Hope in Syria

Education Cannot Wait investments support teacher training and continued learning for displaced children in UNICEF-run school in Syria

By Education Cannot Wait

April 17^th, 2025

Adapted Story from the Field. Special Contribution by UNICEF Syrian Arab Republic (Original).

In the heart of a refugee camp in Syria, one teacher stands tall at the head of her classroom – offering a lifeline to children eager to learn despite the unrelenting challenges they face.

Rudayfah, 40, is more than just an educator. She is a symbol of resilience and hope to her students and their families. Her commitment to her craft, and the girls and boys that enter the walls of her school, is unwavering.

“I wish to further excel as a teacher and help more children to continue learning.”

Holistic support from Education Cannot Wait (ECW), the global fund for education in emergencies and protracted crises, is reaching Rudayfah and her students at the UNICEF-run school in the camp. ECW investments – along with funding from EU Humanitarian Aid, the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office, German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development through the KFW Development Bank, Global Partnership for Education, and Governments of Australia, Italy and the Republic of Korea – have enabled Rudayfah and teachers like her to receive critical training on class management and interactive teaching methods to bring learning to life for their students, despite their circumstances and often limited resources.

Teacher Rudayfah works with her students during class at the ECW-supported UNICEF-run school in Al-Hol Refugee Camp, northeast Syria. © UNICEF/Aldhaher

Rudayfah has two demanding roles in her life. She is an educator in a large refugee camp in Syria, and also a mother of eight children.

In both her professional and personal life, she prioritizes quality education.

Her children attend the school she teaches at in the refugee camp. During the day, she works with her students, ages 6-12, on lessons ranging from mathematics and Arabic to science. Once the school day is over, she supports her children’s continued learning in the tent their family calls home.

Rudayfah has worked at the UNICEF-run camp school since 2019, and considers the teaching profession to be her calling in life. Like Rudayfah, the children she teaches have been displaced due to the protracted crisis in their country. Her lessons and teaching style resonate with the students in her class – and even parents have taken note of their children’s positive attitudes and growth.

“I am approachable to my students and try to deliver information in simple ways. In class, I rely on peer and group learning, and play as effective teaching methods. I’ve heard from caregivers how my teaching has been effective for their children’s learning.”

Through ECW-supported initiatives, implemented by UNICEF, Rudayfah has been able to take part in valuable teacher trainings, including on class management and interactive teaching methods. Such trainings has helped her to hone and grow her skills to better support the young learners in her classroom.

Teacher Rudayfah uses a game to teach her students at the ECW-supported UNICEF-run school in Al-Hol Refugee Camp, northeast Syria. © UNICEF/Aldhaher

For more than thirteen years, children in Syria have grown up in the midst of a conflict that has consistently disrupted access to education.

This has also led to the internal displacement of millions, including children who account for half of that population. This widespread displacement of families, and the destruction or damage of thousands of schools, have resulted in over 2.4 million children being unable to attend school, increasing their vulnerability to child labor, child marriage, trafficking and recruitment into armed groups.

Since 2017, ECW investments in Syria have supported in-country partners to ensure education access to children and adolescents affected by the conflict and instability in the country. ECW’s Multi-Year Resilience Programme supports teacher training, the construction of educational facilities and child-friendly spaces, remedial classes, self-learning programmes and more. Additionally, the Fund’s investments bolster mental health and psychosocial support for children and youth dealing with extreme stress and trauma from ongoing crises. To date, more than 610,000 girls and boys in Syria have been reached by this holistic support, and over 12,000 teachers and administrators have been trained.

As Syrians work to shape a new future for their country, ECW and partners like UNICEF remain dedicated to providing lifesaving and life-sustaining educational support to the country’s teachers and most marginalized children – including those who have been displaced, children with disabilities and girls.

Teacher Rudayfah works with students on a lesson at the ECW-supported UNICEF-run school in Al-Hol Refugee Camp, northeast Syria. © UNICEF/Aldhaher

Teacher Rudayfah uses interactive methods to teach students at the ECW-supported UNICEF-run school in Al-Hol Refugee Camp, northeast Syria. © UNICEF/Aldhaher

At the camp, where families continue to live under basic conditions with limited access to vital services – including education – Rudayfah pours herself into her mission.

In a region where many children have been robbed of their childhood by crises, quality education offers a rare, precious opportunity to rebuild their lives and communities. And teachers like Rudayfah are playing a critical role in this work. Through their commitment, they are planting the seeds for a generation better equipped and empowered to lead the charge for peace and reconstruction in a country that has seen too much destruction.

“I wish for all children to leave the camp, to return to their homes, and to live the rest of their childhood outside these tents.”

Investing in education in emergencies and protracted crises is about more than just providing access to a classroom – it’s about giving children the tools and mentors they need to navigate the world around them, and to dream of a future beyond the hardships they currently face. Teachers like Rudayfah, armed with the right training and resources, are at the heart of this mission.

ECW and strategic partners call on donors, the private sector, philanthropic foundations and national and international partners to step-up and fully fund the multi-year programme in Syria to reach even more crisis-affected children and their teachers.

As long as there are educators like Rudayfah, there will always be hope for a future where children, no matter their circumstances, can access the transformative power of learning.

Teacher Rudayfah with her students outside of their ECW-supported UNICEF-run school in Al-Hol Refugee Camp, northeast Syria. © UNICEF/Aldhaher

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