The system that restores its headquarters
The new Kuwait Ministry of Education’s project regulations contain a clear rule: a student who fails a course must retake only that course, not the entire academic year.
The irony is that the same system is returning after about 20 years to retake a course it previously stumbled over. Before celebrating its return, we must ask: What has changed this time? The core idea itself is not controversial. Academic flexibility, credit hours, cumulative grade point average (GPA), and academic advising are elements already in use in successful systems, and the gradual implementation starting from the tenth grade in the 2026–2027 academic year is a reasonable step. However, the problem with the previous experiment was not the idea itself, but the way it was implemented.
The system was introduced in Kuwait during the 1979–1980 academic year, but admission of new students was halted starting from 2005–2006, when the unified system was adopted instead. Returning to the course-based system requires first understanding the reasons for its cancellation.
A 2015 study by Dr. Ghazi Al-Rashidi, a researcher at Kuwait University, which analyzed results from more than 45,000 students in aptitude tests between 2000 and 2012, revealed that while the course-based system was preferred by most students, graduates of the unified system outperformed them in mathematics, English, and chemistry.
One explanation is that the cumulative GPA may produce high grades that do not always reflect actual proficiency. This point must not be repeated. The new project includes nine assessment tools, but their sheer number does not ensure measurement accuracy unless they are linked to clear standards and specific learning outcomes. Unless grades are standardized across schools and among teachers, two students at the same level could receive different grades in a lenient school versus a strict one, thereby undermining the meaning of the GPA and forcing universities to administer additional placement tests.
The system cannot succeed without prepared teachers and qualified academic advisors. Without a sufficient number of advisors, advising becomes merely an administrative formality. It is unrealistic to expect teachers to use multiple assessment tools without proper training or clear guidelines. A useful lesson can be drawn from Ontario, Canada: its secondary education is based on credit units and course selection, but it maintains uniform graduation requirements and a provincial proficiency test. Thus, the value of the diploma does not rely solely on school-level assessments, and recognition of the certificate remains a critical issue. Previously, the Kuwait Cultural Office in Cairo announced that the high school diploma under the course-based system was not recognized for registration in Egyptian universities. This is an issue that must be resolved before implementation, not after the first graduating class completes their studies.
The real test of the project begins now: the Ministry must publish the regulatory and procedural guidelines, clarifying how grades are calculated, assessment standards, the advising mechanism, and graduation requirements. It must train teachers and advisors before the academic year begins, and it must verify in advance that the diploma will be recognized both within Kuwait and abroad. Student success starts with a passing grade of 50, but the success of the system is measured by honest grades, a recognized diploma, and graduates who enter university without having to prove that their GPA reflects their true level. The system has returned to retake an old course. The question is not whether it succeeds on paper, but whether it has learned from the reasons for its failure the first time around.
