After three months off from school, students are now bracing themselves for the back-to-school season and the onslaught on bookstores and stationery shops to stock up on last-minute supplies. Advertisements plaster the city offering a variety of special deals on school equipment. But are all these things entirely necessary? “Every year families have to put up with costly demands which I actually think don't help the educational system,” said Salha Othman, primary schoolteacher in Jeddah. “Teachers don't require students to bring anything but their books and one pen to write with.” Children, however, are a little fussier than that, often demanding school cases of a certain color, or a special brand of pen. Apparently girls are the most taxing. “The problem is that girls tend to compete with each other to see who has the most expensive stuff,” Salha said, “and we need to put a stop to this as it can be demoralizing for some.” These demands put the family budget under considerable strain, and the ubiquitous advertisements reflect the large numbers of bargain-seekers sniffing out good deals on pencil-sharpeners, rulers and other stationery. “My daughter goes through a lot of pencils and glue in her studies, so I had to find places that sell these things at stock prices,” said Hamda Naser. “Most places sell medium-size tubes of glue for five Riyals, but I've found somewhere that sells three-packs of the same brand for the same price!” Boys tend to be less demanding, and a bit more pragmatic towards their school needs. “I only need a case and some pens.” said Abdul Mohsen Mohammed, a high school student. “We are only asked to buy a notebook or two for each subject. That makes it easier to carry the case.” Nevertheless, certain requirements work their favor. Boys' school uniform requirements stipulate the national dress, so most boys don't have to buy new uniforms as the new school year follows the Eid, a time when families traditionally buy new clothes for the holidays. Economic sources estimate the volume of spending on office equipment and stationery at some SR650 million, with the number of male and female students to 6 million. Average spending by a Saudi family on their children ranges between SR 1000 and 2000. Salaries for October are expected to be paid in 14 days but with schools starting tomorrow, families are suffering from a cash-flow shortage when it comes to school needs. Amidst the high rise in prices, families have resorted to the “Abu Riyalain” two riyal shops, pulling the carpet from under the specialist stationery shops and bookstores. Ibrahim Al-Sharari said something costing SR20 in the big shops will cost only about half in the shops for SR2. Salesman Ahmed Abdul Salam described the beginning of the school year as one of the most important seasons for his establishment, saying that he began stocking up heavily on all kinds of school material over a month ago, in anticipation of the annual rush. (with additional reporting by Saud Al-Barakati, Okaz) __
