Can’t Wait to Learn in Northeast Syria: A Fresh Chapter in Education
Sept. 3, 2025
Caregivers speak of the same struggles: 96% say financial pressures keep their children from school. Unsafe roads, poor infrastructure, and a shortage of resources make learning a daily battle. Inside classrooms, teachers lack training and children lack the most basic materials — books, pencils, even a safe desk to sit at.
War Child is working to change this. Together with local partners, Action for Humanity (AfH), Ashti and Bahar, we are creating safe, child-friendly learning spaces, training teachers, and ensuring vulnerable children are not excluded, including those with disabilities and displaced families. Education must be more than lessons; it must be protection, safety, and hope.
In May 2025, War Child introduced its digital personalised learning platform Can’t Wait to Learn in Northeast Syria for the first time, with funds from the European Union Foreign Policy Instrument. Our platform brings interactive lessons to out-of-school children, where tablets become windows to literacy, numeracy, and imagination.
A “Can’t Wait to Learn” class, with a teacher from our local partner AFH helping a child navigate through the platform.
The children say it best.
Boys and girls from our programme share their thoughts on Can’t Wait to Learn:
Jawad, 10, dreams of becoming a doctor.
“My favorite story is building the village, especially the doctor’s house, because I want to become a doctor.”
Jawad (10) - a Can't Wait to Learn participant
Samer, 9, discovered a new word.
“My favorite word is education, because I love learning new things every day.”
Samer (9) - a Can't Wait to Learn participant
Balqees, 9, learned the meaning of kindness.
“My favorite word is friend, because the game taught me how to help others.”
Balqees (9) - a Can't Wait to Learn participant
Hind, 9, beams with pride.
“My favorite story is when I solved the puzzle. It was a challenge — and I succeeded!”
Hind (9) - a Can't Wait to Learn participant
Already, 751 children — 366 girls and 385 boys — have joined Can’t Wait to Learn in Al Raqqa and Deir-ez-Zor governorates. By April 2026, the programme will reach 1,445 children, helping them reclaim their right to education.
Every child deserves the chance to write their own story. And with every lesson learned, every puzzle solved, and every new word spoken with pride, Syria’s children are shaping a brighter tomorrow.
