6.8.1 SUCCESS AND FAILURE IN FIRST STAGE SCHOOLS (Primary)

The rules of passing, success and promotion (tarfee’) differ from one stage to another. In the first stage where basic subjects must be focused in the child’s brain, the student does not progress to the next term until he passes all basic subjects in this stage. If the student fails one of the basic subjects, he must repeat all the course’s subjects. For instance, a child who cannot read, fails Islamic culture or cannot undertake the counting exercises adopted for the term cannot transfer to the next term.

Where the student fails any term of the first stage, he must repeat it in the immediate following term and he cannot take a holiday except after completing 3 consecutive terms after his failure…and so on until he completes the first school stage. If the student attains 10 years without successfully transferring to the second stage (middle), expert educators investigate his case in order to advise whether to transfer him to the second stage (middle) or to a special school for educating slow learners.

6.8.2 SUCCESS AND FAILURE IN SECOND STAGE SCHOOLS (Middle)

Where the student fails one of the basic subjects in this stage, he is promoted to the next term together with the subject such that he sits its exam together with the exams of the next terms’ subjects giving the student enough time to study and understand the subject he failed. The school also gets enough time to offer additional courses to strengthen the students in the subject they failed.

The student fails the course if he fails two basic subjects of the term or if he accumulates two failures in basic subjects, i.e. the student is not promoted if he

accumulates two supplementary exams in any of the terms. The student progresses after repeating the term and passing all additional subjects together with passing the subjects he carried forward from previous terms.

Where the student fails a term of the second school stage, he must repeat it in the next course immediately, and he is not entitled to a holiday until after studying three consecutive terms after his failure…and so on until he completes the second stage. Once the student attains 15 years without successfully progressing to the third stage (secondary), expert teachers investigate his case to advise whether to promote him to the third stage (secondary) or to vocational (hirafiyya) institutes.

6.8.3 SUCCESS AND FAILURE IN THIRD STAGE SCHOOLS (SECONDARY)

If the student fails one of the basic subjects, he progresses to the next term together with the subject such that he sits its exam together with exams of the next terms’ subjects.

The student fails if he fails two of the term’s subjects or if he accumulates two of the basic subjects i.e. he does not progress to the next course if he accumulates two supplementary exams in any one course. The student progresses after repeating the term and passing all additional subjects together with passing the subjects he carried forward from previous terms.

In the situation where the student fails one of the terms of the third school stage he must repeat it in the next term immediately, and he is not entitled to a holiday until after studying 3 consecutive terms after his failure…and so on until he completes the third stage (secondary). If the student attains 20 years of age without completing the third stage i.e. without completing the 36th school terms, he is not allowed to remain in school. If he wishes, he may sit the general examination for the school stages externally, or join institutes that do not require success in the general exam.

As we have said before, the school education is divided into 36 school terms distributed between 3 stages according to student ages such that each stage is regulated by the relevant Shari’ah rules. With respect to study subjects, each stage has specific subjects together with specific rules related to failure and progress (transferring from one course to the next). Study subjects in each stage are divided into two: Basic subjects and Skills and Activities Subjects.

First School Stage:

In the 1st school stage, two teachers begin teaching students from the first term. The first teaches them Islamic culture and Arabic language, the second teaches them sciences and mathematics. Both share in teaching skills and activities. The teacher should remain with his students in this stage for at least three consecutive school terms.

In the skills subject, the teacher gives the child activities to develop his ability to link and think e.g. building and dismantling of things. Care must be taken to relate these activities and skills to the term’s basic adopted subjects.

Second School Stage:

The “General Sciences” subject in this stage includes principles of chemistry, biology, physics and geography.

Third School Stage:

This stage covers the terms 25 to 36. In this stage, all students participate in the same study subjects in terms 25 to 30 only. Thereafter, in terms 31 to 36 students join the optional branches (furoo’) they prefer. These options are:

- Cultural Option

- Scientific Option

- Industrial or Technical Option (computing, mechanics, electrical, communications, cartography etc.)

- Agricultural Option

- Commerce Option

- Domestic Option (for females)

The following chart shows the subjects studied in each of these options:

In the cultural option of the third school stage, the student takes extended topics in both Islamic Culture and Arabic Language. Experts determine the requirements in the subjects of Fiqh, Usul, Tafseer, '‘Ulum Al-Hadith, History and other Islamic culture options. Likewise, they adopt specific courses (manaahij) in the Arabic language options required for this stage such as Eloquence (Balagha), Literature texts etc.

In non-scientific options, the student takes Mathematics and Sciences in a concise form with focus paid only to the topics required for their option. Thus the Commerce option student takes Mathematics topics related to Commerce e.g. Accounting, Zakat and Inheritance Accounts, Profits and Loss Accounts together with Bookkeeping and Cashbook Accounts; likewise he/she takes topics in Statistics. Whereas the Industrial option student takes topics specific to Industry such as Geometrical Drawing, Shapes, Area and Volume Calculation etc.

The General Sciences student of the non-scientific option takes topics focusing upon studies of the Human Body, Diseases, Public Safety as well as scientific topics related to man and his environment. In the agricultural option, topics related to agriculture and nutrition are added such as methods of Plant Agriculture, their diseases and treatment, types of soil, fertilisers, insecticides etc.

The Industrial option student takes subjects related to the science of materials and their attributes such as Density and Mass, together with the principles of Mechanical Dynamics and Public Safety.

Experts adopt what the student requires in each school stage and each option of the third school stage.

The division of schools within the State is built upon the basis of average student age rather than school terms in order to be bound by the Shari’ah rules related to teaching and discipline, so as to deal with students according to their age. Schools are divided according to these age groups into 3 types as shown in the following chart:

The school is not exclusively bound by school terms only; rather it extends to associate with schools of the previous and following stage in a number of terms in order to guarantee distribution of students in the 3 stages according to their age groups. The first stage school of teaching is exclusively for students less than ten years old, with the student having completed 12 school terms upon attaining ten years (4 yrs times 3 courses per year=12 courses). However, the serious student can at this stage complete 16 school terms (4 years times 4 terms per year=16 terms). Accordingly, schools of the first 2 stages overlap in teaching the required terms 13-16 to students between 9 and 12 years, for instance, term number “15” is taught in the first stage to the serious student who is not seeking a break in any term, his age will be (6+4/15= 9 ¾ years) i.e. within the first stage group. The second stage for the student who seeks the holiday, he will be (6+3/15=11 years) i.e. within the second stage age group. This overlap exists also between the second stage school and the third stage school, they overlap in teaching the term “25-32” which are mandatory for students between 13 and 17 years of age. The 28th course for example, is taught in the second stage for the serious student who does not take a break from any term; his age will be (6+4/28=13 years) i.e. within the second stage. Similarly, the 28th course is taught in the third stage school for the students who take a break between courses: his age will be (6+3/28=15 1/3 years) i.e. within the third stage age groups. This is the case for all the overlapping terms between the mentioned stages in the chart on page 74.

Each school curriculum subject is divided into teaching units, with each unit covering a defined portion of the subject capable of study as one unit within a maximum period of eighty-three (83) days i.e. in one course. Experts supervise each study subject in order to draw and define (the portion of) the subject to be studied in each term and each school stage. Likewise, they supervise dividing the subject into units corresponding to student ability and age. Subject units graduate sequentially until the entire subject is covered in the three school stages whether this sequence is from the easier to the more complicated as in Mathematics and Empirical sciences, or from comprehensive to details and branches like as in the subjects of the Prophetic Seerah and Islamic History. In scientific subjects like Mathematics, these units commence with the system of counting and simple arithmetic like addition and subtraction, then graduating to multiplication and division; then fractions and their functions, followed by algebra and equations. Then, in advanced stages, the student studies the principles of differential equations and Integral Calculus, Higher Mathematics and so on until the entire adopted Mathematics curriculum is covered in the school stages.

This requires the curriculum designer for specific teaching units to ensure that the subject conforms to student age, and to divide the subject intended for study in all stages into a maximum of 36 units, each unit in a book bearing the number of the course it will be studied in. The number of teaching units could be less than 36 for the subjects taught in later term e.g. physics. For instance, chemistry in the scientific branch is composed of 12 units; the students may commence the first unit in the 25th term and move onwards until the 36th term of the scientific branch of the school stage, whereas the general knowledge subject which is composed of 12 units, can commence in the 13th term and end in the 24th term.

The book bears the unit number as well as the course number to be studied in. So in the 25th term, for instance, the student studies Mathematics unit 25/25, Principles (qawa’id) unit 13/25, General Knowledge 12/25, Eloquence (Balagha) unit 6/25 etc.