RIYADH — Minister of Education Dr. Hamad Al-Sheikh has told education supervisors that any effort not reflected in the students' performance in the classroom is of no value. He made the remarks during his meeting here on Tuesday with several education supervisors from all over Saudi Arabia to discuss curricula and education plans for the next academic year. Al-Sheikh revealed that the ministry has worked on updating tools for evaluating the performance of educational supervisors, school principals, teachers, and managers of education offices and linking them to students' results to improve outputs. We look forward to the supervisors' efforts in the next stage, which will focus on "improving the Kingdom's results in international tests, addressing the gap between the years on the educational ladder and the actual years of study, and enhancing basic skills in the educational process," he said. "The education ministry is working to empower supervisors in the Arabic language, mathematics and science subjects with quantitative and qualitative skills to reach positive results by students in the international, national and achievement tests." "The ministry is also intensifying the continuous follow-up of specialized units in education departments, to ensure the strengthening of teachers' efforts in implementing effective teaching methods to raise the level of academic achievement of students, in addition to intensifying classroom visits for teachers," Al-Sheikh added. The minister considered the supervisors' valuable efforts in following up and evaluating the educational process during the pandemic, and distance education on the "Madrasati" platform, which has contributed toward improving learning outcomes. He stressed the ministry's focus on their integrative role in developing curricula and study plans. "The development process in the education sector is continuous, and the ministry is looking forward to coordinating efforts to develop the professional performance of educational leaders, educational supervisors, and education offices," Al-Sheikh said. He explained that the development processes include setting high-quality standards for selecting candidates for leadership roles in supervision departments and education offices, analyzing and studying the reality of education offices, and being aware of any shortcomings and addressing them. "The three-semester system in the new academic calendar is an organizational tool and a means to achieve the greater objective of developing curricula and study plans, adding new materials, and various applications and enrichment activities that focus on skills," the minister added.
