In early 2025, Syria\u2019s caretaker Ministry of Education issued a decision<\/a> to amend the school curricula for grades one through twelve. The decision also eliminated<\/a> the subject of \u201cNational Education\u201d from both curricula and examinations, justifying this move by claiming the subject contained \u201cmisleading information aimed at promoting the propaganda of the ousted Assad regime,\u201d according to Minister Nazeer Al-Qadri.[1]<\/a><\/p>\n The minister clarified that the grades previously allocated to this subject would instead be counted toward \u201cReligious Education\u201d (either Islamic or Christian), which would now contribute to the overall grade point average in the national secondary certificate.<\/p>\n The amendments included the removal of symbols associated with the former Assad regime, such as the national flag and anthem, alongside the rewriting of certain phrases and the deletion of historical, religious, scientific, and philosophical content.[2]<\/a>–[3]<\/a><\/p>\n The decision sparked widespread criticism, particularly given its issuance by a transitional government with limited powers whose mandate was presumed to be restricted to routine administrative functions, rather than strategic decisions affecting the country\u2019s cultural identity and public policy. Minister Al-Qadri, within a short timeframe, introduced ideologically driven amendments[4]<\/a>–[5]<\/a> without professional consultations or engagement with expert committees, either locally or internationally. In a statement<\/a> on Facebook, he defended the changes by claiming the curricula would remain as they are until specialized committees are formed to review them, characterizing the announced changes as mere \u201ccorrections of certain misleading information\u201d in Islamic Education. However, he did not address the criticism regarding the removal of significant literary and intellectual content, including works by Al-Zahawi and Badr Al-Din Al-Hamed, as well as chapters on the \u201corigin of life\u201d, Chinese philosophical thought, and other topics not directly linked to the former regime or Ba\u2019ath Party rule.<\/p>\n This brief report, published by Syrians for Truth and Justice (STJ), offers a multidimensional analytical reading of the curriculum amendment decision issued after December 8, 2024. It assesses the implications of this decision for the neutrality of education, its alignment with international standards and the Constitutional Declaration<\/a> of March 13, 2025, and presents perspectives from educators and experts inside Syria regarding the educational priorities and challenges. This analysis comes amid a reality where UNICEF\u2019s 2025 report<\/a> estimates that 7 million children are out of school and over 10,000 educational facilities are non-operational across the country.<\/p>\n The dominance of Syria\u2019s intelligence services played a pivotal role in undermining the quality of education, as educational institutions were transformed into instruments of political and social control, at the expense of their core mission to provide neutral, high-quality education. The regime embedded this control as part of its broader strategy, subordinating education to serve its ideological agenda<\/a>, employing nationalist slogans to justify its legitimacy, and turning schools and universities into arenas for reproducing loyalty.<\/p>\n In authoritarian regimes, education is viewed as a mechanism for indoctrinating students from an early age, molding them into obedient citizens loyal to the regime rather than the nation. Accordingly, curricula were crafted to reflect the regime\u2019s ideology and authoritarian philosophy, ensuring the continuity of its rule, a pattern common across totalitarian states, including Syria, where education became a tool to embed authoritarian influence politically, culturally, socially, and economically.[6]<\/a><\/p>\n This ideological intervention was most evident in school curricula, both in content and delivery, under the close supervision of intelligence services. The constitution of the Arab Socialist Ba\u2019ath Party explicitly enshrined state monopoly over education, abolishing all private and foreign educational institutions (Article 46), and restricting the teaching profession and all matters related to education exclusively to Arab citizens (Article 49). These policies left a profound imprint that endured beyond 2011, as the recent curriculum changes merely perpetuated this centralized, ideological legacy rather than paving the way for a more inclusive and pluralistic educational model.<\/p>\n With the outbreak of the Syrian uprising in 2011, the ideological hegemony of the Ba’ath Party began to erode, and the regime gradually lost its traditional tools for controlling society<\/a>, as the collapse of central authority and the expansion of access to knowledge through technological advancement weakened its grip on information and political indoctrination in schools and universities.<\/p>\n However, as the protests transformed into an armed conflict, with five foreign armies<\/a> present on Syrian soil and various actors dividing control over different regions, each faction imposed its own educational curriculum reflecting its ideological and political vision. Consequently, Syrian children found themselves receiving fragmented education across more than five different curricula<\/a> dictated by the authorities in power. This reality undermined their right to unified and equal education, and fostered culturally and ideologically disparate learning environments<\/a> that threaten a cohesive national identity.<\/p>\n According to a report<\/a> issued by the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria (2020), the warring parties introduced competing ideological curricula, resulting in conflicting identities. Children were subjected to diverging definitions of values, tying their sense of belonging to the content of the education they received, rather than to shared national bonds.<\/p>\n For fourteen years, Syrian children have known nothing but violence, displacement, family separation, and the collapse of vital services<\/a>. Even those who managed to access schooling suffered from declining educational quality due to the direct targeting of schools, persistent insecurity, and repeated displacement. This reality left a profound impact on the educational sector and further weakened the social fabric.<\/p>\n The education sector in Syria has suffered massive devastation as a result of the armed conflict, with more than 10,000 educational facilities damaged<\/a> or completely destroyed, and around seven million children<\/a> pushed out of schools. In addition to this physical destruction, Syrian children have endured escalating psychological and social trauma<\/a>.<\/p>\n Ruhlat Ammar, an Arabic language teacher at a school in Damascus, explains:<\/p>\n \u201cA curriculum can only fulfill its purpose if it is built on foundations that address students\u2019 mental and social needs, and reflects their local and cultural context, especially in a country like Syria, which faces profound social, political, and economic challenges\u201d.<\/p>\n The quality of education is closely tied to the availability of resources and the effectiveness of teaching and learning processes. Despite the urgent need to invest in education, government spending on the Ministry of Education in Syria has dropped sharply, according to UNICEF\u2019s 2023 report<\/a>. Public expenditure declined from 7.1% of the national budget in 2011 to 3.6% in 2022, with education allocations decreasing by 78% compared to 2011, well below the OECD average<\/a> of 4.9%. This drastic reduction has led to the deterioration of the education system and its basic requirements.<\/p>\n Ammar stresses that successful curriculum reform must be accompanied by a strategy that combines content revision with investments in supportive infrastructure: reliable electricity and internet access, equipped schools with modern hardware and software, and access to open and digital educational resources. She also emphasizes that securing teachers\u2019 rights is fundamental to creating a conducive educational environment, through job stability, fair wages, professional development opportunities, supportive workplaces, and genuine unions that empower teachers to participate in decision-making processes.<\/p>\n Ammar adds that Syrian children have been repeatedly exposed to violence, leading to high rates of post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, and anxiety. She underscores the need for curricula that are:<\/p>\n \u201cflexible, updated, and responsive to students\u2019 realities. A curriculum that strengthens their capacity for independent thinking and problem-solving, and fosters critical awareness that can help them rebuild their society after years of turmoil and conflict\u201d.<\/p>\n STJ spoke with Mohammad Tabateb, a history teacher at a school in Homs, who stated:<\/p>\n \u201cCurriculum reform is necessary following the fall of the authoritarian regime, but it was carried out hastily when it should have been led by highly qualified specialized committees\u201d.<\/p>\n Tabateb added:<\/p>\n \u201cIn a country as religiously, sectarianly, and ethnically diverse as Syria, curricula must reflect this diversity to foster an inclusive national identity. The process of curriculum development must be grounded in scientific and contemporary principles, aligned with advances in academic research, and accompanied by genuine training programs for both teaching and administrative staff.\u201d<\/p>\n He concluded by emphasizing the urgent need to reform the curricula in a way that aligns with the values of freedom, pluralism, and modernity, removing the remnants of past ideologies and building a comprehensive, inclusive national identity.<\/p>\n The curriculum amendments introduced by the Ministry of Education under the caretaker government were enacted without prior public consultation or transparent professional deliberation, raising serious questions about their potential impact on national identity and the risk of creating divergent knowledge frameworks among students.<\/p>\n The absence of inclusive participation and the adoption of unilateral decision-making in shaping educational policies have fostered a sense of disillusionment among some teachers and students, undermining trust in the educational process.[7]<\/a> This dynamic threatens the fundamental role of education in fostering civic behavior and shared national values such as tolerance, citizenship, and dialogue. Instead, these curricula risk reinforcing closed-minded perspectives that fuel division and conflict, at the expense of critical, scientific thinking, academic quality, and educational standards. The lack of specialized academic review or a coherent educational vision further diminishes teachers\u2019 ability to deliver knowledge effectively.<\/p>\n As of the time this report was prepared, the Ministry of Education had not announced the formation of any specialized committees to review or revise the curricula following December 8, 2024. No academic or pedagogical experts involved in the process had been publicly named, nor was the timeline for drafting these amendments disclosed. The minister merely stated that symbols associated with the previous regime had been removed, new symbols adopted (such as the Syrian revolution flag), and adjustments made to Islamic education content under the pretext of \u201ccorrecting distorted interpretations.\u201d<\/p>\n However, these amendments<\/a> (See the appendices), included significant ideological and religious changes<\/a>, such as replacing human rights terminology with more conservative religious language in Islamic education (e.g., substituting \u201cruled by the law of justice\u201d with \u201cruled by God\u2019s law\u201d), redefining the concept of \u201cmartyrdom\u201d from \u201cfor the sake of the homeland\u201d to \u201cfor the sake of God\u201d, removing an entire science chapter on \u201cthe origins of life and evolution,\u201d erasing references to deities in ancient mythology from history textbooks, and excluding key historical figures and communities such as Zenobia, the Arameans, and the Canaanites, ultimately diluting the rich cultural diversity of the curriculum.<\/p>\n These amendments reflect[8]<\/a> the dominance of ideological agendas over the educational process, threatening the neutrality of the curriculum and weakening its alignment with international standards. This risk is exacerbated by a lack of transparency, the exclusion of qualified experts, and the absence of independent review mechanisms, amounting to a breach of the right to education as articulated in the 2015 Incheon Declaration<\/a>, which calls for curriculum development that promotes human rights, equality, a culture of peace, and global citizenship.<\/p>\n Concerns are further amplified by the limited mandate of the caretaker government, whose responsibilities should be confined to urgent, temporary decisions necessary to maintain basic state functions, not long-term strategic decisions such as curriculum reform, which carry profound implications for future generations and the nation\u2019s trajectory.[9]<\/a><\/p>\n In the post-conflict context, education in Syria is recognized as an urgent humanitarian response and a pivotal tool for fostering social stability, promoting human rights, dignity, social justice, and cultural diversity. However, reforming educational curricula in such a fragile environment requires a comprehensive, inclusive approach grounded in community participation, transparency, and strict adherence to international standards, particularly Sustainable Development Goal 4<\/a> and the principles of the Incheon Declaration (2015)<\/a>, which emphasize the provision of inclusive, equitable, and quality education that advances human rights, equality, pluralism, and respect for cultural and religious diversity.<\/p>\n Yet, the curriculum amendment decree issued by the Minister of Education in the caretaker government represents an overreach of the temporary authority\u2019s mandate, constituting a unilateral, ideologically-driven decision lacking legitimacy. Educational curricula are a product of state policies and educational visions; they should be the outcome of a broad, participatory process, not a unilateral decree imposed by a transitional government with limited powers.<\/p>\n Moreover, meaningful curriculum reform necessitates an integrated educational environment: qualified teachers, prepared students, adequate infrastructure, and competent administration. In the absence of these foundational elements, and amid the precarious living and working conditions of both teachers and students, any educational reform is unlikely to achieve its intended goals or translate into meaningful educational outcomes.<\/p>\n In this context, Ahmad Hussein, a former official at the Ministry of Education, emphasized in an interview with STJ:<\/p>\n “The recent curriculum amendments were weak. There are two types of curricula: general knowledge that meets each grade\u2019s needs, and strategic content that raises essential questions: What should the state prioritize today in its educational approach? Do we want students to merely memorize? To serve a dictatorial regime? Or do we aim to foster critical and creative thinkers? Answering these questions requires specialized teams conducting scientific research, surveys, and data analysis”.<\/p>\n Hussein\u2019s statement underscores the urgent need for a participatory, evidence-based vision for curriculum development. It reaffirms that no educational reform can succeed without a clear understanding of educational objectives, the involvement of qualified experts, and robust independent review mechanisms. Hussein\u2019s remarks also reveal that excluding expert input and sidelining professional voices deepens the crisis of educational governance, reinstates centralized, unilateral decision-making, and imposes ideological control over knowledge and students, turning curriculum reform into a battleground for political contestation over national identity and collective memory.<\/p>\n Additionally, multiple international legal instruments<\/a> safeguard the right to education as a fundamental human right essential for personal development, dignity, and the promotion of human rights and fundamental freedoms. These instruments include binding international treaties such as the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights<\/a>, alongside relevant conventions and agreements that compel state parties to guarantee this right.<\/p>\n The Constitutional Declaration issued on 13 March 2025 similarly affirms the child\u2019s right to education and protection from exploitation, obligating the state to establish political and legal frameworks that ensure the provision of quality, sustainable education. As a transitional legal document, the declaration binds the interim government to implement time-limited policies within its mandate and refrain from adopting long-term strategic decisions that impact foundational sectors such as education policy.<\/p>\n Based on the findings of this report, Syrians for Truth and Justice offers a set of recommendations as a roadmap to restore trust in the educational process and to secure the right of future generations to a quality, inclusive, and equitable education that promotes citizenship and social justice. These recommendations include:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \n [1]<\/a> Minister of Education Nazeer Al-Qadri\u2019s statement on Facebook, published January 1, 2025. Available at: https:\/\/n9.cl\/t49x7<\/a>.<\/p>\n [2]<\/a> Monte Carlo Doualiya report, published on January 2, 2025. Available at: https:\/\/n9.cl\/2crkc<\/a>.<\/p>\n [3]<\/a> Asharq Al-Awsat report, published on January 2, 2025. Available at: https:\/\/n9.cl\/rbc8x<\/a>.<\/p>\n [4]<\/a> DW report, published on January 3, 2025. Available at: https:\/\/n9.cl\/y80ec<\/a>.<\/p>\n [5]<\/a> BBC report, published on January 2, 2025. Available at: https:\/\/n9.cl\/6qpz0n<\/a>.<\/p>\n [6]<\/a> Harmoon Center for Contemporary Studies report, published on November 22, 2021. Available at: https:\/\/n9.cl\/3jkboy<\/a>.<\/p>\n [7]<\/a> Interview conducted by Syrians for Truth and Justice with Ahmad Hussein, a former official at the Ministry of Education.<\/p>\n [8]<\/a> It is important to note that the examples highlighted in this report do not encompass all the amendments made to the national curricula. The revisions spanned multiple subjects and educational levels, ranging from primary to secondary education, and affected religious education, history, philosophy, science, and civic education. They also included the removal or alteration of literary texts, images, and cultural symbols. Given the breadth of these changes, and the absence of comprehensive, transparent official documentation detailing their full scope, it is challenging to provide an exhaustive account within the confines of this report. Therefore, the report focuses on selected examples that illustrate the core ideological and religious orientations underpinning these amendments.<\/p>\n [9]<\/a> For further details, see Dr. Ahmad Hassanein Eihab, The Constitutional System of the Caretaker Government, https:\/\/journals.ekb.eg\/article_268373_9f62a42fc1f1e2ebb7a92a15287a96ec.pdf<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" 1. Introduction In early 2025, Syria\u2019s caretaker Ministry of Education issued a decision to amend the school curricula for grades one through twelve. The decision also eliminated the subject of…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":27394,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"link","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[374,1,1761],"tags":[1651,1705,1707,1706,1685],"class_list":["post-27401","post","type-post","status-publish","format-link","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-editors-picks","category-human-rights-journalism","category-reports","tag-ahmed-al-sharaa","tag-curriculum-reform","tag-ministry-of-higher-education-in-syria","tag-syrian-ministry-of-education","tag-the-syrian-transitional-government","post_format-post-format-link"],"yoast_head":"\n2. Education as a Tool of Control in \u201cAssads\u2019 Syria\u201d<\/h4>\n
3. Education After 2011: From Political Fragmentation to an Identity Crisis<\/h4>\n
4. Priorities and Needs of Education in Post-Conflict Syria<\/h4>\n
5. Ideological Curricula: What Future for Education?<\/h4>\n
6. International Standards and the Constitutional Declaration: Safeguarding the Right to Education<\/h4>\n
7. Conclusion and Recommendations<\/h4>\n
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