RIYADH: Six million Saudi students in general education and about 1.6 million university students benefited from distance learning through various technical platforms and programs.
Education Minister Dr. Hamad bin Mohammed Al-Asheikh, accompanied by Commerce Minister Dr. Majid Al-Qasabi, who is also the acting media minister and Minister of Communications and Information Technology Abdullah Amer Al-Sawah, visited the production center for the virtual school in Riyadh on Sunday, which is serving more than 6 million distance learning students throughout the Kingdom during the period of the suspension of regular education.
The ministers’ tour included classrooms and they observed the method of delivering educational content directly to all students of general education in the Kingdom through broadcast studios designed according to the highest level of technical services.
The education minister explained that only 10 hours after the announcement of the suspension of the regular education, the ministry shifted from an educational system dependent on the attendance of students to another system that drew on the option of distance education, stressing that this transformation was not easy, but the ministry was able in hours to serve students across the Kingdom.
Al-Asheikh added: “Our goal was to achieve the best interests of the students, and not to stop their educational journey for one day.” He pointed out that all efforts today resulted in a “virtual school” that provides multiple options for students at any time and anywhere, whether on the Ain channel, its link to YouTube, the Ain portal, the future portal or the unified education system.
FASTFACT
Six million Saudi students in general education and about 1.6 million university students benefited from distance learning through various technical platforms and programs.
He said that university students were also working with their professors, interacting with them, taking their exams and doing their assignments, indicating that the Ministry of Education was able at this stage to achieve unprecedented numbers in distance education.
Al-Qasabi praised the great efforts made by those responsible for the virtual school with the support and guidance of the education minister, as well as the efforts of teachers and their dedication in delivering education without a pause.
Al-Sawah said that the digital infrastructure in the Kingdom is solid, and the internet access rate exceeds 94 percent.
These figures are supported by a network of optical fibers that reach three and a half million homes. We also increased the capacity by adding more frequency spectrum by 30 percent, prioritizing the security, health and education sectors.”
