POLITICAL CRISIS IN SYRIA AND ITS IMPACT ON EDUCATION

Syria today is the main topic of all breaking news. Syria today is the territory of disharmony, disagreement and dissidence. But the most important thing is that Syria is home to representatives of numerous national, ethnic and religious groups; and this coexistence on the same territory is the subject of interest for many scholars – culture and social experts, political analysts, historians and educationists. For the latter Syria is of special interest as historically the process of development of education in Syria can be divided into four major periods: the Ottoman period (beginning of the XVI – beginning of the XX centuries) when Syria was a part of the Ottoman Empire; the French period (1920-1946) when Syria was under the mandate of France so the system of educational institutions and the content of education were highly influenced by traditions of the Western European school. The third period can be characterized as “the Arab socialist period” (1956 - 1989) - the period of cooperation with experts from the USSR; their ideas affected education in Syria: Soviet scholars assisted in formation of the system of vocational institutions and reevaluation of methodological foundations and ideology of the educational process when its focus shifted to socialization of education. This period was also marked with successful implementation of the nationwide literacy program. The fourth period is the modern one which can be divided into two main stages: the first stage under the leadership of Hafez Al-Assad (1971 - 2000) and the second stage under the leadership of his son and the actual president of Syria – Bashar Al-Assad (2000 г. – till present). Thus, the system of education in Syria is the result of various historical eras: its modern structure (especially the structure of religious institutions of higher education) was formed in the Ottoman period; 12-year school education was implemented in the French period; content of education and literacy programs were adapted in Syria during the period of close cooperation with the Soviet Union; together with further independent projects and reforms initiated by the government in the beginning of the 2000-ies. However, the events of 2011, when Syria became the centre of conflict, split its history into two other periods – “before” and “after”. And the major question for all educationists is “what impact has the political crisis had on education?”. The publication is devoted to analysis of existing problems: the way people exercise their right for education in the context of the political crisis, as well as its impact on the process and aims of education, its content and major trends.