Page 207 - Records of Bahrain (5) (ii)_Neat

The progress of state education, 1939-1941 527

4a

No.*, uln.nl Arithmetic. The standard of Arithmetic at all tbo Bahrain
schools i - very low—it is probably the weakest subject of all. Serious steps
will have lo be taken to iinprovo tho teaching of this subject in tho near
future, if I ■uhrain boys aro going to be considered by employers of labour to
bo woilb employing. I was shown by tho hcadmustors of tho Manamah
and Mulwiraq schools a numbor of question-papers in Mathematics which
they told me had been set to thoir pupils at tho ond of tho year. Tho
questions were of a high standard, aud although I was uot shown any of
the answers I was assured that tho boys woro well ablo to copo with them :
but these assurances do not at all ugreo with what I was told by people
who have bad nctual cxpericnco of Bahrain schoolboys as employees. Tho
Employment Ollieor of tho Bahrain Oil Company and tho Manager of tho
Eastern Dank both told mo that, much as thoy would like to do so, it is
almost impossible to ollor Bahrain schoolboys any of tho better posts—in tho
case of the Bank, auy post at all—owing to their invariable inability to
carry out accurately tho simplest mathematical calculations. I am satis-
lied that theso statements aro correct, for such complaints uro not confined
to Bahrain, but uro mado by Europoan omployers of labour all over the
.Middle East. In Persia, for example, tho standard of education—especially
mathematical education - is 60 low that oil companies thcro have boon ob­
liged to establish their own schools, in order to onsuro that thoir youthful
employees shall bo properly educated ; and iu one of tho neighbouring Arab
state*, whero largo sums of money aro spont on education, it is raro to find
u post-ollico ollicial who can givo ouo liis correct ohango without
first making a laborious calculation with pencil and paper. Tho roa6on
why tho standard of mathematical ability in tho Middlo East is so low,
while it is so high in India, is that in tho Middlo East boys uro taught to
learn by heart aud to imitate, but uovor to think for thomsclvcs. Tho Arab
student cun solve quito successfully tho mathematical problems which ho
finds in his school text-book, bccauso all thoso problems follow closely 6omo
regular model which ho has loarued by heart bow to solvo. Bub confront him
with a mathematical problom from real lifo—ono which docs not tako ex­
actly tho sarno form as thoso givon iu his school Arithmetic book—and ho
is hopelessly lost, and unable oven to attempt it.
We shall seo no improvement in tho standard of mathematics in tho
Bahrain schools uutil wo alter our methods of teaching and train boys to
think, rather than to loarn by heart and to imitato. This question of
tho mathematical teaching is ouo to which tho now controller will havo to
give his early and earnest attention, if wo arc to bo ablo to satisfy
employers of labour that our boys aro worth appointing to auy of tho
better posts. IIo may find it noco3sary to advise tho Education Depart­
ment to engage abler toaohors of this subject. If this is douo, it miuht bo
a good plan to look to India for toaohors of mathematics, rather than to
*“>’01 the Arab countries. I suggest that your Highness should instruot
Iho now controller to prepnro a spociul roport for tho Education Department
0,1 tbo question of tho toaching of mathomatios.