Teachers wary of new powers to school heads

Saudi Gazette report JEDDAH — A number of teachers have expressed their worries about new powers given school directors and principals. They fear that school officials could abuse their powers to harass and torture them. However, school administrators who spoke to Okaz/Saudi Gazette lauded the government's move to grant them greater decision-making powers. The teachers said the new powers will not boost productivity, but instead open the door for school directors and principals to mistreat both teachers and students. Teacher Abdullah Al-Basisi believes the new powers could be useful if accompanied by appropriate checks to counter all sorts of abuse. "If we don't do this, instead of getting rid of bureaucracy, we will find ourselves in a box of only one opinion," he said. Mohammed Al-Shamrani, another teacher, called for the formation of a committee to review the powers of each school district and to give everyone the right to decision-making as it deems appropriate. Head of Ali Bin Abi Talib School in Jeddah Khadr Al-Shamrani welcomed the new powers for educational leaders, but feared a collision with reality with the constraints of education offices and departments. "Unfortunately, most of such decisions end up just ink on paper; it is better to leave educational officials to work according to his or her school's needs without interference from anyone," said Al-Shamrani.