Page 434 - Bahrain Gov annual reports(V)_Neat

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Staff. To meet the expansion 50 teachers were recruited cither locally or from the
Lebanon, Jordan or Palestine. The Egyptian Government continued to second a few qualified
teachers for Secondary Education in Bahrain.

Primary Education. Except for the policy of expansion which resulted in the addition of
ten classrooms to four schools, no change took place. At the end of the school year 1955-56,
430 boys sat for the Primary School Leaving Certificate, and 311 passed—72.32 per cent.
Secondary Education. With the beginning of Mie new term, the three branches of the
School, i.e., general, commercial, and Teachers’ Training Sections, were fully developed.
The Evening Classes for the teachers who are interested in continuing their training course,
continued to function as usual. At the end of the year (1955-56) the number of students who
completed successfully the prescribed course of study was 36, classified as follows :
General Section 21 Students
Commercial Section .. 15 Students

Technical Education. The Technical School was annexed to this Department at the
beginning of the School Term (1956-57). On the theoretical side of the syllabus science courses
were added to the junior classes and an electric shop was opened as a new branch of training
in that school. The enrolment at the beginning of the school year (October, 1956) reached 80.
Twelve students presented themselves to the final examination of the School and nine passed.

Higher Education. Two boys from the Secondary School were sent to Beirut American
University to continue their studies. Mr. Yousuf Mohd Saleh who lost his scholarshjp three
years back and who joined the Government, was given another chance. He passed his examin­
ation. Mr. Karim Saffar who lost his scholarship on account of academic record, was awarded
a scholarship after he joined the American University of Cairo and made good progress.
Seven students joined the Iraqi Colleges for higher instructions at the expense of the Iraqi
Government. Many more went to Egypt and the United Kingdom at the expense of their
parents.
School Hostel. With an ever increasing number of foreign staff the problem of accom­
modation became more acute. At the same time the students of the Secondary School increased
to such an extent that the Hostel could not accommodate more than a very small percentage of
the distant villages students. Meanwhile consistent transportation and good roads made the
Secondary and Technical Schools within easy reach. The Hostel was turned into a residential
building by introducing'temporary partitions, etc. It can accommodate about forty teachers.

Stores and Accommodations. This vital branch of the Department, owing to lack of
accommodation, could not receive worthy attention in the past. For the reason that it was no
more than a few scattered houses and garages all over Manama in which equipments and
furniture are stored. Naturally with such a state of affairs the efficiency of work would have
suffered greatly. The main hall of the Hostel and the extra rooms which are not used were
given to this section and a great progress was made to have all the stores at one site.

General. Extra curricular activities were curtailed during the year. Only sports events
took place with inter-schools contests and games.
The Technical School held its exhibition for the first time at the premises of the school.
Visitors had the opportunity of examining the different sections of the school in addition to
the exhibition. The income amounted to Rs. 6,100/-.
The Director of Education left Bahrain during the summer for the Lebanon to recruit
teachers through the assistance of the British Council. He was assisted by the Assistant
Director, Bahrain and was represented at the Educational Conference held at the American
University of Beirut, which was attended by practically all the Arab Countries. The problem
of Secondary Education in the Arab World was discussed. In Bahrain we are sharing most of
the difficulties with other Arab countries.