RIYADH — Teachers working in remote areas have criticized the poor facilities in which they work in, Al-Riyadh daily reported. The newspaper accompanied a group of female schoolteachers on their daily trek to the hamlet of Darwish, 450 km outside the Kingdom's capital. The teachers' four-hour bus journey starts at 3 a.m. in Riyadh and includes a single stop at a gas station on the outskirts of the city with several other buses to perform Fajr prayer on their way to Darwish. A few kilometers past the prayer stop, the bus makes a sharp turn off the paved highway onto an hour long off-the-road cruise, arriving approximately 7 a.m. at the only elementary school in Darwish. According to Al-Riyadh, the old school building looks like it was built as a private residence. Their investigation concluded that the building in fact belonged to a landlord, who until recently, acted as the occupant with his family. The landlord reportedly rented out the building to the Ministry of Education (MOE), an action that has resulted in a lot of criticism toward the ministry due to the large budget. Principal of Darwish Elementary School Jamila Al-Sahli went on record to voice her concerns on the safety of the school building, Al-Riyadh reported. She wrote a letter to the MOE asking for routine maintenance and requesting to spare her of any responsibility in the event of an accident. According to Al-Sahli, the building suffers from poor electrical wiring that could lead to shocks or short circuits leading to fires. The building's air conditioning units are also in poor condition, said Al-Sahli, adding that she informed the landlord several times but received no response. Al-Sahli received a great deal of support from the families residing in the small Darwish hamlet, who collectively sent multiple letters to the MOE to construct a school building in the area, as well as requests for opening up education facilities in the intermediate levels. Their requests did not all fall on deaf ears. Officials have approved the opening of an intermediate-level education facility in Darwish at the premises of their old school building, but teacher turnover continues to be high. According to Al-Sahli, many teachers resign within months after experiencing the hardships and costs of travel to and from work — estimated at approximately SR2,000 per month, while transportation allowances hardly go over SR450. Sharifa Al-Jamiri, a science teacher at one of these remote hamlets, said, “Transportation companies are trying to exploit female teachers because we are forced to use their services.” Al-Jamiri said there were no documents or authentication regarding the transportation companies' practices, drivers, or vehicles. She added that bus drivers continuously abuse their clients by exploiting their transportation concerns. When a woman is late, it is not unusual for the bus driver to threaten to leave her stranded, she said. As a result, the call for a government body to monitor the activities of these transportation companies and their employees remains paramount to Al-Jamiri and teachers nationwide. Taghrid Al-Qahtani, an Arabic teacher, said there was no ample first aid or emergency medical support in the schools, apart from a part-time facility nearby. Al-Qahtani said one teacher had a urinary tract infection, and since the medical facility in Darwish had closed its doors for the day, she was writhing in pain until she was treated at a medical facility in a nearby hamlet. Other medical concerns include a teacher who was stung by a scorpion during class and was later treated at the nearby Darwish medical facility, which was poorly organized and supplied, according to Al-Sahli. As for school supplies, Munirah Al-Thubaiti teaches elementary-level computer studies on a white board, because there are no computers or network connections on school grounds. Al-Jamiri said she is not provided with the necessary lab equipment to teach a science class. Al-Qahtani indicated that the school suffered from poor hygienic conditions due to lack of staff and supplies, adding that the teachers themselves often take up janitorial duties on school grounds. Teachers who travel to work in these hamlets often stay the week at a residence provided to them by the school, since traveling to and from their homes in Riyadh would constitute a four-hour commute in both directions five days a week. Nouf Ali, an Islamic studies teacher, complained about the state of these residences, calling them uninhabitable. Ali is pregnant in her last trimester and is worried about her and her child's health. She expressed her concerns to Al-Riyadh on the condition of the road between the school and the residential area, saying it threatens her safety.
