Sultanate of Oman
Diwan of Royal Court
Sultan Qaboos Higher Centre for Culture and Science
Diwan of Royal Court
Sultan Qaboos Higher Centre for Culture and Science
The Sultanate has attached a great importance to the education sector, which witnessed remarkable development during the recent forty years on the level of school education and higher education, by providing the learner with the necessary skills and enabling them to coexist with the developments of life in the 21st century. The following are the most important projects and initiatives carried out and implemented by various education-related institutions in the Sultanate of Oman, which support and promote the goals of the Alliance of Civilizations initiative:
The Sultanate of Oman implements many projects and programs in the field of education, characterized by continuity, where some are executed on an annual basis, others every two years, as follows
The research chairs and scientific fellowships allocated by His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said, -may Allah protect him- in a number of international prestigious universities, pulpits of knowledge, reflect the Sultanate's efforts in support of scientific and global research studies so as to contribute to the development of the global scientific heritage which all human beings benefit from
These research chairs vary in their specializations and objectives, some of which are concerned with the Arab and Islamic studies, others with modern science and technology, and some related to international relations, humanities and social sciences, among others. (Appendix 1)
Sultan Qaboos Chairs - through various specializations – aims at creating a fertile ground for dialogue with others, and reflect the role of the Sultanate of Oman in constructive dialogue in order to enrich the cultural interaction and lay sustainable foundation for bonds of friendship and collaboration between nations, and boost reconciliation and peace
Student exchange is not limited to the methodology of education, but is accompanied by the transfer of culture and history and all aspects of diversity and cultural exchange between the people of the world. This is done through cultural visits paid by exceptional students from Sultan Qaboos University and the Colleges of Applied Science to a number of close countries, all due to the generosity of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said - may Allah protect him
These visits are an important factor in the cultural transmission to and from the Sultanate of Oman. Such visits constitute an opportunity to get to know the cultures of different civilizations while transferring the civilized image of Oman. The student trips -since they started- were important for the intellect and culture of the students as they represent a turning point in their lives in terms of experiencing life in the countries they visit. Travelling itself is of importance in the formation of a base and a path to additional knowledge, as well as looking into the experiences of people and states in all walks of life, developing ties of rapprochement and communication and interaction between them and various religions and civilizations.
Omani academic institutions are connected to international universities, so as to benefit from the practical experiences and long experience of these universities and colleges. For example, the Sultan Qaboos University has ties and cooperates closely with the Russian, Japanese, Iranian, Chinese, European and American science institutions. Some of the Omani private universities are academically linked to international educational institutions. All of this undoubtedly contributes to strengthening the bonds of understanding between the Omani people and the people of those countries and the exchange of cultures between them
The Sultanate sends its students to international Universities in order to exchange experiences, create a positive and civilized connection with other people in sciences and art fields, and to benefit from international experiences. Oman is also seeking to cooperate with universities in the world to train some of the students in different fields such as medicine, engineering and others
Curricula, decisions and courses for all schools and higher education institutions, include many lessons that introduce the learner to other cultures and cultivate peaceful coexistence and cooperation among nations and peoples of the world. Teaching and learning are based on training the learner, to be cooperative and respect other people's opinions and beliefs
This agreement requires the joint collaboration between the two institutions in terms of dialogue between religions. It is not doubt that it will contribute to an environment in which the common denominators and ideas that support the convergence of cultures, religions, languages grow through visits and activities organized between the two ends
Within the framework of cultural exchange and convergence based on solid foundations, some Omani educational institutions offer scholarships to students from around the world, including scholarships offered by the Forensic Science Institute for non-Omani students from different nationalities. Sultan Qaboos Centre for Islamic Culture also offers scholarships to students from Asia and Africa to study in the Sultanate in its Islamic Sciences Institutes
These programs are designed to build bridges of communication, exchange of knowledge and experience. They target students speaking languages other than their mother languages. The language is taught in the frame of cultural and scientific exchange between the Sultanate and countries of the world. This comes within the Sultanate’s aim to open up to the world, to share knowledge and experience and invest in its expertise obtained from around the world, not to forget the need to learn different languages for effective communication. Executed programs in this area:
This annual program aims at establishing communication and exchange of knowledge, experiences and cultures. It began by hosting a Malaysian student delegation in the Sultanate from 5.23 to 6.20 / 2009 upon the invitation of the Ministry of Higher Education in Oman. An integrated program was prepared for the visit, and included two aspects: Arabic courses which duration was 84 hours carried out in the languages lab at the College of Applied Science Rustaq, courses that intends to enhance the language skills and create opportunities for the practice of Arabic language through contact, different visits and trips.
Sultan Qaboos Center for Culture in Washington organizes, in collaboration with some specialized American institutions, a summer school to teach Arabic language to foreigners. This summer school is held in one of the educational institutions in the Sultanate, it targets students from different foreign countries, religions and cultures who are interested and willing to study Arabic. The first summer school was organized in 2009 in Dhofar University in the South of the Sultanate and the second in Nizwa University in Central Oman in 2010.
In the framework of cooperation and coordination between the Royal Omani Police and the Japanese Police, the ROP has hosted throughout 3 years a number of Japanese police officers to study the Arabic language and be introduced to the Omani Culture.
English is taught as a basic subject for students in the Sultanate since the pre-school grades. It is also used as an intermediate language for education in many Higher Education institutions in Oman, especially in the scientific and practical specializations. In the light of the International and local importance of the English language since it is widely used in daily communications and transactions, there are many institutes in the Sultanate that teach English including but not limited to the following: The British Council and American Amideast organization which organize several cultural activities and events in cooperation with the relevant local bodies and institutions. There’s also a big number of other specialized institutes which offer English classes around the year.
The Omani-French Center, established in 1979 under the supervision and funding of the French Embassy in Muscat and the Ministry of Education at the Sultanate of Oman, offers French classes around the year for those willing to learn this language. The center receives in its main branch in Muscat and in its two other branches in the Wilayats of Sohar and Salalah, more than 500 students in each course. In return, it teaches Arabic for foreigners residing in the Sultanate, which achieves a sort of cultural exchange. French is also taught in some Higher Education institutions in the Sultanate such as the Sultan Qaboos University and some private universities and colleges.
There is a growing demand to learn the German language from the part of Omanis, especially those willing to pursue their studies in German universities. In the Sultanate, there are many educational institutions which offer German classes and courses including the German University of Technology and Goethe Institute. German is also taught in a number of Higher Education institutions in the Sultanate such as Oman Tourism College and Sultan Qaboos University. The Ministry of Education intends to introduce French and German languages as elective courses for the 11th and 12th grades.
Many governmental and private institutions are registering a number of their employees in long courses to learn different foreign languages such as English, French, Russian, etc., in the aim of facilitating the transfer of knowledge and enabling the Omanis to benefit from the experiences of these countries in the different fields, and enter in a cultural exchange and dialogue process with people from those countries.
The Sultanate was keen on joining different United Nations International Organizations including the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, UNESCO, which the Sultanate joined in 1972. The Sultanate has in fact contributed in this organization’s activities and benefitted from its programs and projects in the development of its educational system and the improvement of its outputs. The UNESCO-associated schools program is a clear proof on the fruitful cooperation in the education sector with this organization, knowing that the UNESCO-associated schools are not different from the other Omani schools when it comes to their curricula or working systems. The only difference lies in the curricular activities which have International dimensions and concepts and which aim at strengthening communication and cooperation with other UNESCO-associated schools on the local and global levels through working in joint projects with a humanitarian aspect, in addition to the students and teachers exchange programs which aim at increasing cultural cooperation and instilling and deepening the principle of coexistence.
A program of arranging mutual and exchanged visits between Omani and International schools is implemented throughout the academic year. Through this program, communication takes place between different academics from the different Ministry-affiliated bodies, and Omani teachers and students with teachers and students from other countries such as the UK, USA, India, Pakistan, Sri-Lanka, France and others. This aims at ensuring the exchange of ideas, experiences and knowledge around specific educational issues and getting to know about the cultures of others in addition to strengthening positive relations between the participants in the exchange program.
The “Twinning” project is one of the fruits of joint cooperation between a number of Omani and German UNESCO-associated schools. This project aims at reinforcing the ties and strengthening the relations and links between the teachers and students of UNESCO-associated schools in two different countries at the same educational phase through communication between them and getting them to know more about the culture, heritage and traditions of people from another country. Furthermore, it aims at helping the participants to develop their social and cultural skills through the implementation of a number of joint projects and programs in one of the fields and topics on which the UNESCO-associated schools international network is focusing. These topics are international ones such as environmental issues, heritage and cultural exchange.
The Omani UNESCO-associated schools have participated in the joint pilot project between UNESCO, the Swedish “Life Link” organization, the Omani Ministry of Education and Oman National Committee for Education, Culture and Sciences on “Care Culture”. This project aims at encouraging the participants to launch small projects to support the three main dimensions of peace which are: “self-care”, “care for others” and “care for nature”, in addition to providing the opportunity for youngsters to play an effective role through the dissemination of the culture of caring for the environment, protecting and preserving it. The Civil society represented by the parents and some institutions is also enabled to participate in this project in order to play a vital role in supporting sustainable development. More than 50 Arab schools have participated in this project, in addition to 50 European schools. In the light of the positive results of this pilot project, UNESCO and “Life Link” have decided to implement it again and for three years, in order to provide the opportunity for a bigger number of students from the UNESCO-associated schools around the world to participate. The project’s focus, between 2009 and 2011, was on three topics which are the following: “culture of peace”, “water as the source of life” and “sustainability and our daily life”.
This project aims at encouraging dialogue between cultures through the establishment of partnerships between a group of schools from the Middle East and the UK in the framework of the age category 11 to 14 years.
The Sultanate, represented by the Ministry of Education, has joined the International Education and Resource Network (iEARN), in the aim of supporting education through projects with the participation of students and teachers from other countries via internet. Such projects are usually targeted, they serve the society and help strengthen the ties between children and youngsters from the different parts of the world
This project aims at disseminating the culture of peace among the students who organize through it a number of events and activities before the celebration of the International Day of Peace. In fact, many school students usually draw a big painting where they express their opinions about peace. It is then displayed in one of the UNSECO-associated schools. Also, one of the Sultanate’s schools invites through the project a number of the International schools in the region to participate in a full-day program which includes contests, drawings, presentations and plays.
The Sultanate hosts International conferences gathering experts in the field of education from all around the world to discuss the most important scientific, literary, artistic and historical topics. This helps crystallize opinions that are beneficial for humanity and which contribute in the rapprochement between different viewpoints. Such conferences are considered among the important aspects of rapprochement between cultures and civilizations, for they represent a big space for dialogue. Among these conferences the “Chinese – Arab dialogue” and the Conference on Languages, Linguistics, Literature and Translation which is held annually at the Sultan Qaboos University since 2001. Sultan Qaboos University and other educational and cultural institutions are also keen to effectively participate in events on the regional and international levels, and constantly contribute in the continuous development of the scientific and human fields.
There are many intermittent projects that were implemented and which are in harmony with the objectives of the Alliance of Civilizations initiative in the field of education. These projects are the following:
The idea of the program, which implementation will start with the beginning of the Academic Year 2010-2011, is summarized in ensuring coordination with American, European and Asian universities to name successful students from scientific and literary specializations and send them to study at the Sultan Qaboos University for a whole semester (first semester). This is a type of educational and cultural exchange program. Moreover, special programs will be prepared for these students to visit different regions of the Sultanate during the official holidays and week-ends, in addition to them attending some cultural events and festivals organized in the Sultanate during the period in which they are studying in SQU.
The Omani UNESCO-associated schools have participated in the International Mondi Logo Contest for high schools launched by Daimler & Chrysler in October 2003 in collaboration with UNESCO in the aim of strengthening dialogue and exchange between cultures in order to reinforce the principle of “learning to live together in peace and harmony”. This contest targets the category of students between the ages of 14 and 18 from all around the world to enter a dialogue, exchange cultural ideas and build bridges of consensus and harmony with each other. It was launched in the Academic year 2003-2004 with the participation of around 1500 teams and 25000 students from 26 countries of the world, and has been very successful.
This forum aims at encouraging communication with others and the dissemination of the culture of tolerance. The forum’s program includes different events and programs for school students, most importantly the artistic exhibition which includes different corners where paintings about peace and tolerance from the perspective of the students participating are displayed. They encourage the idea of coexistence with the world, friends, environment, self and the family. The students participating in the last session of this forum have prepared magazines and booklets which reflect the forum’s title. A lecture was also presented on communication and tolerance within the families, with the aim of introducing the students to the effective role played by communication and tolerance in the achievement of psychological health. On the forum’s margin, a number of students have visited foreign schools in the region with the aim of introducing them to the Omani culture and being introduced to other countries’ cultures.
Oman National Committee for Education, Culture and Sciences has organized between the 8th and the 12th of November 2008 a workshop on “Education for sustainable development in a world of cultural diversity”, in cooperation with the Ministry of Education, UNESCO, ISESCO, the National German UNESCO committee and the National Kuwaiti Committee for Education, Culture and Sciences. This workshop was held in the framework of the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development for the UNESCO-associated schools’ students. Around 100 students and teachers from UNESCO-associated schools from different Arab and European countries have participated in this workshop which aimed at reinforcing education for sustainable development, contributing in strengthening mutual understanding between students from the different Arab and European cultures, especially from Germany and Denmark, moving forward with the development of projects between the schools, and launching new joint projects and activities between these schools in the framework of the joint efforts to reinforce the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development and support the Arab-European dialogue.