International Education Issues in Saudi Arabia's Public Education Curricula: An Analytical Study

Overview & Synopsis

The objective of this study is to improve the situation of the general education curriculum in Saudi Arabia, in line with global aspirations in this area and a proposal to implement international education issues in general education curricula. The study was centered on answering the following questions: What is the reality of issues of international education in some of the curricula of the general education schools in Saudi Arabia? What are the most important issues of international education--after identifying and learning from the experiences of countries such as the United States of America and Britain--that can be included in the curricula of public education in Saudi Arabia? The study sample was limited to the Arabic language and Social Studies courses at different levels, namely elementary, middle and high school, which were compared to the general education curricula in the United States and Britain. In light of the experiences found in other countries, the study recommends the integration of the values of international education, such as peace, human rights and multiculturalism, in classrooms and extracurricular activities at all levels of public education in Saudi Arabia. Finally, the study concludes with specifying certain international education issues to be included in each stage of education.