The only thing I can say to anyone trying to figure out what is wrong with the Kingdom’s system of education is ... good luck with that!
It is a huge, multi-layered web of dreams and fears. The government seems to be fully aware of how vital this sector is for the country’s future as during the past few years a huge chunk of the annual budget is being allocated for education. Just few days ago, the budget of 2014 followed the same pattern, SR210 billion ($56 billion), or 24.6 percent of the total budget, has been allocated to education. Unfortunately, despite all these huge spending, nothing seems to be moving in the desired direction.
If we compare today’s situation with the one prevalent some 15 years ago, we will be disappointed. Maybe we have better and colorful books with nice illustrations, a projector and powerpoint slides in some classes, a topic or two added here or there in the curricula, but the methodology is still the same. A teacher mostly disengaged and uninterested, lecturing students for 45 minutes, using under equipped laboratories and libraries and who has neither heard about soft skills nor extracurricular activities.
A few days ago, Prince Khaled Al-Faisal, former Gov. of the Makkah region, has been appointed the minister of education. Our hopes are high. However, we would like to put forward some suggestions for the improvement of the education system.
I would summarize my expectation in a sentence: We do not need to re-invent the wheel.
Whenever reading or discussing the ongoing projects to develop education system in the Kingdom, I end up with this image in my mind: A group of people meeting behind closed doors at an unknown location and trying to invent a new type of education.
And while we await this invention, other countries like Finland, South Korea and Singapore etc. have made great progress in the field of education.
In short, we need to learn from these countries’ experiences. It is a long journey, no doubt about that, but we at least need a proper start. Finland, for example, started its educational revolution back in the late 1970s or early 1980s when it realized that education was vital for a strong economy. By 2000, Finns found themselves on top of the lists of the best young readers in the world, best in mathematics in 2003 and best in science in 2006.
The Finnish educational experience is so distinctive and extraordinary, especially when it comes to teachers and students.
For teachers, all of them are equipped with what is equivalent of a Masters’ degree. One has to be at the top of his/her respective field to be able to teach in Finland’s schools. They are not attracted to the job because of money, they do not earn that much as compared to their counterparts in the developed world, but they are attracted to it because of its social status. Teaching is considered an elite profession in Finland. In 2010, universities announced the availability of 660 positions in a primary school teaching program, 6,600 candidates competed for those posts. Interestingly, there is no standardized curriculum in the country, there are only guidelines, and each and every teacher is responsible for designing as to how he or she will introduce the subject to students.
For students, the Finnish system is built around the concept of equality. There are no standardized tests because the Finnish system does not support competition and comparison between students. Students are valued as independent personalities; they do not need homework to make sure students are working at homes as well. They believe that most of the learning should be done in the school. They value play and learning during playtime. If a student falls behind, teachers collaborate, exchange ideas, and develop a plan to help him or her catching up with the rest of the class.
When asked about the high scores of Finnish students in international educations polls, a former maths teacher who is working in the Ministry of Education and Culture said: “We prepare children to learn how to learn, not how to take a test, we are not much interested in PISA (one of education polls). It is not what we are about.”
That level of professionalism and high value is what we need in the Kingdom.
@ smaldosari
