By: Dr. Alemayehu Gebre, The Luminos Fund When nine-year-old Nahom and his family finally arrived in Mekelle, the capital of Ethiopia’s Tigray region, they were physically and emotionally exhausted. They had fled their home amid violent conflict, walking for months in search of safety. In Mekelle, they found lifesaving aid – food, water, shelter – […] The post Education as a lifeline: How foundational learning and SEL empower children in crisis appeared first on World Education Blog.
By: Dr. Alemayehu Gebre, The Luminos Fund
When nine-year-old Nahom and his family finally arrived in Mekelle, the capital of Ethiopia’s Tigray region, they were physically and emotionally exhausted. They had fled their home amid violent conflict, walking for months in search of safety. In Mekelle, they found lifesaving aid – food, water, shelter – but the nightmares of war lingered. Only in a classroom filled with songs, games, and compassionate teachers did Nahom begin to rediscover joy, heal, and prepare for the future.
In the push to strengthen foundational learning, social and emotional learning (SEL) is often overlooked – yet the reverse is also true, with some programs prioritizing SEL at the expense of critical reading and math skills. In crisis contexts, this false choice is especially harmful. Literacy and numeracy are essential, but so too is the ability to process trauma, build relationships, and develop resilience.
Among the urgent, post-conflict humanitarian needs in Tigray, education is a top priority for the regional government. The conflict forced over 2.3 million children out of school, exacerbating disruptions from earlier COVID-19-related closures.
When I traveled to the region to re-launch the Luminos Fund’s accelerated learning program just months after the November 2022 peace agreement, the lingering physical impacts of the war were palpable. Equally devastating were the psychological impacts on children.
Education is not just an investment for the future, it is vital for children’s immediate survival and recovery. But simply reopening schools is not enough. To help children like Nahom thrive, we must ensure access to foundational learning in safe, supportive, and joyful environments.
A strong foundation in literacy and numeracy prepares children for future academic and everyday challenges, equipping them to navigate future crises like climate change and protecting them from exploitation and violence. When combined with SEL, education becomes even more transformative. SEL can help children manage emotions, build healthy relationships, and feel a sense of belonging – key elements for healing and recovery. Beyond these immediate benefits, SEL fosters critical thinking skills that can empower children to reject divisiveness and extremism, laying the foundation for long-term peace and security.
Fortunately, foundational skills and SEL are deeply interconnected. Children everywhere learn best when they are happy, feel safe, supported, and confident – conditions fostered through intentional SEL. By prioritizing both, we create holistic education models that not only ensure academic success but also nurture resilience, empathy, and self-confidence – skills that last a lifetime.
Diverse funders have a vital role in scaling integrated approaches like this. When global funding systems falter, their flexible resources and strategic backing allow organizations to refine their approaches, measure impact, and adapt to the evolving needs of vulnerable communities – especially amid mounting humanitarian crises. A recent independent study of Luminos’ program in Tigray highlights the profound results of such investments: tailoring our foundational learning model with joyful, SEL-focused activities positively impacted children’s self-confidence, communication, conflict resolution, and collaboration, and reduced perceived symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) by 53%. To aid students’ recovery outside the classroom, we also provided trauma healing for teachers and families so the entire community could recover and thrive together.
In the wake of major global funding shifts, the needs of children in crisis have never been more urgent. Today, one out of five children is living in or fleeing from conflict, and 224 million school-aged children are affected by crisis, with 72 million currently out of school. As conflict, climate change, poverty, and health emergencies push millions more to the brink of disaster each year, these numbers will only continue to rise.
This SEL Day, let’s shift the focus and recognize holistic education as a central pillar of crisis response. For children like Nahom, the classroom is more than a place to learn – it’s a sanctuary where they feel safe, make friends, heal, and grow. To truly support children in crisis, we must go beyond just access and invest in transformative solutions that integrate foundational learning with social and emotional support, rather than treating them as competing priorities. By blending soft skills like empathy, collaboration, and problem-solving with hard skills like literacy and numeracy, we enable children to rise above adversity and build brighter future for themselves and their communities.
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