Amoud has kindly suggested that Islamic Studies and Arabic are not mandatory at some schools in Qatar. He (or she) may well be right. The bad news, however, is that long waiting lists and lack of places ARE mandatory, it would appear, at all of the better schools in Doha. (These are usually the ones that do not have lots of Arabic and Islamic Studies on the curriculum.) Yes, a British passport does indeed come in handy, but so does a very big pile of cash. The better schools know that they are oversubscribed and so (surprise, surprise) they put up their fees accordingly.
I have no problem at all with the idea of expat children learning Arabic. I do, however, get very annoyed with the way that the Completely Wonderful Education Council insists that expat children should be taught Arabic in a way that is totally boring, lifeless and insipid. When I was teaching in Doha, several expat parents told me that they were happy for their children to learn Arabic, but they wanted them to learn conversational Arabic that the children could actually use. When I quizzed the teachers, they said that the Utterly Amazing Education Council laid down the law about how Arabic should be taught, so it is just another example of the Totally Magnificent Education Council screwing things up.
Great to hear from you again, Squarepeg. I am now teaching at a school in the UAE, but I thought that it might be fun to have a look at Qatar Living, for old times' sake.
Amoud has kindly suggested that Islamic Studies and Arabic are not mandatory at some schools in Qatar. He (or she) may well be right. The bad news, however, is that long waiting lists and lack of places ARE mandatory, it would appear, at all of the better schools in Doha. (These are usually the ones that do not have lots of Arabic and Islamic Studies on the curriculum.) Yes, a British passport does indeed come in handy, but so does a very big pile of cash. The better schools know that they are oversubscribed and so (surprise, surprise) they put up their fees accordingly.
I have no problem at all with the idea of expat children learning Arabic. I do, however, get very annoyed with the way that the Completely Wonderful Education Council insists that expat children should be taught Arabic in a way that is totally boring, lifeless and insipid. When I was teaching in Doha, several expat parents told me that they were happy for their children to learn Arabic, but they wanted them to learn conversational Arabic that the children could actually use. When I quizzed the teachers, they said that the Utterly Amazing Education Council laid down the law about how Arabic should be taught, so it is just another example of the Totally Magnificent Education Council screwing things up.
Great to hear from you again, Squarepeg. I am now teaching at a school in the UAE, but I thought that it might be fun to have a look at Qatar Living, for old times' sake.