Syria's Fragmented Education System Reflects Political Divisions

The fall of the Assad regime on December 8, 2024, marks a historic turning point for Syria, ending over five decades of family rule and the Baath party's dominance since 1963. The country's education system has become deeply fragmented, mirroring political and territorial divisions. In regime-controlled areas like Damascus, schools follow the Ministry of Education's curriculum, with optional Russian or Persian. In northern liberated zones under the opposition Syrian government, a integrated curriculum includes mandatory Turkish alongside Arabic, with textbooks printed in Turkey. In the Kurdish-administered Rojava region, schools offer multilingual programs in Arabic, Kurdish, and Syriac. In Raqqa, Deir ez-Zor, and refugee camps, UNICEF-supervised schools use a simplified Arabic curriculum for emergency situations. The article reflects on Syrian identity, questioning how personal and collective history shapes it. The country's infrastructure has not been renewed for years, its social fabric is wounded, and cultural, industrial, and social elites have emigrated. The author, Ghiath Rammo, an orientalist archaeologist who participated in excavations at Ebla, calls for forward-looking strategies based on a shared vision of rule of law and inclusive citizenship. The rebel leader who entered Damascus is al-Jolani, a former member of ISIS and Al Qaeda brigades.