Civil war makes a lost generation of Syrian schoolchildren

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1 Civil war makes a lost generation of Syrian schoolchildren By Associated Press, adapted by Newsela staff on Word Count 939 In this picture taken on March 12, 2014, a Syrian girl (foreground) carries her brother as she walks between tents with other children (background) on their way to a makeshift school at their refugee camp in the Lebanese-Syrian border town of Majdal Anjar, eastern Bekaa valley, Lebanon. Photo: AP Photo/Hussein Malla MAJDAL ANJAR, Lebanon Along with some 20 other Syrian children, 13year-old Anas braves rain, mud and cold to attend class in a tent pitched along Lebanon's border with Syria. This home of a Syrian refugee family serves as a classroom for four hours each day. Many Syrians have become refugees, fleeing their homeland to escape the violence there that has been caused by political unrest. There is a civil war in Syria between the army led by Syria's president and rebels, who want to overthrow him. In the classroom tent, there are no benches and no blackboard, no textbooks and no notebooks. There are just sheets of paper and some pencils and crayons that two young refugee women use to teach children like Anas how to read and write, count and draw, sing songs and recite poems.

2 But even Anas might be considered one of the luckier ones in Syria's long conflict, which reached its third anniversary on Saturday. Nearly half of Syria's school-age children 2.8 million and counting cannot get an education because of the devastation and violence. The numbers might even be bigger, a tragedy for a country where once nearly all children completed elementary school. Children Not Going To School "They come every day, these sad parents, begging me to take their children to school," said Etaf Seif Abdel Samad. She is the principal of a public grade school in Beirut. Syrian children learn with the Lebanese side by side there. "They've lost everything in Syria and all they have in Lebanon is the interest in their children's future," she said. More than 2 million of those who should be in school are still in Syria, where classrooms have been bombed, used as shelters or turned into military shelters. Another 300,000 Syrian children in Lebanon do not go to class. There are even more Syrian children who aren't going to school in Jordan, Turkey, Iraq and Egypt. Experts say that puts a whole generation of Syrians at risk of coming of age without knowing how to read. UNICEF estimates that more than 10,000 children have died in the violence in Syria. The conflict has unleashed massive suffering across all parts of Syrian society, but the impact on children has been especially rough. Poor nutrition and illness stunt their growth; a lack of schooling derails their education; and the haunting images of war leave deep psychological scars. Makeshift Classrooms In Tents With no end to fighting in sight, Syrian refugees are desperate to get their children the most basic education. They beg principals to take them into Lebanon's overcrowded public schools, send them to makeshift classes in tents, and offer them to mosques to study with sheiks, or religious leaders. Anas' tent classroom is near Majdal Anjar, a border town in the east of Lebanon's Bekaa valley. Children's drawings hung on the plastic walls there and an out-of-season Christmas tree decoration dangled from the ceiling. Anas, the oldest of the children on a colorful carpet, wore a sweater and warm trousers, though he sat barefoot in the cold.

3 Anas was in fourth grade when his city of Homs in central Syria was attacked nearly three years ago. His school came under fire, his teachers fled, and so did his family. He and his five older siblings have not been to school since. "My school was beautiful. It had walls and desks and doors. I had many friends there," Anas said. In the tent, there were toys and stuffed animals for younger children, as well as some children's English books. But informal teachers Hanadi and Dalal got the children's attention by telling them a fairy tale. Both women asked to be identified by their first names only for fear of harassment from authorities. "It's not really a school, it's more of an entertainment," Hanadi said. "Giving Them The Basics" They teach children between 5 and 15. With the help of the international charity Save the Children, they try to offer children a taste of a life they would have lived had it not been interrupted by war. "We are giving them the basics, letters and numbers," the 23-year-old Hanadi said. "We mostly try to bring some joy into their lives. They've seen too much bloodshed." The lack of educational opportunities for Syrian children is the most pressing in tiny Lebanon. The country's population has grown by two thirds over the past year alone because of the massive flow of refugees. More than a million Syrians have sought refuge in the neighboring nation of 4.2 million. By the end of last year, school-age Syrian children in Lebanon currently estimated at 400,000 outnumbered their Lebanese peers by 100,000. Some 45,000 are now enrolled in Lebanon's public schools, UNICEF says. Another 32,000 attend two and a half hours of classes in the afternoon, mostly to catch up and improve their foreign language skills to a point to be enrolled. Many struggle because subjects like math and science are taught in English and French in Lebanon instead of in Arabic. Relief can be seen in those who find opportunities for their children. In principal Samad's public school of Wata el-msaitbeh in Beirut, 36-year-old Syrian mother of three Naima Mohedeen brought her daughters to school, leaving her youngest girl at home because she's too young to attend. Her family fled to Lebanon only four months ago and Mohedeen, who is illiterate, teared up when she kissed her girls and said goodbye at the school's entrance, adorned with a giant Lebanese red-and-white flag. "I want them to learn everything so they have a future," Mohedeen said. "I want them to become somebody. Somebody smart."

4 Quiz 1 Select the paragraph from "Children Not Going To School" that discusses how Syrian schoolchildren are the worst hit by the civil war. 2 The article draws a connection between all of the following EXCEPT: classrooms and military shelters Syrian schoolchildren and refugees civil war and violence in Lebanon population growth in Lebanon and refugees 3 Read the sentence from the article. Nearly half of Syria's school-age children million and counting - cannot get an education because of the devastation and violence. What is the meaning of the word "devastation" as used in the sentence above? bloodshed destruction hostility unrest 4 Which of the following contains a word that is a synonym for "inhibit"? Many Syrians have become refugees, fleeing their homeland to escape the violence there that has been caused by political unrest. Poor nutrition and illness stunt their growth; a lack of schooling derails their education; and the haunting images of war leave deep psychological scars. Experts say that puts a whole generation of Syrians at risk of coming of age without knowing how to read. The lack of educational opportunities for Syrian children is the most pressing in tiny Lebanon.

5 Answer Key 1 Select the paragraph from "Children Not Going To School" that discusses how Syrian schoolchildren are the worst hit by the civil war. Paragraph 9: The conflict has unleashed massive suffering across all parts of Syrian society, but the impact on children has been especially rough. Poor nutrition and illness stunt their growth; a lack of schooling derails their education; and the haunting images of war leave deep psychological scars. 2 The article draws a connection between all of the following EXCEPT: classrooms and military shelters Syrian schoolchildren and refugees civil war and violence in Lebanon population growth in Lebanon and refugees 3 Read the sentence from the article. Nearly half of Syria's school-age children million and counting - cannot get an education because of the devastation and violence. What is the meaning of the word "devastation" as used in the sentence above? bloodshed destruction hostility unrest 4 Which of the following contains a word that is a synonym for "inhibit"? Many Syrians have become refugees, fleeing their homeland to escape the violence there that has been caused by political unrest. Poor nutrition and illness stunt their growth; a lack of schooling derails their education; and the haunting images of war leave deep psychological scars. Experts say that puts a whole generation of Syrians at risk of coming of age without knowing how to read. The lack of educational opportunities for Syrian children is the most pressing in tiny Lebanon.