Riyadh – Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Education has decided to combine the Holy Qur’an and Islamic studies subjects into one subject. This change effectively affects the Kingdom’s elementary and intermediate public school education.
This decision is part of the new guide of the updated study plans approved by the ministry on Sunday for the new academic year.
The ministry stated that it has stopped working according to previous study plans issued during the previous academic year. It will now follow the new guideline for the year 1444 AH.
In this regard, the ministry issued directives to all public education schools, kindergartens, and schools for memorizing the Holy Qur’an.
The ministry also sent the order to schools of special education and continuing education. Scientific institutes, religious institutes in Makkah and Madinah, and national identity programs in international schools.
The ministry explained that this newly developed guide represents the second phase of the updated study plans.
It is compatible with the three-semester system approved by the ministry during the last academic year.
According to the new guide for elementary and intermediate schools, the separate subjects of Islamic studies and the Holy Qur’an will be combined as a single subject, the Holy Qur’an and Islamic Studies.
The complete course load for the subject has been reduced from 34 to 15 weekly classes at the intermediate level. And from 38 classes to 30 classes for the elementary school.
The new system will continue with financial knowledge classes approved previously.
MoE made no other significant changes in the study plans except the increase in the weekly study hours of some subjects and a reduction for others.
