Private schools become a costly choice for struggling parents in Gaza

Live Click here to searchsearchSign upNavigation menucaret-left caret-rightFeatures|Israel-Palestine conflictPrivate schools become a costly choice for struggling parents in GazaGaza families face difficult choices: send children to schools in tents with few resources to pay for private school.

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Como Israel desmonta sistematicamente a vida palestina na Cisjordânia ocupada.

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The family has been living in a camp for displaced Palestinians in Deir el-Balah since their neighbourhood, Sheikh Radwan, in northern Gaza, was destroyed in the Israeli offensive in Gaza City last September.

Como em sua casa, as salas de aula de Jouri e sua irmã de 14 anos, Ritaj, na Escola Elyaa’ também são tendas. Há poucas cadeiras ou mesas, então as crianças geralmente sentam-se em colchões e tapetes quando aprendem.

There is no air conditioning or fans, so the heat makes it difficult for children to focus.

The children have already spent long periods out of school since Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza began in October 2023. Online classes were a challenge due to difficulties in internet access during Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza.

Before the war, her daughters attended an UNRWA school in Gaza City, where her children performed well and were praised for their achievements.

Agora, ela observa-os estudando em tendas. As condições podem ser difíceis, mas os professores estão ajudando seus filhos a recuperar o tempo escolar perdido.

As experiências da família refletem uma crise educacional mais ampla em Gaza após quase três anos de guerra.

Around 700,000 children aged between four and 17 had missed formal, face-to-face schooling for almost three consecutive school years during Israel’s war on Gaza, UNICEF said in May.

Just two percent of all school buildings are undamaged and 93 percent of them require major repairs or complete reconstruction. About 420,000 children – three in five – had no access to face-to-face learning.

Bombardeios aéreos israelenses são uma ameaça constante, com pelo menos 300 crianças mortas desde o “acordo de cessar‑fogo” de outubro passado. Na semana passada, a menina de oito anos Wafaa Akila e seu pai foram mortos quando seu carro foi atingido no caminho de volta para casa da escola, no oeste de Gaza.

With the formal education system in ruins, parents and teachers have stepped in, opening temporary learning spaces in tents and volunteer initiatives.

Noha Khadra, who spent 10 years as a teacher, opened the Elyaa’ School in January, operating under the supervision of the Ministry of Education.

Alunos estudam em tendas com poucos móveis e cadeiras insuficientes, enquanto outros itens essenciais, como quadros-negros, estão em mau estado.

Mais de 1. 100 estudantes se inscreveram na “escola de campo”, mas há apenas 40 professores voluntários e equipe administrativa.

Despite the obstacles, she said there is high demand for places in the school, but a lack of resources and staff has meant a gruelling initial nine months for the principal.

A escola oferece às crianças um local longe das pressões cotidianas do deslocamento e também acesso a itens essenciais para a sobrevivência, como água.

The situation in private schools is better than the voluntary centres, but the high costs make them affordable only to a minority of parents in Gaza.

Zahra Saleh, 25, enrolled her six-year-old son, Ibrahim, in first grade and her five-year-old son, Karam, in kindergarten at the Abdul Aziz Private School in the west of Gaza City.

But she did not want Ibrahim, who was beginning his first year of formal schooling, to lose any more education.

Ela também queria que seus filhos tivessem uma rotina regular, com aulas das 7h até meio-dia. Aprender matérias como árabe, inglês e matemática, como teriam feito antes da guerra, também era sua esperança.

The schooling crisis comes at a time of acute financial hardship for almost every Palestinian in Gaza.

Abdul Aziz começou como uma escola de campo em tendas com professores voluntários em 2024, antes de mudar para seu atual prédio alugado em Shujaiya, a oeste da Cidade de Gaza, para o novo ano escolar que começa este mês.

Around 20 staff teach 300 students, aged between three and 15, a much lower student-to-teacher ratio than in non-private schools.

The financial pressure facing families is part of a broader economic collapse in the Strip. The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics said Gaza’s GDP contracted by 84 percent in 2025 compared with 2023, while unemployment reached 78 percent.

Doaa Qdeih, diretor da Escola Privada Abdul Aziz, está ciente das dificuldades financeiras que as famílias enfrentam, então tem alguma flexibilidade nos pagamentos com os pais, incluindo Zahra.

The school does not have one fixed fee for every student. Qdeih said she considers each family’s circumstances before deciding what it can pay.

Almost all this money from the fees goes towards rent and operating costs. Qdeih also used profits from another business she owns to furnish and repair the building the school now uses.

But she does not see private schools as the solution to Gaza’s education crisis.