JEDDAH, 10 July 2003 — While managing her private business, the Hamra schools in Jeddah, Farida Farsi is trying to form an educational committee to help private schools coordinate with the Department of Education, and she is also a prominent member of a range of Saudi and Arab organizations in the education field.
In Amman, Jordan, she is involved with the Arabian Council for Excellence and the Gifted, where she organizes teacher-training courses. In the pipeline is a committee focusing particularly on gifted girls, she told Heya, magazine, a sister publication of Arab news.
In Tunisia, meanwhile, Farida is involved in research for the Arabian Family Organization on such topics as the effects of television on children in the Arab world.
Farida says she admires the new generation of Arab girls because, she says “they know what they want and they are self-reliant.”
She says it is a pity that Saudi society is afraid to let them handle greater responsibilities. “They are the future of the nation, but we don’t involve them in planning for the future, and often they are unaware what challenges to expect.”
In 1985, Farida started writing stories for children. Her main goal was to give children a positive set of values, she explains. They were the first step in her exploration of children and families in the Arab world.
With all that going on in her life, does she find enough time for her own family? “There is never enough time,” she says. “But I am grateful to my children for putting up with me.
“If they weren’t so able to rely on themselves, I couldn’t do the work I am doing,” she adds.
Self-reliance and determination are frequent themes in Farida’s life. “When I have a goal, of course I am aware that there will be challenges,” she says. “It’s not easy to set up an educational project. But strong determination is what helps me overcome these challenges.”
The Al-Hamra schools are unusual in that they incorporate Farida’s beliefs in self-reliance and independence. “We introduced an important element into our approach to education — self-appraisal. The students assess themselves in terms of their performance and personality.
“We also focus on self-education, to help the students develop a proactive role in society and help them make a positive contribution.”
The challenge for education in Saudi Arabia, she says, is how to stimulate enthusiasm for learning in children. “They don’t always need to be entertained when they’re young, but they need to want to learn,” she says.
Originally determined to become a doctor, Farida instead settled for management and economics. At the time she realized that the most important investment was going to be in the people of the country. With that in mind, she conducted classes for mothers, to give them an idea of what the art of education for their children involved. From there, she progressed to educating the educators — schoolteachers and university lecturers. She also has some media experience under her belt. Until 1980, she had a radio program called “Children of Makkah”.
Farida attributes much of her success to the unstinting support of her father, Muhammad Ali Farsi. “And of course my mother, who made sure that my brothers and I received the best education possible,” she adds.
What else is there to look forward to? “When I retire, I look forward to reading all the books I haven’t had time for because my life is so busy,” she says. ‘That’s all I’ll do: just read.”
