A Fragile Return to Learning: Gaza's Students Resume Classes in Tents and Ruins

Hundreds of thousands of children returned to in-person classes in Gaza for the first time in nearly three years, filling damaged school buildings, makeshift classrooms, and tents amid a severe shortage of basic supplies. According to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), 98 percent of schools in the Gaza Strip were destroyed or damaged during the conflict, while local education officials estimate about 660,000 students have been deprived of regular, in-person learning.

This reopening marks a fragile milestone in a territory where approximately 22,000 students and more than 770 education workers, including 532 teachers, have been killed, as reported by Ibrahim Ramadan, director of education for eastern Khan Younis. Student Moayed Abu Mustafa in Khan Younis shared his resolve, stating, 'The last time I have been to school was three years ago. Now, we are starting the school year; it is year of joy, happiness and success. Despite all of this, we will learn, we will learn even in a tent.' Lacking proper shoes, notebooks, or pens, Moayed sits on the floor inside a sweltering tent.

Across Gaza, the Ministry of Education, supported by aid agencies, has established dozens of temporary schools using tarpaulins, sheet metal, and wood. Some makeshift learning spaces consist solely of a few mattresses and a blackboard, while others continue to shelter displaced families. Fifteen-year-old Samar Abu Salmi, living in a tent with her family, noted the difficulties of affording expensive school supplies, a sentiment echoed by stationery trader Khaled Aliyan, who attributed soaring prices to import restrictions.

Despite an October 2025 ceasefire that reduced large-scale fighting, Israeli forces continue to control more than 60 percent of Gaza, leaving the broader conflict unresolved. Data from the Palestinian Ministry of Education and Higher Education indicates that about 541,000 students resumed their education when the new academic year began on September 19, following months of severe disruptions and widespread displacement across the enclave.