A Proposed System for Academic Advising in King Abdul-Aziz University,Jeddah (Saudi Arabia)

Academic advising, which plays a crucial role in higher education, is often ignored and not given its due importance. This paper is an attempt to make up for this attitude. It proposes a complete system for academic advising taking into account its' multifarious aspects. In the process, the paper draws heavily on the author's experience of organising academic advising in the College of Engineering, King Abdul-Aziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.     

Assessment of the summer program at King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM) in Saudi Arabia: directions for development

This study reports the findings of a survey of the perceptions of faculty and students regarding the effectiveness of the summer program at KFUPM. In this study the objective was to identify the concerns of faculty and students about the summer program and suggest possible policies for development. Information was collected using a questionnaire. Students were given 200 questionnaires to fill out and 160 were completed and returned (80% response rate). Faculty on the other hand, were given 70 questionnaires to fill out and 35 were completed and returned (50% response rate). From the study, it was concluded that the summer program should not offer courses that require a long time to develop skills. It should only be conducted as a supplementary semester to help those, unable to complete their course work successfully during the regular semesters, or improve their skill, which indirectly affect the overall completion of their degrees. The study revealed that there were some concerns about the summer program that need to be addressed by the university administration. It also highlighted the need for the introduction of relevant policy measures for the efficient operation and development of the summer program at the university.     

Student counselling at Utrecht University

The enormous increase in the number of students at Dutch universities in the sixties and seventies made it impossible for professors to deal with the many different questions students confronted them with. New professionals, student counsellors/psychologists and student advisers entered the universities. Three levels of counselling can be distinguished:

University excellence: Students' academic reform beliefs

In this study of 460 SIU-C students conducted in May 1973, five topics are explored. First, to what extent do these students view the academic community as taking the quest for academic excellence seriously? Second, how do these students rate various components of the university regarding academic excellence? Third, who do these students perceive as the source of leadership in the university concerning the achievement of excellence? Fourth, how long do these students feel it will take for excellence to be effected in the university, and how much change must result for excellence to occur? Last, for excellence to be achieved, what types of qualitative changes must occur, and how will the university differ qualitatively if excellence is effected? The results of this study are discussed within a political model of the academic system, treating the university as a political system and students as quasi-citizens who possess a rudimentary academic belief system.     

Grade-point-average-based Scheme for Tracking Academic Students' Performance at King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals

A presentation of a grade-point-average-based scheme for tracking academic performance of students at King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM) is given. The application of such a scheme to students at KFUPM with promotional grade point averages (1.000-1.600) from the Preparatory Year Programme to college is presented. The case-study included tracking the academic performance of 916 students admitted to KFUPM between 1984 and 1989.     

沙特阿拉伯王国建设世界一流大学体系:动力、战略及实践

随着全球化浪潮的加剧和国内经济发展面临的瓶颈,沙特阿拉伯王国政府决意改革国内高等教育体系,力图将其建设成为世界一流大学体系.基于沙特独特的政治、经济及文化背景,沙特高等教育部于2009年委托法赫德国王石油矿产大学制定了高等教育未来计划——阿法格计划(AAFAQ Project),并相应实施阿卜杜拉国王奖学金项目、创建学术领导力中心、新建私立院校以及加强质量保障等.本文通过评析该计划的出台背景、战略规划以及法赫德国王石油矿产大学建设世界一流大学的实践成效,探讨全球化背景下沙特阿拉伯王国高等教育的发展趋势.     

University teacher educators’ research engagement: Perspectives from Saudi Arabia

This paper examines university teacher educators’ engagement with and in educational research. Survey results collected from eighty-two teacher educators at a leading university in Saudi Arabia pointed to modest levels of research activity and also suggested that these individuals held largely technical views of what research is. Their assessments of their institutional research culture also signalled a perceived gap between the research productivity expected of them and the support they received from their university. The implications of these findings for promoting research activity among university teacher educators, where this is considered desirable, are discussed.     

An analysis of factors contributing to college student dropout in a medium sized technical university: the case of the King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals Dhahran,Saudi Arabia

The paper presents the result of an investigation into the high student dropout rate particularly during the summer period in the King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. The focus of the paper was on the students’ perception of the reasons for the high dropout rate. A questionnaire was administered to a random sample of 600 students. The study found the students to be generally motivated and committed to the institution. There was some level of dissatisfaction with facilities. Grade, appeal of courses and instructors were, in general, found to be the major reasons contributing to the decision to persist or to dropout. Some directions for policy action to address the problem by the university were highlighted.     

民主化浪潮下的沙特阿拉伯

进入20世纪,政治民主化开始一波又一波的考验着传统而保守的政治制度,沙特作为伊斯兰世界典型的政教合一的国家仍然坚守其固有统治,但与此同时,亦遇到了严峻的挑战和冲击。民主化是否是大势所趋,民主制度是否将成为历史进程中所有传统国家的必然选择将成为人类社会不断探讨的政治课题。     

Development of higher education in Saudi Arabia

This article seeks to trace the development of higher education in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia from its origins to the present day. The study includes discussion of the historical roots of education as based on Islam, Islamic philosophy of education, the aims and objectives of higher education and modern university education. Empirical statistics are given to substantiate the Kingdom's rapid progress in higher education. Since 1957 when modern university education began with a single institution with twenty-one students and a staff of nine it has grown until twenty-five years later in 1982 higher education had grown to seven institutions with 63,563 students and a teaching staff of 6,906. The study examines these aspects of higher education; Saudi students studying abroad, foreign students studying in Saudi Arabia, female education, the role of the Ministry of Higher Education and the financing of higher education.     

Counseling and guidance in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is striving to develop a counseling and guidance program to serve its nation. This study focuses on the educational goals of Saudi Arabia in general and the goals and objectives of the counseling and guidance program specifically. The study examines the development of the counseling and guidance program, the philosophical assumptions of the program, the administration of the program, and the training of the school counselor.     

文山学院大学生普通话水平调查分析

为了解文山学院大学生普通话过级状况,随机抽取文山学院各二级学院大二、大三、大四每年级的两名男生和两名女生进行调查,针对文山学院大学生的普通话水平,从上大学前和上大学后两个阶段分析其影响因素,并对学生的性别差异、民族差异、地域差异、城乡差异、专业差异、毕业因素进行分析,提出相应的对策。     

沙特阿拉伯王国的高等教育简析

沙特阿拉伯王国建国后,随着石油财富的飞速增长,国家对高等教育十分重视,高等学校的发展从无到有．创办了多种类型的高校,表现出了鲜明的特色,也面临着“外源”现代化国家不可避免的种种问题。沙特的高等教育为国家培养了大量人才．前景应该是广阔的。     

Pre-college Workshop Programme at King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals

A presentation of King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals’ (KFUPM) unique experience with the preparatory year workshop programme as a first pre-college engineering technology laboratory is given. The phases of development of the programme and its supporting laboratories are described. The technological and academic features of the programme are evaluated and conclusions and recommendations are derived from the KFUPM experience.     

沙特实现民主政治的可能性与渐进性

位于阿拉伯半岛的沙特王国,石油美元使得其经济飞速发展,但其政治上却仍然是家族统治的君主体制,随着民主化浪潮的发展,美国“大中东计划”的出台,其政治体制暴露出弊端,民主呼声日渐高涨,自身为适应民主化作出改革和探索,使得其实现民主政治具有了可能性。由于其伊斯兰特性,受传统价值观念的影响,从长远来看,沙特的民主政治不可能一蹴而就,具有渐进性。     

Female Education in Saudi Arabia and the Reproduction of Gender Division

This paper explains the reproduction of gender divisions and power relations through education in a traditional Islamic country, Saudi Arabia. That country has drawn both upon Islam and its oil wealth to expand female education vastly within traditional boundaries. Its model of female education is unique among all Islamic countries, in its structure and strategies for the reproduction of gender divisions through (1) a dual system of male and female education; (2) a gender‐specific educational policy that emphasizes women's domestic function; (3) gender‐segregated schools and colleges; and (4) curriculum differentiation at the various educational levels. The author maintains that Saudi education, a microcosm of Saudi Arabian society, has intentionally instituted these mechanisms and structures as a means of cultural conservation and social control. The Saudi experience proves previous research findings that female educational expansion does indeed increase women's social and occupational options, but does not necessarily alter gender and power relations.