New education system in Egypt to be like Finnish one

CAIRO – 11 December 2017: The primary education stage in the new educational system will likely be close to the Finnish style of education, and several international institutions will be asked for help in preparing the new system, including the World Bank, as well as specialists from Singapore, Finland and Belgium, Education Minister Tarek Shawky said on Monday.

During the Canada Egypt Business Council, Shawky added that the Ministry of Education spends LE 1.3 billion ($72.9 million) annually to a number of bodies, including the Ministry of Interior in order to prevent cheating, especially during the “Thanaweya Amma” high school exams.

Education is one of the cornerstones of the Finnish welfare society. Finland offers an educational system that provides equal opportunities of education for all, irrespective of matters of residency, sex, economic situation, or linguistic and cultural background.

Shawky declared that Arabic, English and an optional third language will be taught in the primary stage and the technical education will be taught in the preparatory stage.

He stressed that the ministry is trying to offer a good quality of education in the governmental schools to help reduce citizens resorting to international and private schools, hoping that there will be a unified system of high, technical education with the coordination of all ministries.

Shawky mentioned that the changes and development of the education system will face challenges, pointing out that now parents are spending LE 20-30 billion for private classes.

He noted that bonuses for teachers will depend upon the results of students.

The leaking of exams has been a commonly widespread phenomenon in Egypt in recent years.

Social media and smartphones have made it easier for exams to be leaked. Therefore, the government has introduced a new high school examination paper, called the “Booklet” designed to put an end to online cheating and exam leaks.

A new examination paper system will prevent the leaking of exam papers.