Lebanon (MNN) — Recently, a partner of Tent Schools International started a school in a refugee camp in Lebanon. However, the school introduces a unique spin: it is held in a shipping container.
“It started through our partner in Lebanon. He had this idea because he saw the situation in the camps,” Tent Schools’ Rawan Haddad says.
With every level of higher education, the rate of refugee students decreases. This is primarily due to costs of education and travel, distance of traveling to schools, and cultural purposes.
But by integrating schools inside of refugee camps, education is made more accessible to kids who would not be able to receive it otherwise.
Haddad says when she visited Tent Schools’ partner in Lebanon, she saw how the shipping container school was a successful idea and how the students loved it and felt at home. The action of creating a school in a shipping container also offers other positive opportunities.
“These shipping containers can be moved inside the camps from one place to another easily, and we can put them wherever there are needs,” Haddad says.
“They are cheaper than building a school, and they are warmer than tents in Winter. These shipping containers, you can warm them quickly in Winter and they can stay cool in Summer with a fan. When the weather gets nicer, we put these moving schools in an open place so the students can do many activities out with their teachers.”
Tent Schools is financially supporting this school and offering prayers, Tent Schools educational programs, and encouragement to teachers, families, and students. Through the school and their work, they are encouraging growth among both refugee students and their families, showing them that they can change their future and have successful lives full of hope.
(Photo courtesy of Tent Schools International via Facebook)
“They need to have a purpose and reason to live, and above all, they need to feel the love of Christ through Christian teachers, a healthy school, a spiritual atmosphere that is emotionally healing, along with education.”
Haddad adds that if students and families return to their country, Tent Schools wants them to be full “with seeds of hope to plant a better future for their country, a hope that comes from the education they received in the camps, and through coming to know Jesus who cares so deeply for them.”
Tent Schools invites you to support refugee education in Lebanon and the Middle East through their programs and partnerships. Allow your love to be translated into action by praying for children and families to experience the love of Christ and to grow in their education and hope.
Also, financially support Tent Schools partners and programs so more schools like the shipping container school can be established and offer a future to refugees. Get started here.
Header photo courtesy of Tent Schools International via Facebook
