Kurdish Language Foundation: 3 lessons week are not enough to teach grammar, literary curricula

A decision by the Ministry of Education in the transitional government to reduce Kurdish-language instruction to three lessons per week has sparked dissatisfaction among students, their families, and teachers, who have expressed their rejection of the decision and called for it to be amended in line with the progress made by the Kurdish language over the past 14 years.

In this context, Hemrin Hussein, spokesperson for the Kurdish Language Foundation in the city of Hasakah and a Kurdish-language teacher, explained that the decision of the Ministry of Education in the transitional government does not correspond with the struggle, efforts, and stage reached by the educational system in Rojava.

She noted that the decision to teach Kurdish for three lessons per week came too late. It might have been appropriate during the early stages of the Rojava revolution, but it is no longer sufficient for students who have studied in their mother tongue, graduated, and are now working in their respective fields.

She pointed out that the decision contradicts Decree No. 13, issued by transitional government President Ahmed al-Sharaa, which recognizes Kurdish as a national language and permits its teaching in public and private schools. She also explained that it violates Article Four, which stipulates the right of all communities to learn in their own language.

Hemrin considered the decision to be, in practice, a restriction on Kurdish-language education, particularly after the progress achieved by the Kurdish-language educational process in Rojava. She said that it undermines the gains of the revolution achieved over decades of struggle and the efforts made by educational cadres, which, according to her, were made possible through the sacrifices of thousands of martyrs.

She stressed that limiting Kurdish-language education to three lessons per week would negatively affect the future of Kurdish students and amount to a policy that erases the future of thousands of Kurdish students. She said: “Students cannot learn another language after 14 years of education in Kurdish.”

She argued that teaching Kurdish for only three lessons per week does not equip students with the terminology needed to complete their literary studies in Kurdish, as such studies require specialized terminology and literary expressions.

She stressed the importance of students learning in their mother tongue so that they can express themselves and make a fundamental contribution to the development of their personality, educational abilities, and understanding.

Hemrin noted that learning Kurdish grammar alone requires approximately five to six lessons per week, according to international human rights standards, without even taking literary and scientific subjects into account.

She further emphasized that forcing students to study in other languages would affect their understanding of their history, culture, identity, and historical presence on the land.

Hemrin Hussein pointed out that the problem is not the number of hours itself, but the decision, which deprives an entire people of their right to education in their mother tongue.

She also noted that the text of the decision issued by the Ministry of Education remains unclear and requires clarification regarding how it will be implemented in Kurdish-majority areas, as well as regarding the fate and future of thousands of teachers working in Kurdish-language education.

ANHA