Summer schools in Qamishli revive the world
Qamishli – North-Press Agency
Reem Shamon
In the latest 10 years, the Syriac associations, organizations, and political parties have started to launch specialized summer schools in order to teach the Syriac language and its grammars, and the special prayers for ecclesiastical events.
Zaleen School which was established by the Assyrian Women’s Committee in cooperation with the Assyrian Association for Aid and Development.
Samira Issa, the director of Zaleen School told North-Press that these schools are concerned in the teaching of the Syriac language more than the religious part, in addition to teaching the Syriac history and the materials that develop children’s talents, such as painting, handicrafts and Syriac traditional songs, for two full months.
Objectives
Issa pointed out that the school “Was started five years ago at the center of the organization due to the lack of a special place for them, and continued in the same place for two years until providing a good and well-serviced center was finally provided”.
As for the objectives of the school, its director explained that the main objective is to contain all sects of the Christian people, the Syriac, Assyrians, and Chaldeans, during the summertime, where the students’ ages range between 5 to 15 years old, “And to use their free time for things that could be of a benefit for them and for the Syriac people”.
The director also confirmed that the number of the students is in constant increase due to the good reputation of the school that has started spreading lately, and “The parents have found the right place to secure their children while they are away from home or in their work”.
The oldest languages in the world
The Syriac language is one of the oldest languages in the world, and the city of Qamishli is one of the most famous Syrian cities that have preserved it, as the Syriac people still speak their language as their mother tongue.
Regarding the curriculum of the school, Issa explained that the basic material taught, is the Syriac language, which is taught in churches and private schools which belong to the church as well, in addition to illustrations and teaching the history of the Syriac people, which is not highlighted in the general curriculum of schools, as well as recreational materials such as handicrafts which are supervised by teachers of arts.
Issa added that at the end of the school year, the school holds a special exhibition for the students’ work, in addition to preparing a closing ceremony, in which the highest graduates in the school will be honored as well as the first graduates in the preparatory and high schools of the Assyrian Democratic Organization will be honored, indicating that the school also trains children to sing Syriac songs in both east and west dialects.
As for the teaching mechanism in the school, Samira Issa explained that children aged between 5 and 8 have a special teacher who teaches them all the materials, and coordinates with the teachers of the larger group to prepare for activities for all students in a weekly basis, indicating that these activities are divided into internal and external, where a part of them are done inside the school and others in the villages adjacent to the city of Qamishli, as they include games and educational competitions and entertainment, and exploration and awareness trips and swimming pools.
It’s worth mentioning that the Syriac Orthodox Church, and through its affiliated institutions, had opened some private summer schools to teach the Syriac language and its grammars, and the special prayers for ecclesiastical events about fifty years ago.