Pic: Salim Matramkot / The Peninsula
Doha: The Private Schools Affairs Department of the Ministry of Education and Higher Education held a meeting to find out about the preparations of the private schools that have been selected to conduct the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) test and the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) 2021, which are scheduled to take place in March and April.
The meeting, which was attended by Professor Omar Abdel Aziz Al-Neama, Assistant Undersecretary for Private Education Affairs, addressed the role of consultants in following up the training plans and programmes implemented by private schools, which would raise the level of students applying for these exams, as well as assessing the efforts of these schools in educating the administrative and teaching staff.
During the meeting, the results of private schools in the TIMSS 2019 were reviewed, which targets students of the fourth and eighth grades, who were tested in science and mathematics. This reflects the quality of the educational system in the State of Qatar.
Rashid Ahmed Al Ameri, acting director of the Private Schools Affairs Department, praised the results, indicating that a group of schools will be selected to conduct an awareness workshop and present their experience in excellence in these tests for the rest of the schools.
He said that the educational system in the State of Qatar is of high quality and private education is an essential part of it, including 21 different educational curricula in more than 325 private schools and kindergartens, pointing out that more than 30% of Qatari students receive their education in private schools.
He stressed that private schools continue their preparations for international tests, and in their turn, management consultants follow up these preparations, coordinate with the International Tests Department in the Evaluation Affairs Sector, overcome all obstacles, and harness all available capabilities. He wished success to all students, whether in private or government schools.
Eighteen private schools have been selected out of 42 schools to participate in the pilot Pisa 2021 test and 173 private schools out of 266 schools to participate in the PIRLS 2021 test, which will take place in March and April of this year.
The PISA test measures students' skills and knowledge in reading, science and mathematics and is intended for 15 years of age. The PIRLS test measures the reading skills of students in fourth grade. The previously conducted TIMSS test is for students in grades four and eight and it measures skills in science and mathematics.
