JEDDAH, 5 November 2007 — Teachers across the Kingdom received with amazement news that their annual holidays may be shrunk to around 35 days a year.

Schoolteachers enjoy almost three months of holidays a year. However, proposals to reduce holidays have been received with a mixed reaction by teachers, reported Al-Madinah newspaper.

Some teachers were excited at being given the option to undergo courses during summer in order to strengthen their skills. Others lamented at the prospect of losing their long vacations.

“We teachers are also mothers and we have school-going children, and summer is the only time that the whole family spends together,” said Salma Abdulmajeed, an elementary school teacher.

“Training courses can be held in the evenings on normal days instead of the summer vacation,” she added.

But Tahani Fathi, a chemistry teacher at a private school, thought it is better for courses to be given in the summer and not in the evenings throughout the year.

“At the same time, I wish this decision is not implemented because 35 days is a short time and it would be really difficult for those who have young children. Our job requires us to work the whole day even after we go home. We have to prepare for the next day,” she said.

Saeeda Humaidan, a geography teacher, does not mind cutting short her summer vacation to participate in training courses. “It wouldn’t make much of a difference because I don’t travel in summer. I spend it at home with my children,” she said. “Training courses would be a change and I would of course benefit from them, especially since education these days is moving toward technology and the Internet. Computer and even English courses would be good and entertaining at the same time.”

Abdullah Al-Ghamdi said he was expecting financial compensation if the decision is implemented.

“What makes us tolerate low salaries in the education sector is our vacation, which is longer than what other employees get. But now they want to cut this short. They should compensate us by raising our salaries because the training courses would enhance our skills,” Al-Ghamdi said.