The Education Ministry has directed all teachers, both male and female, not to intervene in the personal choices of students unless those choices contradict the community’s accepted public behavior.

The ministry noted that each school has special departments for guidance.

Other educators urged Islamic studies teachers not to interfere in the personal lives of students, such as their choices of music, whether to attend parties and other personal activities not linked or related to the school curriculum.

The ministry warned teachers against practicing the ‘carrot-and-stick’ principle.

The warnings follow complaints from parents that teachers of Islamic studies were interfering in the private lives of their children.

Abdul Aziz Al-Khudair, an educational supervisor, said the ministry had asked teachers of Islamic studies to stick to the school curriculum and not try to influence the students using external sources.

Al-Khudair said that in some schools, mainly at the elementary level, teachers had scolded students for their haircuts or because they listened to music and went to parties.

“This is a very personal matter and any intervention is acceptable only if the behavior is immoral or unethical,” he said.

Another educational supervisor, Nora Abdul Rahman, said that advice and guidance were acceptable in indisputable matters, provided the approach is made decently and politely.

“One cannot intervene in matters some see as forbidden which others see as acceptable and agreeable,” she explained.

She said it was not the teachers’ job to exercise the principle of carrot and stick, and that no teacher of Islamic studies should resort to such practices.

She cited incidents in which mothers complained to school authorities about the interference of Islamic studies teachers in their children’s personal lives.

According to Nora Abdul Rahman, one mother said: “My daughter is in Grade 2 at a private school and from time to time she told me that something was forbidden (haram) and something else is alright (halal). She is only a little child but I am sure her teachers taught her that.”

The teacher’s job is to stick to the textbooks and nothing more, she said.

“Of course, the teacher or anybody else in authority should intervene in cases in which children break some ethical or moral rules.”