equal to proper classroom learning. We are still looking for ways to reach the remaining 30 per cent so they do not lose another academic year.”
Education authorities have also organised online Tawjihi school-leaving exams for about 38,000 higher secondary students who are unable to sit them in person because of the war. They will answer one paper a day from September 6-15 using the WiseSchool application, with additional security measures, such as screen recording and mandatory camera use, to prevent cheating.
Mr Barhoum said this is the first time such a system is being implemented in the Middle East.
Among the few schools that have reopened is Gaza College School, on Al Jalaa Street in Gaza city.
“We began the academic year to send a message that we are a peaceful people, and we want to practise our right to education and our right to life, away from any political causes,” the principal, Alaa Al Ra’i, told The National.
The school accommodates around 1,000 students from grades one through 12, divided into morning and evening shifts across six school days.
“Last year, we had 2,000 students, but the current circumstances are difficult due to displacement and parents’ fears amid ongoing strikes and continuous bombardment,” Ms Al Ra’i explained.
She said the school was prepared to shift to online education if necessary, which is what it did last year when much of northern Gaza's population was forced to move south, returning only when Israel and Hamas agreed to a short-lived truce in January this year
“Last year, we taught nearly 3,000 students online. But after returning from the south, we reopened the school and resumed in-person learning,” Ms Alaa said.
“We have prepared e-learning platforms and WhatsApp groups for student follow-up. Depending on the situation, there may also be attempts to establish field schools.”
Parents, however, continue to worry.
Taghreed Yaghi, a 40-year-old mother of three, said her eldest son is supposed to take his Tawjihi exams this Saturday, while her two younger sons attend Gaza College School.
“It is not easy to think all the time about their safety. I keep worrying from the moment they leave home until they return. But what should I do? They must continue their education, and nothing should stop them,” she said.
“I don’t want them to regret losing one or two years of their education. The only way we can resist is through learning.”
Mr Barhoum accused Israel of deliberately targeting the education of Gaza’s children.
“Our people are known for having the highest literacy rates in the world, yet today the entire educational system is being targeted,” he said.
“The goal is very clear: to keep this generation ignorant. But God willing, with the determination of our teachers, students, the educational system and parents, we will work to thwart these objectives.”
