The Ministry of Education decided on Tuesday to implement the mandatory instruction of English at all levels of middle school, commencing with the 2023-2024 academic year.
The Ministry issued a memorandum to the various directors of its academic departments, stating that English will be taught in the first year of middle school with the expectation that 10% of students at that grade level will be enrolled in the course, concurrently with students in their second year of middle school being taught at a rate of 50%.
In the academic year 2024-2025, the coverage rate will be 50% for students in their first year of middle school and 100% for those in their second year of middle school. 2025-2026 is projected to see 100% penetration for all grade levels of the middle school tier.
Each teacher will be engaged in instructing English for a total of 24 hours per week, in being delegated 12 classes–each of two hours duration–for this particular content area.
Prior to this proposition, English has typically only been taught in the last year of middle school.