JEDDAH: Deputy Minister of Education Noura Al-Fayez promised the audience at the Al-Sayidda Khadija Bint Khowailid Forum that the Ministry is working to improve physical education in girls' schools. Al-Fayez acknowledged that the matter, which was the highlight of her session, is significant. “Women's fitness is an important issue and it is a part of their education,” she said. “The Ministry has not overlooked this fact and studies are under way to establish physical education courses in girls schools.” The Ministry of Education is working on procedures to support women's participation in the national development in the various levels: projects, school curricula and on a cultural level, she said. “Curricula that are common for both girls and boys are under study to be improved to enhance the image of women and life and increase the awareness of women's rights in our society,” she said. Women teaching young boys will be a major step to enhance the image of women among men and boys, Al-Fayez said. “Female teachers will teach boys' primary classes: first, second and third grade, she said. The deputy minister also said female teachers and supervisors will be involved in upgrading the curricula and that the Ministry of Education is working to provide a building for its female employees. It is essential to ensure that women can fulfill their professional and personal responsibilities, Al-Fayez said. “Employed women, first and foremost, are mothers as well, and we have to prevent family disintegration,” she said. “It is our duty to establish flexible conditions to create a balance between her home and job.” These conditions include maternity leave, part-time jobs, transportation and providing daycare at places of employment, she said. Addressing the issue of teachers who are assigned to villages and remote areas away from their homes, Al-Fayez expressed her sympathy for them and confirmed that the matter is under study. “It is really a dilemma,” she said. “If they are hired in cities, the cities' schools will be overloaded and we can't neglect the villages.”
