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Before the Israel-Hamas war broke out last October, Halaa Hamdan’s daily routine revolved around her life at Al Aqsa University in Gaza.
A fourth-year English studies student, Hamdan dedicated her time to her courses and teaching English at a polytechnic, an opportunity she had been eagerly anticipating for only two weeks before the conflict began.
“When I woke up, I’d follow a routine: go to the university, meet my professors, attend my courses, and complete my coursework,” she said.
“Now it’s all gone.”
According to Palestinian official data, all 12 of Gaza’s higher education institutions have been destroyed or damaged, resulting in the deaths of over 350 teachers and academics. Hamdan is among 90,000 students whose studies have been disrupted.
However, a ray of hope has emerged as students and faculty at Al Aqsa University and Gaza University have resumed some classes online, despite unstable internet connections and ongoing threats.
“It’s a golden opportunity to be able to return to classes online,” said Hamdan, who has been studying virtually for the past two weeks.
Students are among the hundreds of thousands of Palestinians that Save the Children estimates lack daily essentials and have been forced to sleep outdoors and scavenge for food and water in the rubble.
Even though Hamdan, 20, has been able to resume learning virtually, she faces many challenges.
“First of all, electricity has been [intermittently] cut off 24/7, the internet is cut off most of the time and this leads to making learning impossible, and the planes don’t stop flying above us, 24/7,” she said.
“How do you study while this horror is happening around you? At any moment a rocket could hit you and that’s it, you’re gone, without even knowing it.”
Despite these obstacles, Hamdan, who lives in Deir Al-Balah, in southern Gaza, is determined to continue her education.
“I want to go back to school to continue with my life, which is founded upon academics.”
Leaders of Al Aqsa University, Gaza University, and the Palestinian Ministry of Education, which is primarily based in the West Bank, debated options for post-secondary education during the crisis, with many initially hesitant about offering virtual classes due to access concerns.
Ultimately, university leaders and ministry officials agreed that virtual learning could provide mental relief for students and pave the way for the eventual resumption of on-campus classes after the war.
The online education combines synchronous and asynchronous learning using platforms like Moodle, Zoom, and Google Meet.
“We give our professors and students flexibility. But most have been engaging as best as they could. We also have vetted volunteers from abroad who are helping instruct classes,” said Raed El Hajar, Al Aqsa University’s vice-president.
To ensure the online classes operate smoothly, the university’s data servers, lost in the war, are backed up on cloud servers hosted in Canada.
Dealing with losses and risking to connect
As virtual classes are offered to some of Gaza’s university students, reminders of the ongoing war are omnipresent.
Hamdan recalls her initial displacement from her home in Deir Al-Balah.
Living with her brother, sister, and mother on the fourth floor of a building, they faced dangerous conditions as airstrikes and sniper fire targeted higher floors. They slept in the kitchen, far from windows and walls for safety.
One day, Hamdan heard a man screaming outside and saw someone convulsing on the ground after being hit by a sniper. This prompted her family to evacuate to her grandparents’ home temporarily.
“We stayed there for four days but decided to return to our home, despite the danger,” said Hamdan.
According to El Hajar, 15 professors from Al Aqsa have been killed since October 7.
“We have some courses we can’t provide since they were specialties of academics lost to the war.”
The university has yet to assess the number of students who have died or lost family members.
“Yesterday I called my friend and asked if her circumstances had remained the same,” said Hamdan. “She told me that she lost her entire family and doesn’t want to continue learning because of her mental state.”
In her home in eastern Khan Younis, nursing student Dalia Abu Zarifa and her family have their bags packed, ready to leave at any moment.
Abu Zarifa, a 21-year-old nursing student, continues her studies online with Birzeit University in the West Bank.
Finding an internet connection is a challenge, so her father helps by going onto the roof, attaching her phone to a long wooden stick, and raising it in an attempt to download the necessary online materials.
“My dad told me to raise a stick and put the phone on it so the connection would improve, but it’s still not great,” said Abu Zarifa.
Sometimes her father goes further, taking links to her lectures to a nearby hospital, where networks are stronger, to download materials and send them back to her.
Education or food
While Hamdan and Zarifa appreciate the opportunity to take online classes, some in Gaza question the effectiveness of virtual learning during a conflict.
Mahmoud El Shami, a former sociology professor at Gaza University, expressed skepticism about the online model amid the war.
“It doesn’t make sense. It won’t benefit many students in Gaza,” said El Shami.
Observers note that prioritizing education is difficult amid other pressing issues, like evacuation orders and shortages of water and food. Recently, UN experts declared famine has spread throughout the Gaza Strip.
“We debated a lot about our priorities: food and water or education,” said El Hajar.
Beyond the immediate return to education, some see larger stakes.
“How can you expect someone to focus on their courses when they need water or just want to survive the dangers we face today?” said El Shami.
El Hajar emphasized concern for the mental health of students, especially those experiencing severe grief and depression.
Rebuilding in the future
El Hajar is eager to begin rebuilding educational institutions as soon as possible. By offering virtual classes during the war, he believes they can start preserving education in Gaza now.
“Part of our return is to help us start rebuilding from now. It will take years, but we want to start slowly.”
Though uncertain what the future will hold, El Hajar is determined to resume face-to-face learning, even if it means using tents or caravans amid the rubble.
Hamdan is committed to completing her studies and returning to her role as a language instructor for others in Gaza.
“I’m studying the English language to communicate with the world and share our experiences and messages.”
Source
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