Damascus, April 30 (QNA) - HE Minister of Education of the Syrian Arab Republic, Dr. Mohammed Abdul Rahman Turko, affirmed that the ministry is moving forward to pursue a clear-eyed strategic pathway to recalibrate the pedagogical trajectory in Syria.

He emphasized that this action is accomplished through unifying curricula, advancing educational energies, and rebuilding trust among students and schools following the years-long challenges the war had imposed on the educational reality.

In conversation with Qatar News Agency (QNA), Dr. Turko highlighted that throughout the past years, the proliferation of divergent educational authorities and curricula in Syria had posed a profound constructive challenge to the nation, which required meticulously learned and responsible solutions.

He added that the ministry's vision for the new curricula will commence after the conclusion of the secondary school examinations, where a nationwide workshop will be convened to establish standards for the new Syrian curricula.

From day one, the ministry has been striving to address the challenges engendered by the years-long war through setting a contingency plan, which is very essential since numerous educational issues need to be promptly addressed, Dr. Turko underlined.

Dr. Turko stressed that the prompt handling of this issue should not be at the expense of quality, given the sensitive nature of these issues. He revealed the development of a multi-pronged plan addressing curricula reform, the rehabilitation of destroyed school infrastructure, and the reintegration of out-of-school children.

According to international statistics, approximately 2.5 million Syrian children remain outside the formal education system, either due to school dropout or continued displacement in camps. A strategic framework has been put in place to facilitate their return to structured education, Dr. Turko highlighted.

As for the issue of teachers, which is considered the most sensitive one in Syria, Dr. Turko affirmed that a framework will be developed to institute rigorous criteria for teacher assessment, and they will be rehabilitated accordingly by dividing them into categories.

He clarified that their rehabilitation will be proportionate to their scientific expertise and certificate, and, at the end of the day, there will be effective teachers in the educational system.

The Syrian government is entirely aware of the critical employees' living conditions in general, and teachers in particular, as efforts are afoot to unify wages, which remain uneven across regions, and improve them within the available potential, Dr. Turko said.

Regarding the ministry's priorities in the coming period, Dr. Turko highlighted that the educational process is an integrated system that can't be partitioned, as teachers can't be separated either from curricula or the educational environment.

The priority in the coming period will be laser-focused on executing the full contingency plan since it ensures the provision of the appropriate environment, as well as the rights of every single Syrian child to education, Dr. Turko added.

Highlighting the official figures related to primary and secondary education, he emphasized that the number of children enrolled in school exceeds 4.3 million and will potentially surge as a result of their return from the neighboring countries, along with the number of Syrians who wish to return from Turkiye 'the vast majority', or from Lebanon, Jordan, and other countries.

With the final examinations approaching, Dr. Turko further highlighted the regulatory and logistical measures taken to ensure the integrity of these examinations, given the precarious security environment in some regions.

In addition, Dr. Turko affirmed that a central committee has been formed at the ministry, which is vested with oversight and preparations for the examinations, alongside sub-committees within the directorates across each governorate. He explained that all these committees function with full interoperability for that end, with over 700,000 primary and secondary school students registered for the examinations.

In his closing remarks, Dr. Turko underlined the ministry's fundamental mission, which intersects with the very essence of national and humanitarian action. He affirmed that the ministry has a sublime mission to secure children's right to education in Syria and overwhelmingly works to that end through the best potential currently available. (QNA)