Although they are situated in different geographical locations, Saudi Arabia and Australia have a lot of similarities in their education system. First, they are both based on religion and revolve around it. As a Muslim state, Saudi Arabia’s education is dominated by Islam (Mackey, S., 2000). On the other hand, Australia’s curriculum is highly dynamic and contains teachings of Christianity. Besides, they both have pre-primary, primary, secondary and tertiary levels of education (Ker, 2008). In both cases, kindergarten education is not regulated by the government and is not compulsory (Doherty, 2004). Lastly, in both countries, education is provided by the government and private investors. In Saudi Arabia, public primary schools are all day. In Australia, 65% attend government sponsored public schools while 34% study in the Catholic and other private schools (Lam, 2010).
However, these countries have some differences in their education systems. First, they have different histories. While Australian education was established in the 1830s, Arabia’s is more recent because it was founded in 1963. Secondly, Saudi Arabia’s education is national because it is directly controlled the Ministry of Education under one central government (The World Bank, 2009). This is different from Australia in which education is under federal states who are mandated to determine the academic calendar used by all the institutions within their jurisdiction. The other difference between these countries is that under the Saudi Arabia’s education system, Arabic is used as the main language of instruction (Jabaji, 2008). In Australia; English is the primary language used as a mode of instruction. Lastly, even if they both have pre-primary, primary, secondary and tertiary levels, they have varying years. In Saudi Arabia, primary, intermediate and secondary schools take 6, 3 and 3 years respectively (Bashshur,M., 2004). In Australia, primary and secondary levels consume 7 and 6 years in that order.
References
Bashshur, M. (2004) Higher Education in the Arab States, Beirut: UNESCO
Regional Bureau for Education in the Arab States. Saudi Arabia.
Doherty, Linda (28 June 2004). "Too old, too young, or just right for kindy".
Sydney Morning Herald.
Jabaji, R. (October 31, 2008) “Saudi Arabia's First Women's University" PBS
Ker, Peter (3 January 2008). "Voluntary school fees under the gun". The Age
Victoria: Fairfax Media.
Lam, Miawling (17 January 2010). "Public school costs soar to $90k". The
Sunday Telegraph.
Mackey, S. (2000) The Saudis: Inside the Desert Kingdom. New York:
Norton Paperback. W.W. Norton and Company.
The World Bank (2009) The Status of Progress of Women in the Middle East
and North Africa, Washington D.C, 2008.
