Teachers, Teacher Education, and Professional Development
The Ministry of Education guarantees certain teacher rights, some of which require the Ministry to develop teacher job performance levels, secure teaching positions for those with contract renewals, and assign and transfer teachers equally and fairly. Teachers have the right to study or practice abroad and to present their needs and ideas through a number of teacher consultative councils. The Ministry is planning a recommendation system that will encourage teachers to improve their performance and a teacher licensure system that will clarify the status of teacher positions and improve teacher performance.
As part of the teacher recruitment process, university graduates from every discipline are screened. Regardless of the level they intend to teach, prospective teachers are required to hold a bachelor’s degree in a teaching major and pass a proficiency test in their major, a test of general educational proficiency, a medical examination, and a background interview that assesses the candidate’s personality and character.
The Ministry of Education seeks to develop qualified teachers by helping those with teaching diplomas complete their studies and obtain a bachelor’s degree in their discipline(s). The Ministry is planning a program called Preparing and Training Teachers to educate approximately 15,000 new teachers throughout the year. The program aims to:
- Build a comprehensive system for preparing new teachers
- Build positive trends and enhance loyalty to teaching
- Qualify new teachers and enrich their performance through education
- Make teachers aware of the educational environment and its various systems
- Guarantee a specific level of job performance
The Ministry of Education cooperates with the National Center for Assessment in Higher Education (known as Qiyas) to develop general teaching standards in all disciplines and to determine whether new teachers have met these standards. The Ministry of Education also collaborates with the Ministry of Higher Education to develop additional standards for new teachers. These efforts include:
- Preparing standards for general teacher education levels in cooperation with colleges of education and teachers’ colleges under the guidance of the international standards applied to each subject at all levels of the general curriculum
- Preparing professional development programs for teachers based on education and professional standards
- Reviewing the courses of study at colleges of education and teachers’ colleges to ensure that they meet the requirements of the new curricula
The Ministry of Higher Education is additionally charged with:
- Ensuring that colleges of education and teachers’ colleges are able to fulfill the kingdom’s future needs for teachers in all fields
- Coordinating with international recommendation committees to develop a set of recommendations for educational colleges and urging universities to fulfill academic recommendations
- Developing colleges of education and teachers’ colleges, using best standards and practices, and cooperating with distinguished international colleges and universities
Requirements for Ongoing Professional Development in Reading for Teachers
Teachers in Saudi Arabia undergo professional development and receive supervision throughout their careers. The Ministry of Education sends some teachers and administrators to national universities or abroad to obtain a master’s or doctoral degree, and further trains qualified teachers via extensive professional development courses and programs throughout the school year. This training is designed to enhance teacher performance based on the needs of curricular projects in subjects including Arabic language and literature.
The Ministry is launching an electronic gateway for communication within the education sector to contribute to knowledge building and assist teachers in publishing educational research. Additionally, a new project called Teach Me How to Learn aims to develop teaching strategies and techniques for use in and out of the classroom.
The Ministry also is preparing a project for teacher assessment to improve practical and educational outputs for the purpose of building knowledge. Another program aims to implement changes to educational programs based on analyses of teacher evaluations and educational trends. Finally, computerized supervision of teachers allows for rapid idea exchange and information access that helps to develop teacher knowledge, learning environments, and quality teaching outputs.