Teaching English in primary school: President Tebboune orders creation of new specialty at university
BY: Hana Saada
ALGIERS- During a Council of Ministers meeting on Sunday, the President of the Republic, Abdelmadjid Tebboune made a significant announcement regarding the teaching of English in primary schools. Specifically, he ordered the validation of English language instruction beginning in the third year of primary school. This move is expected to have a positive impact on the education system and the future prospects of students.
In addition to this, President Tebboune also directed the creation of a new specialty in the higher education sector that will focus on training English language teachers for primary schools. This new program is set to commence as of the 2023–2024 school year and is expected to provide a much-needed boost to the quality of English language instruction in primary schools.
Furthermore, the President emphasized the importance of accelerating the recruitment process for holders of magister and doctorate degrees, as proposed by the Minister of Higher Education. This will ensure that the necessary expertise is available to support the implementation of these new initiatives.
President Tebboune’s commitment to improving the quality of English language instruction is commendable and will be welcomed by educators and parents alike.
Earlier, the majority of Algerians, especially students, welcomed the decisions of President Tebboune to wean them away from the language of Molière and bolster English tuition in the country.
Algeria is moving further away from its francophone history by introducing instruction in English in primary schools. The country is trying to improve learning and academic and professional opportunities.
Algerian primary schools have scrambled to introduce English lessons, under the instructions of President Tebboune, who announced, in the midst of the summer holidays, that the authorities would add English to the primary school syllabus at the start of 2022-2023 new school year.
“The French language is war booty, but English is the international language,” President Abdelmadjid Tebboune told journalists in July.
President Tebboune reiterated his determination to review the law governing the teaching profession, in application of his commitments in terms of reforming the education system, while stressing the need to review educational curricula with reference to the pedagogical spirit, which has enabled the training, since independence, of an elite in various specialties.
The presidential speech did not fall on deaf ears. Just a few hours later, the National Education Minister, Abdelhakim Belabed announced the “implementation” of the President’s decision at the beginning of the school year in September.
To this end, thousands of English-language teachers were hired as a first stage in a broader plan to boost English tuition in the coming years.
For their part, educationalists, teachers’ unions, and politicians agreed that bringing in the language of Shakespeare “is a good thing”.
“I want to drop the language of the colonizer and adopt the language used worldwide—the language of science and technology,” said Hacene, the father of a primary pupil in the capital, Algiers.
Asked by Dzair Tube TV, a student said: “I think English is better than French…”We have been taught French since our childhood, and I think that it is time to switch from the French language to English.” She emphasized that learning English is worthwhile as it is an international language.
