Saudi students to attend schools during Ramadan

Parents urged the ministry to hold examinations before Ramadan.

Riyadh - The schools are scheduled to close for summer vacation on Ramadan 24.

By Web Report

Published: Mon 10 Apr 2017, 4:31 PM

Last updated: Wed 12 Apr 2017, 10:17 AM

Schools in Saudi Arabia will remain open during Ramadan due to final term examinations.
Ramadan is set to start on May 27 (subject to moon sighting), while the final term examinations will begin on Ramadan 9. The schools are scheduled to close for summer vacation on Ramadan 24 (June 19), according to the Saudi Ministry of Education officials.
In 10 years, this is the first time schools will remain open in Ramadan, a Saudi Gazette report said. For the past 10 years, the school year used to end before the beginning of Ramadan.
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Summer vacation for students and teachers of intermediate and secondary schools will begin on Ramadan 24, according to the ministry's schedule. The vacation for elementary schools will begin on Ramadan 13 (June 8).
Meanwhile, a lot of parents urged the ministry through social media to hold examinations before the fasting month.
They requested the ministry to schedule the examinations from 7am instead of 10am.
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Schools in the southern region are exempted from this decision and they would finish their academic year before the advent of Ramadan.
The ministry said the academic year for schools in the southern region will end on Shaban 29 (May 25).
In a survey, around 70 per cent of parents objected to the ministry's decision. They said it was not at all appropriate that the studies and examinations would be held during Ramadan.
Around 17 per cent of the parents agreed with the ministry's decision. About 12 per cent believed that the ministry's schedule was to some extent acceptable, the report added.