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The major shift in the curriculum will be away from rote learning
and the emphasis will be put on encouraging students to develop
scientific and logical thinking, as well as acquiring skills of
analysis and problem-solving.The 1999-2000 school year began on
Saturday, 4th September 1999.
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Education
Prize
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It
was announced in early 1998, that the Sultanate of Oman had been
awarded the Shield of the Arab Organisation for Education, Culture
& Science in recognition of the achievements made by the Ministry,
particularly in the eradication of illiteracy and the raising
of educational standards throughout Oman..
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Student
Population
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The total number of students in State education is 528,357, of
whom nearly half are female. An additional 23,560 students are
in private education, more than half of whom are in schools mainly
concentrated in the Capital area. The age group with the highest
numbers of students, a total of 301,281, is in primary education.
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Children
with Special Needs
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The Ministry makes special arrangements for the education of the
541 children, who are blind, deaf, or have other learning disabilities
and are therefore unable to attend mainstream schools. Some are
sent to an appropriate establishment in neighbouring countries.
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Teaching
Staff
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There are 24,093 teachers of whom 13,845 are Omanis (57.5%). in
State education. In private education, there are 1,552 teachers
of whom 222 are Omanis (14.3%). The Ministry is making strenuous
and concerted efforts to replace expatriates at all levels with
trained Omani teachers. At primary school level, nearly all the
teaching staff are Omanis.
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Training
of Omani Teachers
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The first Teacher Training Institute opened in 1977 for students
who had completed their preparatory stage education. These Institutes
were later upgraded and in 1984-85 they became Intermediate Teacher
Training Colleges, whose students were secondary school graduates
destined to become primary school teachers. In 1995, the Intermediate
Colleges were further upgraded and became Colleges of Education
which granted university degrees in education to their graduates.
During the same year, responsibility for these Colleges passed
to the Ministry of Higher Education.
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Education
for Girls
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Girls
follow the same syllabus as boys, starting with entry to primary
education and going on to preparatory, secondary and higher education.
Before 1970, there were no schools for girls. However, the 257,071
girls in government schools now make up 48.65% of the student
population. This figure compares with the 1993 census findings
which showed that females made up 49.1% of the population. Girls
also make up over 40% of the students in private education. In
October 1998, the Saham Secondary School for Girls received His
Majesty's Cup for Health & Hygiene in Schools. The Northern
Batinah region were the overall winners in the competition which
has been held annually since 1992.
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Stages
of Education
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At
present there are three stages of juvenile education: primary,
preparatory and secondary. Primary school education usually begins
at the age of six. Having passed the sixth primary grade examination
between the ages of twelve and fourteen the pupil moves on to
preparatory education. Students passing the general preparatory
certificate examination are then admitted to the first grade of
secondary school between the ages of fifteen and seventeen. On
completion of their secondary education, successful students can
go on to advanced training at specialised colleges or enter Sultan
Qaboos University. In the future, students will be streamed at
secondary level in order to focus them on careers which will require
more specialised and technical training.
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New
Basic System of Education
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At
the start of the academic year 1998-1999, the Ministry introduced
the new basic education system in two phases: a basic education
phase over 10 years and a secondary education phase for two years.
This will gradually replace the existing system of 6 years of
primary, 3 years of preparatory and 3 years of secondary schooling.
Under the new system, there will be greater emphasis on science,
maths and the use of computers. English will also be introduced
from the first year of basic education. The new system has been
introduced gradually, starting with 17 schools from different
regions. In the school year 1999/2000, more schools will be introduced
to the new system. It is hoped to have at least 100 schools following
the new curriculum in 2000/2001. New Learning Resource Centres
are being set up in schools, complete with laboratory equipment,
audio-visual systems, computers and other teaching aids.
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Adult
Education
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Adult
education operates in parallel with the regular education system
allowing advanced courses and examinations to be taken. Great
importance is attached to allowing those who have been unable
to complete their education. In 1998/1999, there were 6,252 students,
of whom 4,446 were women, enrolled in different centres throughout
the Sultanate. An additional 4,285 students attended classes for
the eradication of illiteracy.
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Private
Schools
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The
Government has encouraged the growth of private schools in the
Sultanate and welcomes the contribution made by the private sector
to the education system. In the academic year 1998/1999 there
were 118 private schools and kindergartens in the Sultanate providing
pre-school, primary, preparatory and secondary education. Private
school owners must be of Omani nationality and hold at least a
secondary school certificate. Private schools follow the same
curriulum as Government schools and offer the same examinations.
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Teaching
of English
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The
teaching of English has assumed increasing importance in recent
years, particularly with the opening of Sultan Qaboos University
and higher education colleges where science-based courses are
conducted in that language. In 1987, the Ministry launched a major
project to develop the teaching of English in schools with materials
specially designed to suit the Omani school system. Teacher-training
plays an important part in raising the standard of English in
schools. Omani teachers of English are given additional programmes
during their training.
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