Education is not a 12-year process in which empty minds are filled with ideas from the past, inherited wisdom, and contemporary scientific and social findings. The fact is that no mind is empty and no idea more valuable than one’s own. Education is an ongoing process of reshuffling existing knowledge, building bridges to link distinct previously "unconnected" ideas, and developing theories to explain the past, live the present, and predict the future.
Education does not begin in kindergarten, nor does it conclude with graduation. It is a continuous process that should not teach students what to think, but rather how to think. A true education does not answer all questions, but provides students with the desire and resources to investigate on their own, to discover, and to contribute.
It is unfortunate that most schooling systems worldwide have yet to live up to this definition of education. Although it may be discouraging to examine our education system critically, it is also necessary to do so as a prerequisite to change, without which no progress will be made and no improvement will ever be seen.
As a Saudi citizen and a recent graduate from a Saudi high school, I yearn to praise our educational system. I am proud of my country and its many accomplishments, yet with this patriotism comes a responsibility. Thus, I owe it to the country I love to elevate it to the highest standards. Claiming that the educational system in the Kingdom is flawless, or even improving at a snail’s pace, would be a lie. The truth is that educational progress has been static for over a decade. Our schools are failing us in multiple ways and reform is urgently required.
One of the first steps in the reform process must be the mandatory certification of teachers. It is shocking that in Saudi Arabia there is no formal certification of teachers prior to assigning them to teaching positions within the public school system. The only prerequisite for a position as a teacher is an undergraduate degree, usually but not always, in the subject the teacher will be assigned to teach. There is no requirement for teacher training courses.
Teacher education courses are vital because they not only instill in educators a personal appreciation and therefore vital dedication to their future profession, but they also teach teachers how to teach. These courses make potential educators aware of a discomforting truth: no magical formula exists for teaching. There are, however, basic outlines of best practices and many different educational theories. A teacher must recognize the multiplicity of learning styles displayed by her students, and must find ways to incorporate into her lesson plans the different teaching methods required.
For example, in the typical Saudi classroom there is an emphasis on students comprehending and remembering what a teacher expresses orally, or through the written word on a chalkboard or handout. Videos, graphs, maps, and illustrations are almost never utilized as alternative methods of helping students to truly understand the material being taught. This despite the fact that such diverse presentation methods are more attractive to many learners. Our Saudi teachers simply do not understand the importance of alternative presentation methods, which results in many students poorly comprehending and retaining the required curriculum.
In addition to improving our teachers, Saudi educational reform must include improving the curriculums forced upon students. Today, students in the Saudi schooling system do not choose their courses, nor do teachers select the topic of study within the mandated subjects. Instead, the Ministry of Education operates on a "one curriculum fits all" mentality. Curriculums are revised so infrequently, that modern day achievements and conflicts in which students are interested, and in many cases ignorant, are not given any attention.
Until teachers are properly trained to design their own curriculums to fit the unique group of students they are teaching, it may be wise to maintain standardized curriculums. However, these curriculums must undergo dramatic screening and upgrading by a team of professionals from various disciplines, including but not limited to, specialists in both education and the subject of study. An honest and objective inquiry into details of the content and display of information in textbooks is necessary to reforming Saudi curriculums.
Our textbooks are extraordinarily deficient in putting forth the varying points of view in our society. For example, Arab males wrote all textbooks used in Saudi schools. Where is the Arab female voice? Worse still, our textbooks have been written from the narrowest perspective and inevitably overlook many concepts key to understanding the modern world and contemporary conflicts.
Just briefly examine the history curriculum. Our history textbooks repeatedly teach the events surrounding the life of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, the Islamic legacy, and selective dates important to the development of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. A significant number of international events, including many with great impact on the Middle East, are excluded from the Saudi history curriculum. There is not even one mandatory lesson in the history curriculum dedicated to either of the World Wars. This is despite the fact that World War II was in large part responsible for carving up the Arab world into its current national divisions.
It is evident that the history curriculum clearly fails to meet global educational standards.
Unfortunately, it is not the only curriculum that is deficient. Religious textbooks are also in dire need of reform. Students should not only be made aware of the multiple schools of Islam, and different interpretations of religious scholars, but should also be educated accurately about alternate belief systems. Textbooks should include comparative units in which students learn to recognize the similarities and identify the differences Islam shares with other global faiths. Such education would arm our students with the facts to potentially inform non-Muslims about the beauty of the Islamic principles.
Religious diversity must be addressed in the curriculum, because the Saudi population is no longer shielded from multiple lifestyles, political regimes, and religions worldwide. Traveling abroad is no longer necessary for exposure to diversity, as it exists within the Kingdom’s resident expatriates, as well as through the foreign satellite television channels. Addressing this religious diversity is imperative for creating a well-rounded, tolerant, confident, and intellectually strong generation of young Saudi Muslims.
Improving curriculums is not an easy task. Although the financial resources may be available, the professionals eligible to lead this reform are hard to find. The government must call upon its educated citizens to accept temporary positions in the Ministry of Education, or perhaps put out an open call for the submission and drafting of an improved curriculum. Community involvement is necessary, not only as a contributor to the educational reform movement at the peak of its activity, but as a continuous agent providing valued feedback and support to the ministry, schools and students.
Once the curriculum has been revised, community involvement can move to a new level. An effort must be made to link our classrooms to the outside world. One conventional way of building this bridge is to arrange academic field trips to support the curriculum. In cases where it is difficult to transport students to off-campus sites, guest speakers may be invited into schools to share information about their specialties, followed by question and answer sessions. Utilizing the many ways to link the education process with the larger society is important because it makes learning relevant for students and encourages them to work harder.
Improving teachers, curriculums and schools is a constantly evolving process for any modern nation. Here in Saudi Arabia we must re-examine our definition of education, the purpose it serves, and the goal it aims to achieve, for upon this depends the nature of teaching and learning, and upon students ultimately depends the future of our beloved Kingdom. When our oil wells dry up, only our innovative minds will remain. We must prepare for the inevitable, and start drilling our human wells now!