BZU launches new program on digital learning for Syrian refugees

The Center for Continuing Education at Birzeit University (CCE) and the International Education Association (IEA), based in Lebanon, led a two-day workshop that marked the official launch of the Digital Learning Innovation Project at UNICEF’s Makani Centers in Jordan.  Makani Centers were established to serve as safe, child-friendly spaces for children and adolescents in a crisis or post-crisis situations. 

The workshop is part of a research project designed to integrate technological and educational innovations as means to improve the quality and accessibility of learning for Syrian refugee children and host communities in Lebanon and Jordan, with a primary focus on children aged 14 to 18 years. 

The Digital Learning Innovation Project is funded by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) and the Ford Foundation.  It aims to enrich the learning support programs at Makani Centers by introducing technology-enabled experiential learning objects in science and math, and to support  career guidance designed to maximize career choices, assist Makani youth in discovering themselves, navigate their way within available educational and professional options, and increase opportunities for girls.

The project targets 13 Makani Centers that serve large Syrian refugee communities in Jordan.  It is a research and development program designed to adapt the educational models implemented by the Center for Continuing Education and the International Education Association in Palestine and Lebanon to the Makani Centers’ model in Jordan.