Preschool Education in Saudi Arabia: Past, Present, and Future

Saudi Educators’ Perspectives on the Reggio Emilia Approach

“…Teacher-trainers supervised the student teachers in private kindergarten settings three days a week for an academic year. Other universities and colleges in large cities now provide a variety of ECE teacher training programs (Aljabreen and Lash, 2016). However, from my experience and the feedback I received, student-teachers entering the teaching environment continue to find a large gap between what they learn in training programs and what they observe in classrooms.…”

“…In 1983, the Gulf Girl Association in SA established an ECE teacher preparation program and offered educational degrees to women wishing to specialize in ECE (Aljabreen and Lash 2016). The program included a curriculum based on educational theory and practice, and mandated the completion of sixty-four credits, -including significant time with a full-time teacher-mentor in a preschool‖ (Abduljawad et al 2008, as cited in Aljabreen and Lash 2016, 316).…”

Early Childhood Education in Saudi Arabia: Report

“…However, the idea of kindergarten had never been introduced before 1974. Consequently, the need for early childhood care and education programs increased, resulting in the establishment of the first preschool and kindergarten classes starting in 1975, with classes that were attached to general education schools (Aljabreen & Lash, 2016 The second stage was the project approach, which began in 1975. This approach was not significantly different from the traditional approach, especially in focusing on the education of the child to read and write (Alomar, 2013).…”

“…Additionally, such goals aim to expose children to the school atmosphere rather than only experiencing the conditions within the home compound (Aljabreen & Lash, 2016;Ministry of Education, 2004). Schools are typically identified as one of the best areas where children can grow with very high discipline and rigor, hence preparing them for life.…”

“…The idea of kindergarten education in Saudi Arabia was introduced in 1974 with the establishment of preschool and kindergarten classes in 1975 (Aljabreen and Lash, 2016). A successful governmental pre-kindergarten and kindergarten in Makkah consisting of ten classrooms and seventeen workers, of which fourteen were teachers, led to formal introduction of pre-kindergarten and kindergarten into the countrywide school program.…”