RIYADH, 4 June 2006 — Teachers at international schools in the Kingdom will be required to produce a certificate stating that they have completed their tenure with their old schools before joining new ones. This is to ensure that they do not leave the school in the middle of the academic year, creating problems for students, Deputy Minister of Education Ibrahim Al-Shiddi told Arab News yesterday.
The new regulation comes against the background of instability created by teachers, mostly housewives, who quit jobs either because they receive better offers from other schools or they have to return to their native countries following the completion or non-renewal of the husband’s contract.
A random survey of international schools in the capital showed that 92 percent of teachers are housewives who are graduates but not necessarily holders of education degrees. Besides the grasshopper approach that they adopt, another major factor that upsets the academic schedule is the frequencies of maternity leave that school administration bodies have to face.
When a new teacher takes over, she is left in the lurch, as she needs time to adjust herself to the new working environment.
The deputy minister said the question of housewives leaving their schools in mid-stream was discussed with school managements. “We expect the management committee of each international school to deal with the issue, since our school inspectors are concerned mainly with the financial affairs of schools,” said Al-Shiddi.
He said there should be a contract signed with the teacher requiring her or him to complete the whole academic year.
“We are asking schools not to accept any teacher unless she produces a certificate that she has legally completed her tenure with her previous employer and has not quit the job without a proper notice,” he said. “This is one of the measures we are taking to prevent teachers from leaving their jobs arbitrarily.”
Inquiries with schools and teachers reveal that the managements find it cheaper and convenient to deal with housewives, as they do not have to pay them housing allowance. At one school, it came to light that the female teachers’ salaries, especially in the case of new recruits, have been reduced during the last three or four years from SR2,000 to SR1,100. They have also been deprived of vacation salaries.
