Education in Qatar
| Minister of Education | Mohammad bin Abdul Wahed Al-Hammadi |
|---|---|
| Budget | QR20.6bn |
| Primary languages | Arabic |
| Total | 96.6% |
| Male | 96.7% |
| Female | 96.2% |
| Total | 280,041 |
| Primary | 68,255 |
| Secondary | 65,182 |
| Post secondary | 146,604 |
The education system in Qatar is jointly directed and controlled by the Supreme Education Council (SEC) and the Ministry of Education (MOE) at all levels. The SEC is responsible for overseeing independent schools, whereas the MOE is responsible for providing support to private schools. Formal schooling officially began in 1956. Primary schooling is obligatory for every child and is free in public schools.
Education in Qatar is very diverse, with several schools representing a variety of international curriculum systems. There are approximately 338 international schools in the country. Several prestigious universities from around the world have satellite campuses in the country in Education City and within suburbs of the capital Doha.
In 2001, Qatar hired the RAND Corporation to analyse and reform its K-12 education system due to uncertainties over the quality of the pre-existent system. At the time RAND's study was conducted, over 100,000 students were served by the Qatari education system; two-thirds of whom attended government-operated schools. . RAND also proposed numerous reforms to the system to the Qatari government, with an emphasis on improving the curricula.
As a response to the RAND study, the Supreme Education Council launched the Education for a New Era (EFNE) initiative in 2001 and introduced nationwide policy reforms. One of the cardinal objectives of the EFNE was to adopt a Western education system for its preschool system. The SEC also aimed to increase overall enrollment in preschools with this initiative. In 2005, the SEC raised curriculum standards in Arabic, mathematics and sciences for all grades. A large number of independent schools were also opened shortly after. Twelve independent schools opened in 2004, twenty-one in 2005 and thirteen in 2006.
An assessment test published in 2008 revealed that only a small portion of students were able to meet the new curriculum standards. Approximately 10% met the standards in English, 5% in Arabic and less than 1% met the standards in mathematics and sciences. A 2015 study conducted by the OECD ranked Qatar in the bottom 10 of its educational index.
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