NAJRAN, 7 February 2007 — Approximately 50 students at a night school in this southern Saudi city walked out of their Arabic grammar because, they allege, the questions were too hard, the Al-Watan newspaper reported earlier this week. The students contend that the questions were culled from material contained in not just the teacher’s syllabus, but also from the textbook they were provided. They also complain that some of the challenges in the exam did not appear as model questions provided to the students before the exam was given. (For shame!) “We were thrown off-guard by the questions, which did not appear in the model questions which were supplied to us by our grammar teachers,” said Nassir Al-Gashanin, one of the protesting students. Ali Al-Shammarani, assistant director at the region’s educational administration, said the questions were set on the basis of their course syllabus and the recalcitrant students would have to face the consequence of their misdeeds. The school principal said the question could have been difficult for the students if they did not study the textbooks. The failing students will likely have to re-take the course at a SR7,000 enrollment fee. The students will then be expected to actually open the textbooks and read them, because — just like last time — the answers to the exam questions will not be provided in advance.