King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and Chairman of the Higher Committee for Educational Policy, has approved the amendment of regulations on opening schools of general education for boys and girls in all regions of the Kingdom. Announcing the royal approval here on Sunday, Dr. Abdullah Al-Obeid, Minister of Education and Deputy Chairman of the Committee, said the new rules are distinguished for applying the latest educational world standard which is that an area of 1.6 sq. meters should be reserved for every student in the classroom besides making mandatory that female and male students live permanently in the areas in which the complexes will be constructed. The average number of students at the schools within the last three years will be taken into account in determining the number of students who are expected to join the schools. The distance required for establishing intermediate schools for boys and girls should be reduced from 40 km to 30 km and at the secondary level for boys from 70 km to 50 km, and for secondary schools for girls from 50 to 40 km. Dr. Al-Obeid said the amendments include regulations for opening Holy Qur'an memorization schools in cities and villages at the various levels. The number of students at the primary level should not be less than 150, and in the first year, the number should not be less than 20. For opening intermediate and secondary schools the same regulations of schools of general education will be applied. The decision also included the merger of nearby schools with less than 40 students at various levels. Rural educational complexes for boys and girls can be established in coordination with the Ministry of Education and the governorate of the region. An informed source at the Ministry of Education has confirmed that adequate housing facilities will be provided free of charge for men and women teachers in remote areas which lack housing facilities, pointing out that the educational complexes in rural areas will be redesigned to conform with the amended rules, and free transportation will be provided to students in these areas regardless of gender.
