Education in Saudi Arabia - Article Example

Education in Saudi Arabia Name Institutional Affiliation Education in Saudi Arabia The policy touching on education in Saudi Arabia is pegged on the common ideologies in the religion of Islam, which is the dominant religion in the country (Shulman et al., 2011). This is based on the belief that learning and actions when performing different duties in society should be based on Godly values and the teachings of the Islamic religion. It is a belief in Saudi Arabia that education should be focused on meeting the societal needs and fulfils the common obligations set by the state. This means that areas of study, educational strategies, curricula, systems of education, systems of administration in education, practicability in education and all other factors in education are focused on the achievement of these societal objectives (Sedgwick, 2001). Undoubtedly, the Saudi Arabian educational policy was developed and continues to be anchored on Islamic teachings (Alquraini, 2010). These teachings generally guide all other tenets of society in Saudi Arabia and are believed to create an all-around system in the Saudi Arabian society. Of all the societal systems developed in Saudi Arabia, the educational system is seen as the most vital establishment created. The first step in the establishment of this system started in 1925 when the Directorate of Education was developed among the fourteen key points of educational development (Sedgwick, 2001). Significantly, rules and regulations were developed by the government to guide these developments which have been applauded for the immense success seen in educational development in the country. Later, after 28 years of the Directorate of Education’s existence, the Ministry of Education was established. With King Fahd bin Abdul Aziz at the helm of this crucial ministry, major changes in the educational system were witnessed (Alquraini, 2010). For instance, he is remembered for contributing immensely to the expansion and distribution of educational resources available during his period in office. The ministry is credited for the development manifested in the many schools opened since its creation. The increase in public schools has not been seen in some parts of Saudi Arabia, but it is visible in most parts of the country. This expansion in education is attributed to the Ministry of Education’s brilliant idea of establishing schools in all corners of the country (Sedgwick, 2001). Known as the school districts, these schools would become crucial in supplementing the functions of the ministry. Together with other countries with membership in the League of Arab States, Saudi Arabia subscribed to the common educational system in 1958. Alquraini (2010) says that together, these countries provided primary education which went on for a period of six years. They also offered middle education for three years and lastly the secondary education which also took a period of three years. Although Saudi Arabia subscribed to this new and unified system of education, it did not lose focus on the needs of the country, and education continued to be based on those needs (Sedgwick, 2001). Two fundamental principles supporting this philosophy included the creation of the much required human resources through education, training and developing an all-inclusive socio-economic system. These factors were highly prioritized when developing the development agenda for the country (Shulman et al., 2011). In this new system of education, there are different levels of education, among them, the primary level and the secondary level (Alquraini, 2010). These levels are considered the most important in the learning process. In the pre-primary level, learners are prepared for the next level of education which is the primary level, also known as the elementary education. It is not compulsory for learners to go through this first level, although it is considered an important one since the two years learners spend at this level are seen as an important period in preparing them for the next advanced level. Learners are admitted to this level at an approximate age of four years, and they first attend the nursery school before joining the pre-elementary school at an approximate age of five years (Shulman, 2011). After the pre-primary level, learners join the next level of education which is the primary school. Primary school education is seen as very paramount as it forms the basis for educational program development in general. It is expected that at the age of six, learners leave the pre-elementary school and therefrom join the elementary school where they are supposed to spend six years and finish when they are aged between twelve and fourteen (Sedgwick, 2001). After finishing primary school, learners are supposed to join secondary school level which is the last level of education in this system. Secondary level is a very important level of education, and it lasts for three years. The learners at this level are approximated to be at least 15 years old. In 2012, the Saudi Arabia Education Policy was developed, and this new policy outlined several functions the nursery school and kindergarten ought to play. Definition of nursery school, kindergartens and primary school in this policy is based on the gentle decree on the treatment of children. Moreover, this policy endeavours to craft a comprehensive early nurturing in which every young person learns socially accepted values (Shulman, 2011). The all-round development of children in normal conditions is another obligation this early learning intends to achieve. Family and Islamic teachings and values are core factors in the formulation of these objectives. This early learning also guides predispositions of the young learners founded on the Islamic religion’s teachings. Learning at this level is also seen as an important aspect of teaching proper behaviour and therefore important in facilitating the absorption of Islamic virtues (Sedgwick, 2001). Being the initial level of education, learners are introduced to the educational environment and are able to shift from basing their behaviour on self to adapting social life. The environment is a teacher, and educational environment provides the learners with the skills and habits which help them in learning in their later stages of their education. For instance, the kids learn how to relate and express themselves in a group of persons. These are lessons which cannot be learnt while the kids are at home. Creativity is another element born in the nursery school and kindergartens through creative activities among the kids (Alquraini, 2010). These creative activities also boost the happiness of the learners. Lastly, it provides the learners with a safe haven such that learners with abnormal behaviours are detected and treated, and the problems of childhood are dealt with. Special Education in Saudi Arabia For a long time, special education in Saudi Arabia has not been a priority (Sedgwick, 2001). However, this has changed and seen developments such as the inclusion of special education classrooms in government-sponsored schools as well as the integration of special education in society. This is a step forward and a desertion from the private provision of private education which has been going on since the 1950s. There has also been an effort to streamline special education with the advancement in science, technology and human knowledge through the use of current assistive tools in special education (Shulman, 2011). The success story in special education in Saudi Arabia cannot be told without a mention of private actors as they have been in action since 1950 with no or less contribution from the government (Sedgwick, 2001). It is from the efforts of these private actors that blind persons had the opportunity to study and master braille and also expand braille programs. Overwhelmed with the need for special education, these private actors were in agreement that they could not make it alone; thus, this made them start convincing other actors like the already established schools to adopt special education in their facilities. This included the building of classes for the handicapped and their accommodations. It is until 1957 that government support for special education in Saudi Arabia was visible (Alquraini, 2010). One of this supports was seen when the government supported the attendance of evening classes for blind learners in scientific institutions. The year that followed recorded a great achievement in the welfare of learners with disabilities as the Ministry of Education School started evening classes exclusively meant for the learners who were blind (Sedgwick, 2001). This was a very important move which was highly supported. In 1960, support for special education in Saudi Arabia saw a great success when the first school for learners with disabilities was opened in the capital Riyadh with the support of the education ministry. This school was specifically meant to teach blind learners (Shulman, 2011). The initial number of students at the Noor Institute was 40 and they were all blind. These students were the first beneficiaries of a government sponsored special education in Saudi Arabia (Sedgwick, 2001). In 1962, a department dealing specifically with special education was formed (Sedgwick, 2001). This department called the Special Education Department was mandated with the responsibility of providing all-inclusive services to the disabled learners in the country. The Special Education Department was the champion in establishing Noor institutes in three cities, among them Makkah, Hofuf and Anayzah in 1964 (Alquraini, 2010). An institute combining deaf learners and those with intellectual disability was established in 1972. It is still in 1972 that the special education management changed its name. Challenges in Support of Special Education Although there is an agreement between different actors that there is scarce data on learners with a disability, it is believed that, even though learners with disabilities are way less than learners without disabilities, the provision of education to them has not been impressive (Shulman, 2011). However, lack of adequate information on special education system has incapacitated the efforts of improving this system. Different actors have used this realization to declare the need for more information on the learners with special needs to improve the special education system (Sedgwick, 2001). However, not only the persons with disabilities have been of interest for this realization, but also the gifted learners who for a long time have lacked a supporting hand for their talents and skills. This insight has also led to the development of plans and strategies which are believed to be suitable to the specific needs of the two categories of learners (Alquraini, 2010). Research has shown that early realization of children’s interests, abilities and talents, when accompanied with support, makes learners become responsible and great in whatever that they do and the new system of dedication aims at working under this understanding (Sedgwick, 2001). With the strategies that favour the support of all categories of learners in operation, the government of Saudi Arabia has gone further to creating plans required in serving individuals with disabilities such as blindness, deafness and intellectual disabilities as well as offering sponsorship and supporting other categories of learners (Sedgwick, 2001). Traditionally, people with disabilities were identified using physical features; therefore, the blind, deaf and people with speech problems were the only ones seen as having a disability. However, the category of the learners with a disability has gone further to classify learners with different psychological and mental problems as disabled; thus, in need of special care. The learners with different kinds of disabilities are supported by these strategies. For instance, the gifted and talented classes are cared for, given attention, and their cases followed-up as they are important in enriching education in the country. A remarkable development in the provision of special education is visible through the increasing number of facilities and programs supporting the education of the disabled in Saudi Arabia. The increase has been enormous over the last two decades, and more expected in the years to come (Shulman, 2011). There has been a link between educations of persons with special needs with the improvement in their health (Sedgwick, 2001). This has been supported by different research findings by the education ministry which has reported improvement in health standards for persons with disabilities who have acquired special education. This has led to the prioritization and expansion of social services offered to the disabled persons in Saudi Arabia and had a spillover effect to other countries in the Middle East (Alquraini, 2010). This has made Saudi Arabia a champion in the use of modern learning among these countries. The enormous input of resources to the welfare of people living with disability in Saudi Arabia has seen the country become a leading example in offering special education in the Middle East. Saudi Legislation for the Disabled Legislation on Provision: This legislation came into being in the year 2000 as legal support for the provision of a wide range of services to the disabled population in the country (Shulman, 2011). It is also a requirement under this legislation that these agencies should help qualified persons access the free services available for them, and, in this case, they should be genuinely needy (Sedgwick, 2001). Rights of Persons with Disabilities: The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities was adopted in 2008 (Sedgwick, 2001). Of great importance in this convention is that it ensures inclusivity in the provision of learning services to all persons with an inclination to persons with disabilities to ensure there is the acquisition of skills across all the populations in the country. It has been the purpose of these policies to promote the equal and free provision of learning services to the disabled learners. Conversely, the coverage of these guidelines is still wanting because some persons with a disability are unable to access all or some of the services provided under these legislations (Shulman, 2011). With close to a decade since the inception of these policies, this is unacceptable and calls for more efforts in its implementation. Lack of proper implementation proportionately affects the outcome which these policies aimed to achieve (Sedgwick, 2001). While these policies are good, different scholars have noted a failure on the aspect of implementation (Sedgwick, 2001). However, not all has been lost. For instance, more success has been seen since the government immersed its support for the welfare of the disabled persons and now they are able to access different services in a bigger way than it has been seen before. This improvement has been very visible in the last decade. Arguably, more has been done and continues to be done for the welfare of the disabled persons, but the pressure for wider coverage should not be deflated (Alquraini, 2010). References Alquraini, T. (2010). Special Education in Saudi Arabia: Challenges, Perspectives, Future Possibilities. International Journal of Special Education. Shulman, C., Flores, H., Iarocci, G., & Burack, J. A. (2011). Intellectual disability: Concepts, definitions, and assessment. Handbook of developmental disorders. Sedgwick, R. (2001). Education in Saudi Arabia. World education news and reviews. Read More