Rojava University objects to reduce Kurdish language classes decision 

Rojava University (Qamishlo) issued a statement today regarding the Ministry of Education's decision to reduce the instructional hours allocated for the Kurdish language to three classes per week. The statement reads:

"Rojava University is closely monitoring developments from the Ministry of Education regarding the reduction of Kurdish language instructional hours to three classes per week. Based on its academic and educational assessment, the University asserts that this measure represents a regression from the adopted educational model—a step backward that undermines the continuous progress the region's education sector has witnessed over the past years."

It added: "Over the last twelve years, comprehensive academic and practical experience has been accumulated in Rojava/North and East Syria, where a holistic educational system was established, adopting Kurdish as the primary language of instruction and research across all educational levels. The use of the mother tongue was not limited to literature and the humanities; it extended to the teaching of exact, medical, and applied sciences—such as mathematics, physics, chemistry, and engineering—based on rigorously vetted scientific curricula and advanced academic standards."

The University warned that "reducing the language of instruction to three weekly classes and relegating it to a secondary language subject—rather than maintaining it as the primary medium for teaching scientific disciplines—will lead to negative educational and academic consequences, most notably:

- Weakening students' comprehension and analytical capabilities by severing them from the linguistic environment in which they have invested academically for over twelve years."

- abandoning the infrastructure and academic achievements built and developed through educational efforts and resources spanning more than a decade.

- Disregarding international educational recommendations and literature that affirm mother-tongue education as a fundamental factor in ensuring educational quality and fostering innovation and critical thinking.

The University asserted that "the optimal academic solution lies not in sidelining one language in favor of another, but in adopting a bilingual education model—a scientifically grounded and globally implemented approach. This model allows for the teaching of sciences and core subjects in both Kurdish and Arabic side-by-side, thereby safeguarding students' linguistic and cultural rights, enhancing their cognitive and communicative competencies, and serving as a bridge for academic and national integration, rather than a vehicle for policies of exclusion or curtailment."

The University emphasized that the right to comprehensive education in one's mother tongue across various fields of knowledge and science is both an academic and human right—guaranteed by international standards and conventions—and a fundamental mechanism for ensuring the stability of the educational process and the advancement of scientific research. Furthermore, building an inclusive and sustainable educational system requires fostering multilingualism and adopting comprehensive curricula, rather than implementing policies of restriction and reduction.

Rojava University called upon the relevant authorities to "review the aforementioned decisions that limit the scope of Kurdish-language education, and to work on protecting and developing the academic standards and integrated scientific curricula taught in Kurdish over the past twelve years—while also paving the way for sustainable bilingual education models—to ensure the future of student generations and maintain the efficacy of the educational system."

Sh-S

ANHA