Overview of Education System
The Ministry of Education in Bahrain is the official body responsible for devising and implementing the educational policies for public schools, determining the general objectives of basic and secondary education and allocating the instructional time for all subjects.5 The Bahraini education system follows an education “ladder” of nine years (ages 6 to 15) for basic education, which comprises the primary and intermediate stages. The primary stage includes Cycle 1 (Grades 1 to 3) and Cycle 2 (Grades 4 to 6), and the intermediate stage includes Cycle 3 (Grades 7 to 9). Together, these three cycles of basic education constitute compulsory education as stipulated in Bahrain education law.6 Upon completion of this stage and after passing all the examinations, students receive an intermediate stage certificate. Secondary education lasts for three years (Grades 10 to 12), over which two systems are offered: a unification of academic tracks (scientific, literary, and commercial) and a technical and vocational track. Successful students are granted a general secondary certificate at the end of the secondary stage in each of their majors.
In 2015, the number of basic education schools was distributed as follows: 113 primary schools (58 for boys and 55 for girls), 59 intermediate schools (31 for boys and 28 for girls), and 31 secondary schools (12 for boys and 19 for girls).7 There were 75 nonsegregated private schools operating under the supervision of the Ministry of Education, eight of which used government textbooks. The remaining nonsegregated private schools include three types of private schools: national, foreign, and foreign community. Each school has its own curriculum, teaching plans, and textbooks, subject to approval by the Ministry of Education.8 All private schools are obligated to use the curriculum and textbooks approved by the Ministry covering Arabic language for Arab students, Islamic studies for Muslim students, and history and geography of Bahrain for all students. In 2006, the Ministry implemented a citizenship curriculum that was applicable only to Bahraini and Arab students. In 2015, it was implemented in all schools for all students.
Preschool and kindergarten in Bahrain (ages 3 to 5) are neither compulsory nor free; however, every child has the right to be enrolled in a kindergarten belonging to a private school or to attend any of the 137 private national or foreign kindergartens operating under the supervision of the Ministry of Education. Each kindergarten uses its own Arabic or English curriculum approved by the Ministry of Education for the first and second years of kindergarten.9 In 2014, the Ministry implemented a national curriculum for the final kindergarten year (age 5) at national kindergartens.
In Bahrain, the academic year in public schools runs from September to the end of June and is divided into two semesters with a two week holiday, from the last week of January to the first week of February. The academic year comprises 196 days, 162 of which are actual schooling days.10 Students attend school five days a week (Sunday to Thursday). The school day starts at 7:15 a.m. and ends at 1:15 p.m. Schooling time is 330 minutes per day, which means 1,650 minutes per week. Almost 21 percent of schooling time (345 minutes) per week is devoted to learning Arabic. In the second cycle of primary education, approximately 35 percent of the time devoted to learning Arabic (120 minutes) is allocated to learning reading.