Controversy over Syria’s school system resurfaced earlier this month after a prestigious private school in Damascus announced it would gender-segregate classes for the new school year. Debate on social media focused on whether this decision was the result of pressure from the Syrian government - a sign of impending Islamization of the state - or, as the school stated, it was a genuine reaction to frequent harassments and fights among its students.
I recently published an interview with the mayor of Mushrefa, a mixed-sect town in northern Homs, in which we discussed the gender-segregation status of that town’s Christian/Sunni/Alawi schools. Earlier this month, I met with a teacher who works in an all-Alawi school in rural Jableh. The following excerpt of that interview covers our discussion on curriculum changes under the new government, gender segregation, and resource challenges in the new school year.