AFTER Education Minister Dr. Ahmed Al-Isa borrowed the caption of his predecessor Dr. Mohammed Al-Rasheed for his speech addressing the staff and students of King Saud University I find myself compelled to use the same headline, "Yes...Where is our education heading?" not only because of its meaningful, apt wording but also because of that question's credibility. In his article, which was published in Al-Hayat newspaper last Sunday, Dr. Al-Isa has diagnosed and analyzed the present condition of our education system correctly and judiciously. He says our education lacks stability, discipline, training, development and reformation... Think about this frank and sincere criticism. These are not the words of a columnist like me or other Saudi writers and intellectuals but it's a portion from the truthful and courageous article of the education minister that contains a lot of important information. He also discloses a number of surprising figures and speaks about an undoubtedly heavy legacy. A lot of sincere efforts are required to save education from its present state of total failure. Minister Al-Isa is capable of taking education to new heights of progress with the support of right people who are aware of the significance of education in bringing about change in our lives and taking the Kingdom to the rank of advanced countries. Can you believe that in a country with a population of 30 million, education authorities receive more than 30,000 exceptional and maternal leave applications annually? Can you accept that over 25 percent of our schools run in rented buildings? Do you know that 91 percent of the education budget goes to paying salaries of teachers and administrators? Have you heard that 42 percent of our schools have less than 100 students? Is it acceptable that the accumulation of teachers in schools has reached the extent of having a teacher for every 10 students and in some cases five students, which is the lowest in the world? If we look at training of teachers, we can find that it is in a miserable condition. Think of providing world-class training to our teachers by sending them abroad and if we send 1,000 teachers to foreign institutes annually, then it would take not less than 500 years to train teachers. It is not an easy task as correctly pointed out by the minister, at the same time it is not impossible. We expect from the ministry to make sincere and continuous efforts to achieve its goals and realize its dreams one after another. Some readers may look at the minister's move to highlight the worsening situation of education to save him from questioning by the higher authorities, the media and the public. But the minister has not left the matter open. We are optimistic when the minister said in his concluding remarks that we don't have much time to waste by setting out theoretical strategies and studies. Actually, this is the main obstacle we have to overcome in the first place and make a realistic approach after diagnosing the real hurdles that stand in the way of our educational march. We are in need of quick, creative and radical solutions after removing bureaucratic obstacles. The education minister is capable of tackling this issue efficiently. Dr. Al-Isa has to defend himself from the arrows and accusations of social media critiques or officials who have lost their positions or personal interests as a result of the new changes. He should work sincerely and transparently with courage to address ideological clashes and intellectual conflicts that have prevented the sector from marking progress during the past several decades.
