JEDDAH, 26 August 2003 — Saudi Arabia yesterday decided to introduce English language classes in primary school next year and to improve English teaching at intermediate and secondary schools.
The decisions were taken by the Council of Ministers during its weekly meeting chaired by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd.
“The Cabinet agreed to a proposal to introduce the teaching of English as a main subject in sixth grade, for both boys and girls, beginning from the 2004-2005 academic year,” Acting Culture and Information Minister Dr. Ali Al-Namlah said.
Saudi state schools now start teaching English in seventh grade, the first of the intermediate level. Sixth grade is the last year of the primary level.
Private international schools, which come under the direct supervision of the Education Ministry, do all their teaching in English.
The Cabinet ordered an Education Ministry panel to ensure that the teachers concerned “master English as if it were their mother tongue,” Al-Namlah told the Saudi Press Agency.
The Cabinet also decided to “improve the teaching of English at intermediate and secondary levels by updating curricula, enhancing the competence of teachers and using modern technologies,” the agency said.
The proposal to boost the teaching of English was made by Prince Sultan, second deputy premier and minister of defense and aviation, who heads a committee charged with upgrading education in the country.
The plan to introduce English to primary school students was scheduled to be implemented last year. But the Cabinet on Aug. 19, 2002 postponed the plan saying the move required further study by a higher panel.
The Cabinet issued the postponement decision after the Education Ministry had already begun preparations to start teaching English to fourth graders (10-year-olds) during the 2002-2003 academic year. The ministry had already trained some 300 Saudi teachers and was in the process of hiring 1,300 foreign teachers for the project.
Saudi Arabia allocates about one-fifth of its general budget for education. At present, there are 11,856 government schools of which 6,011 are primary schools with 1,165,378 students and 86,000 teachers.
There are 3,063 intermediate schools with 537,331 students and 40,337 teachers, and 1,475 secondary schools with 334,567 students. The Department for Girls’ Education runs 13,598 primary, intermediate and secondary schools.
Yesterday’s Cabinet meeting also denounced the ongoing Israeli aggression against the Palestinians, including the assassination of their leaders and destruction of their houses. It urged the international community to act swiftly to end the Israeli atrocities and implement the Middle East road map.
Earlier, King Fahd briefed the Cabinet on the outcome of his talks with Pakistani Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali on ways of strengthening bilateral cooperation.
Prince Miteb, minister of municipal and rural affairs, briefed the meeting on the situation in Jizan, which has been hit by torrential floods, and the efforts being made by various government departments to alleviate the suffering of the flood victims.
Jizan has been receiving every support from the government, like all other regions in the country, King Fahd said. “Ministers regularly visit the region to discover the needs of its people and promote its progress and prosperity,” he added.
