Education Report 2012: Failed Grade – East Jerusalem's Failing Educational System

01/08/2012

Tens of thousands of schoolchildren in East Jerusalem will continue to receive second-rate education, if any, during the 2012 school year despite their basic right to education. Most will find themselves in dysfunctional public schools, lacking adequate resources and personnel, including many operating out of residential apartments. Of those who will have access to education, 40% will drop out by the time they reach 12th grade. Many families will be forced to fund informal education programs, often entailing thousands of NIS per year, in crude violation of their right to free education. Such expenses are especially detrimental to residents of East Jerusalem, in which poverty has reached an all-time high: 78% of the general population and 84% of children in the area are below the national poverty line.