KANO, NIGERIA, 14 May 2013 (IRIN) - Around 15,000 children in Borno State, northeastern Nigeria, have stopped attending classes since February 2013, according to a Borno State Ministry of Education official who preferred anonymity, as Boko Haram extremists continue a wave of attacks on state schools.
Most of the children are primary school students, according to the official. Thus far Boko Haram (BH) has burned or destroyed 50 of the state’s 175 schools, he said. Teachers in the state confirmed the estimate.
Gaza City: Palestinian schoolboys are learning how to fire Kalashnikovs, throw grenades and plant improvised explosive devices as part of a program run by Hamas’s education ministry.
The scheme has been criticised by Palestinian human rights groups, who point out that Hamas has previously banned sport from the school curriculum on the grounds that there is not enough time for it.
Hamas authorities introduced the “Futuwwa”, or youth program into the state curriculum last September for 37,000 Palestinian boys aged between 15 and 17, conceiving it as a scheme intended to initiate a new generation of Palestinian men in the struggle against Israel. (via Kalashnikov Classes for Palestinian Students)
23 April 2013 – Calling for quick action by authorities in the Central African Republic (CAR), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) today warned that education was becoming another casualty of the months-long conflict, with half the country’s schools shuttered and hundreds of thousands of students at risk of missing out the entire year.
At least 250,000 children who started the 2012-2013 primary school year, and 30,000 who were in secondary school at the start of the crisis, could lose the entire school year if schools do not re-open in the coming weeks, the agency said in a news release. (via United Nations News Centre - Children’s education in Central Africa Republic devastated by conflict, UN says)
[HOMS, SYRIA] In an unfinished housing complex in Al-Wa’ar neighbourhood, where many displaced families from other parts Homs have taken shelter … young boys and girls huddled closely together in the heated rooms, the sound of children’s laughter bouncing off walls decorated with brightly-coloured drawings and educational posters.
These makeshift classrooms are often the only form of education available for displaced children in Homs. “I wake up every morning excited to come to class,” said Oula, an 8-year-old girl. “I miss my old school. But at least here I can learn, draw and play with friends.”
(source: Children find a safe space to learn in conflict-torn Homs, Syrian Arab Republic)
… I simply asked the students to tell me their experiences, and they bravely and honestly did – even with a video camera in the room. They talked about the family members they have lost – every single one of them knows someone who has been shot. They talked about their fears that an unspeakable tragedy like Newtown could happen at their own school, and their doubts they would survive to live a full lifetime. And they talked about the senselessness of the violence—people getting shot over a pair of shoes.
These are kids who deserve the best. They’re trying to do all the right things, and they deserve more than we adults have done for them. It’s our job to create a climate where they can grow and learn free from fear, and as you will hear, we are far from succeeding at our task. We need to do better.
(via The Impact of Gun Violence: A Conversation with Students | ED.gov Blog)
Schools are protected by international human rights law; they should be safe places for children to play, learn and develop. But in Syria, schools have come under direct attack, denying children their right to education in a safe learning environment. An eight-year-old boy from Aleppo refused to talk for more than two weeks after fleeing Syria. When he eventually did speak, his first words were,“They burned my school.”
(via Save the Children)
South Korea is stepping up its campaign against school bullying in the wake of a young victim’s suicide last week. A 15-year-old high schooler, only identified by his surname Choi, jumped out of his apartment home in the southeastern city of Gyeongsan last Monday after being bullied for roughly two years. His death — the second youth suicide in South Korea this month — has shocked the nation and called into question the government’s efforts to stop school violence. (via South Korea Rattled by Suicide of Bullied High School Student | TIME.com)
![[US] South Dakota to allow armed teachers in schools
The US state of South Dakota has enacted a law allowing school districts to arm teachers and other school staff.
The law’s backers say it will prevent mass school shootings like a December massacre in Connecticut that killed 26.
Amid a push by the White House to strengthen gun laws, the bill reflects a growing divide in the US over whether more or fewer guns keep people safe.
The measure does not force school districts to arm teachers and will not require teachers to carry guns.
(via BBC News - South Dakota to allow armed teachers in schools)](http://25.media.tumblr.com/8a23d85b23fce6207dc426e72fb3c306/tumblr_mjkobvd6YK1qb8rnio1_400.jpg)
[US] South Dakota to allow armed teachers in schools
The US state of South Dakota has enacted a law allowing school districts to arm teachers and other school staff.
The law’s backers say it will prevent mass school shootings like a December massacre in Connecticut that killed 26.
Amid a push by the White House to strengthen gun laws, the bill reflects a growing divide in the US over whether more or fewer guns keep people safe.
The measure does not force school districts to arm teachers and will not require teachers to carry guns.
(via BBC News - South Dakota to allow armed teachers in schools)
BAMAKO/TIMBUKTU/DAKAR, 4 February 2013 (IRIN) - Children returned to school in Timbuktu in northern Mali on 1 February, a week after Islamist groups fled.
Teachers say about half of all schoolchildren fled northern Mali in 2012 when Islamist groups took over much of the north and shut down many public schools, dismantled the curricula in others, and sent some children to Koranic schools.
“You cannot imagine the joy I felt in returning to this classroom,” said the director of Timbuktu’s main primary school, Coulibaly Ami Doucaré. She abandoned the school last April when Timbuktu was taken over by Islamist group Ansar Dine.
![[Thailand] Some 160 teachers have been killed and many schools set ablaze in continuing ethnic violence. (via Teachers targeted in Thai conflict - Features - Al Jazeera English)](http://24.media.tumblr.com/bee6ac6e454abe432e7affffc41af016/tumblr_mhum3xMCLY1qb8rnio1_500.jpg)
[Thailand] Some 160 teachers have been killed and many schools set ablaze in continuing ethnic violence. (via Teachers targeted in Thai conflict - Features - Al Jazeera English)
