Year in and year out, changes are expected in the field of education, and yet we see little progress. A society that has produced dependency on expatriate expertise has obviously failed to tune its educational curriculum to the needs of this growing country. Although the figures being touted by the Ministry of Education on the number of graduates annually may provide them a false sense of pride, very little is debated on the quality and marketability of these graduates.
A high school graduate from one of our public schools today can be expected to underperform in the following areas:
Language: Be it Arabic or English, it is distressing to note that in general most high school graduates cannot compose a single page in either language. If you ask them to prepare their resume, you would most likely be met with a blank stare.
Technical Skills: Very few male graduates would be able to carry out simple repairs on their vehicles such as changing tires or replacing spark plugs. In the home, small chores such as replacing electrical outlets or repairing a leaking faucet would be a formidable task. Ask ten graduates to individually prepare you a meal, the chances are you would end up hungry. Why not set up such specific workshops in schools? It would be a funny way to learn key skills.
Financial Savvy: Very few school leavers would even begin to understand the basics of financial management. Balancing their budget, meager as it may be, is not an art practiced with great skills here. Eventually it begins to catch up with these kids as they grow up and are thrust into the real world.
Critical Thinking: Our system of education tends to produce parroting drones. Fed with school material through a one-way system of communication, most students do just enough to memorize their assignments for a passing grade. With very little interactive dialogue encouraged in the classroom between students and teachers, the interest level in good education begins to wane.
Physical Education: Other than a quick game of soccer during school breaks, very little is offered in the way of sports or physical education. And in that girls are excluded from any form of organized sports at their schools makes it a bigger tragedy and on a larger scale.
The Arts: Not one of our public schools has been known to promote the pursuit of arts in their institutions. Music or drama classes are an alien concept in the culture of the Ministry of Education. In spite of several studies indicating that the arts do actually promote and enhance the intellectual capacity of an individual, it does not seem to hold much worth in the minds of our education bureaucrats.
Media and Communications: In an era where Saudi Arabia is consistently misrepresented in the Western media, has it not dawned on our leaders at the ministry that we are woefully lacking the resources to correct some of the false claims made against us? Why don’t we expose our children to the media at an early age? And why not introduce debates and public speaking in the classroom? Let these young minds explore their potential in such areas.
Islamic Studies: If indeed it was being taught the correct way, then we would not hear of many cases of abuse against the less fortunate. The frequency of false promises to deliver or the tendency to reject any culture or individual that does not fall into their sphere is more the norm. This is not what Islam is all about. Something has to change.
Yes some of these kids eventually come out as Ph.D. and MSc graduates and are entrusted with assignments at various ministries, but are they worth the paper their diplomas are printed on? Have they contributed anything to the progress of this society outside their box?
A quick fix would be for the ministry to implement such lacking tools into their school curriculum immediately. But are these bureaucrats bold and visionary? Chances are they will opt for a committee to study any recommendations, with results of this committee expected in the next millennium. Until then they will remain rooted at their desks with their minds buried under sand.
