VOA教育报道2024--For Children of Gaza, War Means No School

Atef Al-Buhaisi is a 6-year-old from the Palestinian territory of Gaza. He once dreamed of a career building houses. Now, all he wants is to return to school.

In Israel's war with Hamas, Atef's home has been bombed, his teacher killed and his school in Nuseirat made into a refuge for displaced people. He lives in a crowded tent with his family in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza.

The war started last October. It was Israel's answer to the Hamas attack on October 7. The terrorists killed some 1,200 people and took 250 hostages from southern Israel.

Since the start of the war, all of Gaza's schools have closed, leaving hundreds of thousands of students like Atef without formal schooling¹ or a safe place to spend their days. Aid groups are working to keep children off the streets and their minds centered on something other than the war.

"What we've lost most is the future of our children and their education," said Irada Ismael, Atef's grandmother. "Houses and walls are rebuilt, money can be earned again...but how do I compensate² for (his) education?"

Gaza faces a humanitarian³ crisis

Aid groups say about 80 percent of Gaza's population has been driven from their homes. Much of Gaza is damaged or destroyed, including nearly 90 percent of school buildings.

The Gaza Health Ministry⁴, which is controlled by Hamas, says more than 35,000 Palestinians, including civilians⁵ and fighters, have been killed in the war.

And the head of the U.N. World Food Program said a "full-blown famine" is already underway in the north.

Children are among the most severely⁶ affected⁷. The U.N. estimates some 19,000 children have been orphaned⁹ and nearly a third under the age of two face malnutrition¹⁰.

In emergencies, education is less important than safety, health and sanitation¹¹, education experts say. But the effects are lasting¹².

Before the war, Gaza was home to more than 625,000 students and some 20,000 teachers, the U.N. says. In other conflicts, aid groups can create safe spaces for children in neighboring countries. Poland has been used for shelter and schooling for Ukrainians during the war there, for example.

That is not possible in Gaza, a highly populated area locked between the sea, Israel and Egypt. Since October 7, Palestinians from Gaza have not been permitted to cross into Israel. Egypt has let a small number of Palestinians leave.

Tess Ingram is with the children and education organization UNICEF. She told the Associated Press, "It's very hard to provide them with certain services, such as mental health and psychosocial support or consistent education and learning."

Aid groups try to help

Aid groups hope classes will start by September. But even if a cease-fire deal is reached, much of Gaza must be cleared of mines. And rebuilding schools could take years.

In the meantime, aid groups are providing activities like games, drawing, and art. The activities are not a formal education but provide children with a sense of normalcy. Even then, supporters say, their attention often turns to the war. Atef's grandmother sees him draw pictures only of tents, planes and missiles.

Finding free space is among the biggest difficulties. Some volunteers use the outdoors, do their best inside tents where people live, or find a room in homes still standing¹³.

This month, UNICEF had planned to build at least 50 tents for some 6,000 children from preschool to grade 12 to provide some informal schooling. But UNICEF says those plans could be disrupted by Israel's operation there.

Lack of schooling can cause psychological impacts. It disrupts daily life and, combined with conflict, makes children more likely to experience anxiety, said Jesus Miguel Perez Cazorla. He is a mental health expert with the International Committee of the Red Cross.

Children in conflicts are also at increased risk of forced labor¹⁴, sexual violence, trafficking and recruitment by criminal and armed groups, experts warn.

Samantha Nutt is with War Child USA, a group that supports children and families in war zones. She said the children are in danger of being recruited by Hamas and other militant¹⁵ groups. The constant violence makes children believe that they "want to take action against the groups they consider responsible," she said.

Palestinian parents say they have seen more children on the streets trying to earn money for their families. Some try to find small ways to teach their children. But many say the kids are too distracted, with the world around them at war.

Sabreen al-Khatib is a mother whose family was displaced to Deir al-Balah from Gaza City. She said it is especially hard for the many who have seen relatives die.

"When you speak in front of children," al-Khatib said, "what do you think he is thinking? Will he think about education? Or about himself, how will he die?"

Words in This Story

formal - adj. requiring or using serious and proper clothes and manners

compensate - v. to provide something good as a balance against something bad or undesirable¹⁶

famine - n. a situation in which many people do not have enough food to eat

orphan⁸ - n. a child whose parents are dead

malnutrition - n. the unhealthy condition that results from not eating enough food or not eating enough healthy food

anxiety - n. fear or nervousness about what might happen

traffic - v. to buy or sell something especially illegally

recruit - v. to find suitable people and get them to join a company, an organization, the armed forces, etc.

1 schooling   

n.教育；正规学校教育

参考例句：

• A child's access to schooling varies greatly from area to area.孩子获得学校教育的机会因地区不同而大相径庭。
• Backward children need a special kind of schooling.天赋差的孩子需要特殊的教育。

2 compensate   

vt.补偿，赔偿；酬报 vi.弥补；补偿；抵消

参考例句：

• She used her good looks to compensate her lack of intelligence. 她利用她漂亮的外表来弥补智力的不足。
• Nothing can compensate for the loss of one's health. 一个人失去了键康是不可弥补的。

3 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

4 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

5 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

6 severely   

adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地

参考例句：

• He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
• He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。

7 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

8 orphan   

n.孤儿；adj.无父母的

参考例句：

• He brought up the orphan and passed onto him his knowledge of medicine.他把一个孤儿养大，并且把自己的医术传给了他。
• The orphan had been reared in a convent by some good sisters.这个孤儿在一所修道院里被几个好心的修女带大。

9 orphaned   

[计][修]孤立

参考例句：

• Orphaned children were consigned to institutions. 孤儿都打发到了福利院。
• He was orphaned at an early age. 他幼年时便成了孤儿。

10 malnutrition   

n.营养不良

参考例句：

• In Africa, there are a lot of children suffering from severe malnutrition.在非洲有大批严重营养不良的孩子。
• It is a classic case of malnutrition. 这是营养不良的典型病例。

11 sanitation   

n.公共卫生，环境卫生，卫生设备

参考例句：

• The location is exceptionally poor,viewed from the sanitation point.从卫生角度来看，这个地段非常糟糕。
• Many illnesses are the result,f inadequate sanitation.许多疾病都来源于不健全的卫生设施。

12 lasting   

adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持

参考例句：

• The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
• We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。

13 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

14 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

15 militant   

adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals.一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。
• He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。

16 undesirable   

adj.不受欢迎的，不良的，不合意的，讨厌的；n.不受欢迎的人，不良分子

参考例句：

• They are the undesirable elements among the employees.他们是雇员中的不良分子。
• Certain chemicals can induce undesirable changes in the nervous system.有些化学物质能在神经系统中引起不良变化。