Families in Iran struggle with wartime school closures

Iranian Parents Navigate School Closures and Disrupted Lives Amid Conflict

In Tehran, finance manager Mahnaz Ataei struggles to balance professional duties while supervising her 7-year-old son’s online education in her office. Like thousands of parents across Iran, she’s coping with nationwide school closures that began on February 28 when the United States and Israel launched military strikes against the country.

“My productivity drops when I have to pay attention to both my child and my work at the same time,” Ataei explained. “The hardest part is trying to create balance between work and online classes, and always stressing over whether he is really learning his lessons properly.”

Although a fragile ceasefire has temporarily halted airstrikes that killed at least 3,000 Iranians—including more than 165 people in an elementary school bombing—daily life remains profoundly disrupted. The ceasefire is scheduled to expire early next week, with significant unresolved issues between the U.S. and Iran, including concerns about Iran’s enriched uranium program. A continuing U.S. naval blockade threatens to further damage Iran’s already struggling economy.

The situation has created a sense of limbo for Iranian families. When the conflict began, many fled Tehran and other major cities, seeking refuge in rural areas or the country’s relatively unaffected northern regions. Roya Amiri, a housewife who recently returned to Tehran with her two sons, ages 10 and 18, described the psychological toll: “I feel like I’m suspended—neither in the air nor on the ground.”

Amiri’s family was among hundreds of thousands who evacuated the capital. They stayed with relatives in crowded conditions, with 15 people sharing a single home. The close quarters created tensions, especially among children whose routines were severely disrupted. For Amiri’s 10-year-old son, who suffers from a respiratory illness, the displacement created additional challenges as the family struggled to obtain his medication.

Schools initially closed completely following the first strikes, briefly resuming with online classes for a week in March before the Nowruz holiday. Virtual learning resumed again on April 4, but the prolonged closures have created significant educational disruptions reminiscent of those experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic six years earlier.

Despite the ongoing threat of renewed conflict, many families like Amiri’s have chosen to return to Tehran, preferring their own homes despite the risks. “I was tired of living collectively. I wanted to return to my own home and routine,” she said. “I missed Tehran.”

The mass exodus created unique social dynamics. Reza Jafari relocated his family to stay with in-laws, where more than a dozen relatives soon gathered under one roof. “Because the sound of explosions was distressing and my children were terrified, I left Tehran for their peace of mind,” he explained. While children often adapted more easily to the communal living arrangements, adults struggled with interrupted sleep, lack of privacy, financial pressures, and the strain of extended stays as houseguests.

For working parents, the ongoing school closures have necessitated complex arrangements. Architect Padideh Teymourian and her husband, jewelry shop owner Amir Ramezani, have completely reorganized their schedules around their 6-year-old daughter’s online preschool classes.

Teymourian’s employer resumed operations after the holidays but did not permit remote work, forcing employees to choose between returning to the office or taking unpaid leave. The couple now manages an intricate daily schedule where one parent must constantly supervise their daughter’s virtual learning.

“My husband’s work schedule has been completely disrupted, and I also take about an hour and a half of hourly leave every day,” Teymourian said. Ramezani has shifted his workday to accommodate daytime childcare responsibilities, often returning home late at night after their daughter has gone to bed.

“It has put economic and emotional pressure on both of us,” Ramezani admitted. “Life is moving on fast forward… You don’t even notice how the day becomes night. We’re just getting through time until things go back to the way they were.”

As the ceasefire deadline approaches, Iranian families continue living in a state of uncertainty, adapting to disrupted education systems while hoping for a return to normalcy that still seems distant.