RIYADH, 4 September 2003 — The Ministry of Education is going ahead with plans to replace 2,500 expatriate English language teachers with Saudis.
Currently, there are 7,000 English language teachers, 4,500 of them Saudis, in the Kingdom, out of a total of 380,000 in its eight universities and teacher training colleges. The plan calls for progressive replacement of the remaining expatriates.
The Council of Ministers, headed by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd, approved last month the introduction of English at the elementary level from the next academic year. The ministry has involved the US Embassy and the British Council in its effort to increase the number of trained Saudi teachers of English.
This was announced by Muhammad Ibrahim Al-Mohanna, head of the English department at the Ministry of Education, who said that with the entry of around 200 qualified teachers into the Kingdom’s market every year, the ministry was on course to meet the target for Saudi teachers.
For the sixth English language training program organized by the ministry in collaboration with the US Embassy and the British Council, some 600 Saudi English language teachers including 200 women from the Central Province are attending a two-week-long course to upgrade their teaching skills.
Al-Mohanna also announced that English language textbooks to be introduced from the sixth grade in government schools next year would be tailored to the students’ needs rather than procured from the market. He said the contents of the textbook should be appropriate for the students’ needs and the cultural traditions of the Kingdom.
Asked if new teachers would be recruited in preparation for the switchover to English from next academic year, he said no decision had been taken but left open the possibility that some of the teachers could be non-native speakers of English from Asian countries.
John Burgess, counselor for public affairs at the US Embassy, said four English language teachers, two of them women, from the US were participating in the program as coordinators.
Speaking on behalf of the British Council, Alan Smart, director, Saudi Arabia, paid tribute to the Education Ministry for what he called its “far-sighted decision” to introduce English in the sixth grade from next academic year. He said his discussions at the ministry dwelt on the need to find appropriate solutions for the teachers “whether they should be tailor-made or something available on the market.”
Malcolm Jardine, assistant director ELT at the British Council here, said the thrust of the program was on teaching grammar, pronunciation and education methods as well as building up vocabulary. The focus was also on how to motivate the teachers and students. The contents of the course were defined by the Ministry of Education, he said. “It has helped us to understand the needs of the Saudi teachers for future cooperation.”
