Distance higher education for women in Saudi Arabia: Present and proposed

This paper describes the recent history of distance higher education in Saudi Arabia with particular reference to the education of women. It compares the contribution to external study for women of the General Presidency of Girls' Education (GPGE) with the introduction of intisab (a system which allows individuals to pursue higher education without attending lectures) in three universities founded for men. It records the growing numbers of women wishing to enter higher education and the withdrawal of intisab from two universities in Riyadh. It identifies the limitations placed on women's higher education as compared with men's and notes the generally conservative attitudes to the role of women found in Saudi Arabia. It oudines discussions over the last 15 years, concerning an Arab open university, which have yet to result in action. Finally, it reports a recent survey which reveals strong support for an open university for women in Saudi Arabia. Such an institution would gready increase access for women to higher education while, at the same time, be compatible with Islamic custom concerning the segregation of the sexes and a woman's primary role as wife and mother.     

THE POLITICAL ECONOMY OF MULTI‐CULTURAL EDUCATION AND INTOLERANCE WITH PARTICULAR EMPHASIS ON SUDANESE WOMEN

Multi‐culturalism, particularly in education, is presented and discussed within the larger context of the Arab world and the more specific context of Sudan. The extreme religious and social conservatism of the wealthiest Arab countries, particularly Saudi Arabia, and their powerful economic influence on the poorer Arab countries, like Sudan, have resulted in the adoption by the the governments of some of these countries of similarly conservative social and economic policies. Such has been the case with Sudan. The effect of such policies, along with the general poverty of Sudan, on multi‐cultural education and on the position of women in society, has been nefarious. However, by contrast, the economics of relative wealth in Saudi Arabia itself has dictated the emergence, via higher education, of large numbers of highly skilled Saudi women who are creating economic spheres of their own within Saudi society.     

From barriers to bridges: An investigation on Saudi student mobility (2006–2009)

Globalisation is often thought to advocate for a single set of beliefs and customs and for a rejection of the need to protect regional cultures and traditions. In the aftermath of 9/11, the rift between Western and Arab cultures has deepened, and there is a patent need for cultural bridges to be built. The government of Saudi Arabia has, by increasing funding for higher education through grants and scholarships, enabled Saudi students to study at overseas universities. A number of non-Saudi students are also enrolled at Saudi Arabian universities. After a brief introduction to the cultural and educational history of the Arab region and Saudi identity, this article turns to contemporary higher education in Saudi Arabia. It introduces the King Abdullah Scholarship Programme and then goes on to present detailed enrolment data for 2006–2009, demonstrating trends and policy changes and identifying patterns in student mobility.     

Educational Support for Saudi Students with Learning Disabilities in Higher Education

Disability laws in Saudi Arabia mandate that higher education institutions provide support for special needs learners in order to ensure educational opportunities equivalent to opportunities for their nondisabled peers. These institutions experience challenges, however, in providing the necessary support to undergraduate and postgraduate students with learning disabilities (LDs). We conducted an exploratory study to assess educational support requirements and affordances for undergraduate and postgraduate students with LDs attending institutions of higher education in Saudi Arabia. We completed semistructured interviews with 22 special needs learners diagnosed with a LD (16 undergraduate and six postgraduate). The findings suggest that additional support services are needed for undergraduate and postgraduate students with LDs attending Saudi institutions of higher education.     

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.     

The potential for launching a postgraduate course on sustainable energy in Saudi Arabia

The pressures of a growing global population, compounded by environmental degradation, escalating energy use and the depletion of natural energy resources, have led to sustainable energy (SE) holding a prominent position on the international agenda. In spite of the widespread recognition of the important role of SE education in securing a sustainable future, it has not yet received much attention within oil-rich countries such as Saudi Arabia. A single-sex private college in Saudi Arabia – referred to here as ‘Al-Ola College’ – has been selected as a case study for this study. As part of this work, a survey has been distributed to all of the female students of Al-Ola College in order to examine their potential acceptance of such a proposed course dedicated to SE. Moreover, several in-depth interviews have been conducted with senior staff of the Al-Ola College and with the potential employers of SE graduates. Issues that have been investigated herewith go beyond the likelihood of acceptance of the new course, and include a detailed examination of the potential benefits and challenges that might be encountered when incorporating the subject of SE into Saudi higher education curricula, in addition to the employment prospects for female students specialising in SE in Saudi Arabia. The primary conclusion was that the launch of a postgraduate course on SE for Saudi females might not be viable at present. This conclusion emerges from the identification of a wide range of barriers including insufficient government support for the SE agenda, a lack of sustainability awareness, a strong social resistance to accepting this field of study and lack of work opportunities for females in the highly conservative Saudi society. As a result of this empirical research, a set of practical ‘enablers’ has been proposed in order to change the status quo with regard to the poor prospects for SE education in Saudi Arabia.     

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.     

A Study Examining the Extent of Including Competencies of Inclusive Education in the Preparation of Special Education Teachers in Saudi Universities

Educators all over the world are trying to revise and/or build their teacher education programmes to ensure pre-service teachers working on their teaching credentials are competent and ready to manage classrooms from day one. This study surveyed 179 faculty from 30 colleges and universities in Saudi Arabia to find out the extent to which they agreed that their coursework included various skills and knowledge sets leading to competent teachers. Teacher education programmes offering special education teacher preparation programmes at undergraduate level strive to base their curriculum on standards recommended by Council for Exceptional Children. The results showed a moderately strong agreement on most items under the various competency areas. Academic ranks of faculty did not have any significant effect on the extent of agreement. However, faculty from newer programmes, and those with degrees obtained in Saudi Arabia showed a better agreement. This article discusses findings, implications for the special education teacher preparation programmes in Saudi universities, and recommendations for future research.     

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。     

福利政治视域下沙特王国国民教育评析

沙特王国是中东和伊斯兰国家教育的代表,具有研究的典型性和重要的学术研究价值。以沙特王国的教育为研究对象,将其置于福利政治的视野下,采用政治学、历史学和教育学交叉研究的方法审视沙特王国的福利性教育得失。沙特王国的福利性教育具有鲜明的政治色彩,是沙特政府推行福利政治的重要组成部分,而其教育的政治倾向一定程度上导致了教育发展的不均衡和不平等。近年来沙特政府实行了一系列教育改革,这些改革一定程度上体现了去福利化、公平化以及市场导向的倾向,然而鉴于福利性教育的政治意义,王国的教育改革很难有质的突破。     

Assessing perceptions of resources and inclusive teaching practices: A cross-country study between German and Saudi students in inclusive schools

The present paper examines the measurement invariance of the adjusted version of the Perception of Resources Questionnaire (PRQ) by Goldan & Schwab (2018; 2019). A cross-country comparison between students from Germany (N = 885) and Saudi Arabia (N = 888) is conducted that examines invariance not only across countries but also across gender. Results confirm the two-factorial structure of the scale (“personnel resources” and “material and spatial resources”). Configural and partial metric invariance was also established across both groups. Furthermore, an ANCOVA was used to show that perceptions of resources and perceptions of inclusive teaching practices are positively interrelated. This finding can be interpreted as an indicator for criterion validity of the PRQ. As expected, German students perceive a significantly higher level of resources than their peers in Saudi Arabia. Finally, the importance of adequate provision for the successful implementation of inclusive education and its assessment is discussed.     

The need for Saudi faculty and the media for instruction in Saudi Arabian universities

The past three decades have witnessed rapid growth and expansion in higher education. This study attempts to throw some light on the extent to which Saudi universities have attracted national faculty to match the level of increase in students' enrollment. Another important issue which is discussed in this article is the extent to which Arabic, the national language, is used as a medium of instruction in Saudi universities.Saudi government publications, as well as some international statistical documents, have been utilized in evaluating the possibility of achieving a national faculty and the possibility of using Arabic as the medium of instruction. Practical suggestions are offered to help the higher educational system in Saudi Arabia overcome some of the current problems.     

Secondary Schools for Norwich Girls, 1850-1910: Demanded or benevolently supplied?

This article uses archival material from the city of Norwich to trace the development of girls' secondary education from 1860 to 1900. It examines the provision of differentiated education for girls of differing social status in the context of national legislation and the local labour market for women. Also considered is the issue of causality in the supply-demand equation for girls' education, relating this to issues of gender-determined access to education that underlie the study of developing education systems both past and present. I conclude that the growth in the provision and use of education for girls in Norwich during this period mirrors that of other parts of the nation, seeming to have been little influenced by local economic and political forces, or an initial local demand. Instead, a national campaign carried on by women activists at the national level for the improvement of education for girls, together with the provision of schools offering an extended and higher quality academic education for girls by the Girls' Day School Trust, the Norwich School Board, and private individuals, appears to have overcome local disincentives to educate girls and created a demand for secondary schooling for them.     

Using technology to break gender barriers: gender differences in teachers’ information and communication technology use in Saudi Arabian classrooms

How does teachers’ gender influence their information and communication technology-based instruction in Saudi Arabian government schools? Using unique data collected in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in 2014, the analyses presented here show that male and female teachers in intermediate school classrooms differently use information and communication technology. As one of the only completely gender-separated educational systems in the world, the differing pedagogies, knowledge and skills of teachers by gender in Saudi Arabia reveal the unique approaches that both the Saudi and technology context provide for students’ learning. Female teachers’ use of technology in the classroom is more frequent and of different types than that of males. Implications are discussed for teacher professional development and for understanding the important role of cultural context around gender and information and communications technology in education.     

A comparison between the workplace cultures of Saudi Arabia's private and public education institutes

In Saudi Arabia, it is generally perceived that private special education institutes (SEIs) provide a higher quality education than their public counterparts. Parents tend to trust and invest in private rather than public institutes. This is principally attributed to the greater financial capacity of private special institutes, which ensures services can be provided more effectively. Investigating this perspective, this study seeks to bridge the gap often observed and commented upon between public and private SEIs, and to reflect critically on how the needs of all students with intellectual disabilities can be met within the public system. A comparative case study of two SEIs in Saudi Arabia for students with intellectual disabilities, one public and one private, was designed. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with parents, teachers and principals. A key finding of this study is that there is a major difference in the workplace cultures of public and private institutes. This results in several observable factors that were found to contribute to the quality of provision for learners.     

An Evaluation of the Progress,Experience and Employability of Mature Students on the BEd Course at Westminster College,Oxford

There are many adults who left school without A levels who wish to further their education as mature students. Because many of these adults are being accepted by colleges without traditional A levels, and with very few GCSE/O level subject passes, it has been suggested that their acceptance as students may lower the standard of the college courses. This paper evaluates the qualities which mature and non‐traditional entry students bring to college courses, and concludes that their results compare favourably with those of traditional entry students. Many mature students appear to have needs in common with other students and meeting these needs would result in better practice within institutions of higher education (HE). However, mature students also have specific needs which are evaluated in this paper. Most require little additional expenditure, but are rather a matter of will and organisation on the part of the institution and tutors. Entry as mature students onto BEd courses seems to be particularly attractive to women but some of them experience difficulty in finding employment. The data collected demonstrate that maturity is likely to be a positive attribute and the mature applicant for a post to be a ‘quality product’.     

Principals’ Perceptions of the School Counsellor Role in Saudi Arabia

Many factors in Saudi society have led to a need for counselling services in educational institutions. However, concerns remain that the role of school counsellors in that setting is unclear. An aim of this study was to determine the perceptions of principals concerning the actual and ideal role of intermediate girls school counsellors in Saudi Arabia. It further aimed to identify the problems that face counsellors in offering effective services. Information was collected from a questionnaire survey, complemented by semi-structured interviews. The data were analysed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) programme. Findings indicate numerous differences among principals regarding the role of the counsellor, which suggests a potential for ambiguity and role conflict. Finally, recommendations are offered for improving the quality of counselling services in Saudi schools, including a requirement for increased awareness among all those concerned.     

Saudi Teachers’ Perceptions of In-Service Education and Training Addressing Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

Worldwide, 3.0–7.0 percent of school-aged children meet criteria for a diagnosis of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). In Saudi Arabia, ADHD appears to be more prevalent than the worldwide average, with estimates of 12.6–16.7 percent. Unfortunately, there is a relative dearth of research addressing ADHD and related training programs in Saudi Arabia. We investigated perceptions of teachers in Saudi elementary schools regarding current In-Service Education and Training (INSET) programs addressing students diagnosed with ADHD. We interviewed 40 teachers (15 women and 25 men) from public elementary schools in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The findings highlight the need to develop INSET programs specifically addressing best practices for managing and educating students diagnosed with ADHD.