JEDDAH, 15 September 2007 -- An old Arab League regulation, which stipulates that no member country should operate a private school teaching its curriculum in another member country, has for years negatively affected the education of thousands of Egyptian youngsters in the Kingdom.
The regulation has meant that Egyptian expatriates have been unable to establish their own schools in Saudi Arabia to teach the Egyptian curriculum.
Non-Arab communities in the Kingdom, such as Indians, Pakistanis and Filipinos, are able to operate their own schools with the help of their embassies.
It is estimated that the absence of Egyptian schools has jeopardized the educational future of at least 200,000 Egyptian children in Saudi Arabia.
To make things worse for Egyptian parents, education regulations in Egypt require children who follow another country's curriculum take a special qualifying examination in order to continue their education in the country. Even so, only five percent of seats at government-run universities in Egypt are allocated for such students.
Under the current situation, most Egyptian students who complete their high school outside Egypt find it difficult to continue their higher education in Egypt.
In the absence of Egyptian schools, most Egyptian parents prepare their children at home for the annual Egyptian curriculum examinations, which are crucial for children to join the Egyptian education system, conducted by the country's diplomatic missions.
"This has led to a situation where most Egyptian parents in the Kingdom not giving proper schooling to their children. Instead, they are taught the Egyptian curriculum at home. The embassy in Riyadh and consulate general in Jeddah hold annual examinations for them," Fowzi Al-Zamil from the Consulate General's office in Jeddah told Arab News.
Mohsen Awad, an Egyptian printing engineer, said that the situation has led to the growth of illegal schools that teach the Egyptian curriculum.
These schools are run in a clandestine manner and are often shut down by local authorities. "In most cases, the closures occur in the middle of the year. Children are then left in a limbo," said Awad.
Abdul Samad Fakkar, an Egyptian accountant who has been living in the Kingdom for over 15 years and whose children are at various stages of schooling, said the lack of Egyptian schools in the Kingdom has resulted in a black market for private teachers, who specialize in the Egyptian curriculum.
"Their fees are very high, particularly in subjects such as mathematics, English, physics and chemistry," he said. But parents that work in remote areas or small towns are usually unable to find such teachers, he added.
Shayma Abdul Mumin, a psychiatrist, warned about the negative social and psychological impact of being forced to study at home without going to school.
"Education does not mean just cramming from text books and writing examinations. It has also to do with learning about life by coexisting with other children and interacting with them. Home study deprives children of the opportunity to learn a good deal about life," Abdul Mumin said.
Madahat Abu Al-Makarim, an Egyptian legal expert, said if the Arab League did not want member countries to open their own schools in other countries, then it should at least take steps to accredit school certificates of all member countries so that children can continue their education without hindrance.
By Galal Fakkar
© Arab News 2007
