They, however, complain about the rising fees of private schools which, according to many, have gone up to extortionate levels.

Mahmoud Jad, a Saudi father, said he could not register his son at an elementary government school on the Ministry of Education's website, so he had no other choice but to consider putting him in a private school.

“I did that despite the high fees. I have no regrets, however, because there he will learn English language and will be involved in various sports activities,” he said.

Abu Ahmad, another Saudi parent, said the high educational standards of private schools tempted him to register his son regardless of the exceptionally high fees.

He, however, wished that private schools would lower their fees or allow parents to pay them in installments.

“Some private schools ask for lump sum payments. They do not divide them into installments. This will definitely affect our monthly budget. Despite this, I favor private schools because we will find whatever we look for our children there,” he said.

Abu Hisham, an Arab expatriate, said the cheapest fee of an elementary private school for his daughter was SR8,000.

“This would seriously weaken our financial position. We were not economically prepared for this but we had no other option but to pay up to avoid depriving our daughter of her education,” he said.

Huda Annani, a Saudi mother of two girls studying in a private school, lauded the education provided by private schools and said they make great efforts to maintain high standard and to graduate students with strong personalities.

Annani admitted that the fees were high but justified considering the high standards and good services the private schools offer compared to government schools.

She also said the smaller number of students in private schools is an extra privilege since they will receive a more intensive form of teaching.

Ilham Wasfi Izzy, the principal of a private girls school, said the difficulties parents might face were financial in nature, but added her staff face problems when handling the sheer number of registrations.

She said many parents give up the idea of registering their daughters when they arrive at the cash counter and learn about the fees.

“I seldom see a father who has come to the school with a solid determination to register his daughter knowing in advance what he has to pay,” she said.

Izzy described their fees as reasonable compared to those of other Arab countries and said their expenses were high compared to government schools. “We have to pay building rents and good salaries to our teachers,” she explained.

Faiza Al-Sayed, supervisor of private and foreign education at the Makkah branch of the Education Ministry, said licenses would not be granted to a new private school unless it meets certain conditions, including the renting of proper and spacious buildings.

“According to the rules, a rented school should move to its own private building eight years after it opens,” she explained.

She said the private schools’ charges were commensurate with the incomes of parents and added that it was normal for them to impose high fees because they had to pay rents and high salaries to their teachers and other employees.

Al-Sayed said one of the reasons parents prefer private schools was the fewer number of students in each class.

“A classroom in a private school usually accommodates 20 to 25 students, while in government schools this number may well exceed 40. The smaller number of students in a classroom gives teachers leeway to focus more on each one of them,” she said.