Saudi Arabia allows stuck teachers to work remotely

Cairo: Saudi education authorities have allowed foreign teachers, unable to return to the kingdom, to do their job remotely during the current first semester, a local newspaper has reported.

The Education Ministry has notified private and international schools as well as other institutions adopting foreign educational programmes to use the ministry’s electronic platforms or their own platforms in making use of the teachers who have not been able to return to the kingdom, Okaz newspaper said.

Those teachers’ performance should be overseen by their schools, and the Directorate of Private and Foreign Education has been asked to evaluate the situation of those schools and present periodic reports, the paper said.

The step comes to support educational process in the private and international schools with the start of the new school year amid the global coronavirus pandemic that has made it difficult for some expatriate teachers to arrive in the kingdom from their home countries in due time.

The new academic year started in the kingdom on Sunday with a revival of in-person classes after suspension of more than a year prompted by the COVID-19 outbreak.

Saudi education authorities have said that the new academic year will be divided into three semesters. Each semester will be made up of 13 weeks, with a week-long break.

Kindergarten and primary pupils, however, continue to study remotely through government platforms until their return to in-person learning at the end of October.

The Education Ministry has said that getting vaccinated is mandatory for accessing all public and private schools, universities and technical training institutions.

Last year, Saudi Arabia suspended in-person classes and switched to distance-learning via government platforms as part of stringent measures to limit the spread of the coronavirus.