After two years without regular classes, Gaza families have improvised tent schools near frontline areas where children face sniper fire and shelling. UNICEF says 98% of schools in Gaza were damaged and 88% need major repair or rebuilding. Around 638,000 school-aged and 70,000 kindergarten children have missed two academic years; temporary centres serve 135,000 students while a "Back to Learning" campaign aims to reach 200,000, contingent on access to supplies.
Gaza Children Risk Sniper Fire to Attend Makeshift Tent Schools as Education Collapses
Interactive_TwoYearofGaza_EDUCATION_DESTROYED
In a small canvas tent punctuated by nearby gunfire, seven-year-old Tulin prepares for her first day of school in two years. For most children this would be a moment of excitement; for Tulin and her mother it is a chapter of persistent fear and determination.
Tent Classrooms at the Frontline
The sustained Israeli offensive has devastated Gaza's school network, leaving families to set up improvised "tent schools" dangerously close to Israeli positions in what is described as the "yellow zone" west of the separation line. In some spots, tents sit only metres from active danger.
"Until my daughter gets to school, I honestly walk with my heart in my hand," Tulin's mother told Al Jazeera. "Many times I find myself involuntarily following her until she reaches the school. I feel there is something [dangerous], but I want her to learn. If not for this situation, she would be in second grade now. But we are determined."
The journey to class is perilous. Walking through rubble in Beit Lahiya, Tulin says she fears the open spaces. "When I go to school, I am afraid of the shooting," she said. "I can’t find a wall to hide behind so the shelling or stray bullets don’t hit us."
Inside the tents, protection is effectively nonexistent: thin canvas walls cannot stop bullets or shrapnel, yet pupils sit on the ground and attempt to learn despite the threat. Teachers regularly interrupt lessons when gunfire breaks out.
"The location is difficult, close to the occupation [forces]," a teacher said. "When the shooting starts, we tell the children: 'Take the sleeping position.' I get goosebumps, praying to God that no injuries occur. We make them lie on the ground until the shooting stops."
One pupil, Ahmed, who lost his father in the war, described the daily strain: "We come with difficulty and leave with difficulty because of the shooting. But I want to fulfil the dream of my martyred father, who wanted to see me become a doctor."
Wider Collapse of Gaza’s Education System
UNICEF's spokesperson in Palestine, Kazem Abu Khalaf, called the situation "one of the biggest catastrophes." According to UNICEF data, 98 percent of Gaza’s schools have suffered damage ranging from partial to total destruction, and 88 percent require comprehensive rehabilitation or complete reconstruction.
The human cost is immense: an estimated 638,000 school-aged children and 70,000 kindergarten-age children have missed two full academic years and are entering a third year without regular schooling.
While UNICEF and partners have opened 109 temporary learning centres serving about 135,000 students, psychological and developmental impacts are emerging. Field teams report severe developmental regression among children, prompting calls for "redoubled efforts" from education and mental-health specialists.
Compounding the crisis is a near-total blockade on educational supplies. Abu Khalaf said that since October 2023, almost no learning materials have entered the Gaza Strip, hindering any large-scale recovery.
UNICEF is preparing a "Back to Learning" campaign aimed at 200,000 children that will focus on Arabic, English, maths and science, and include recreational activities intended to support children’s mental health. Abu Khalaf stressed that success depends on lifting restrictions and allowing educational materials and transport into Gaza. "It is not in anyone’s interest for a child in Gaza not to go to school," he said.
Context: The scenes in Beit Lahiya illustrate both the resilience of families and teachers and the urgent humanitarian and educational needs that will require international support, access for aid, and sustained rebuilding efforts.
