Minister of Education Approves the Comprehensive Regulatory Bylaws for Education at the Ministry
Education Minister Sayyid Jalal al-Tabatabai has approved the comprehensive regulatory framework for education in the Ministry in its final form, with implementation to commence from the date of the ministerial decree. This framework will serve as the unified regulatory reference for all aspects of the educational process, following the completion of its preparation, review, and consultation phases, during which the views and observations of specialists and professionals in the educational field were incorporated.
In a press statement issued on Tuesday, the Education Minister stated that the issuance of the framework marks a new phase in organizing educational and pedagogical work, reflecting the Ministry’s orientation toward building a clearer and more stable system based on unified rules. It precisely defines roles, responsibilities, rights, and obligations within the school community.
Al-Tabatabai added that the framework is the product of collective and institutional efforts, involving work teams, relevant sectors, and field practitioners through continuous technical, legal, and pedagogical reviews, as well as consultative meetings and specialized discussions addressing the actual realities of schools and the needs of their staff.
He clarified that the Ministry was keen to transition from a multiplicity of documents, regulations, and instructions governing the educational process, making the new framework the sole reference for educational institutions in organizing their operations. This move involves repealing previous documents and regulations, thereby eliminating dual references and enhancing the stability and clarity of decisions.
He noted that the learner is at the core of the framework’s preparation, achieved through the development of assessment and evaluation systems, strengthening school discipline, organizing the educational environment, safeguarding rights, defining duties, enhancing school-family partnership, and activating pedagogical, social, and psychological roles within the school community.
He pointed out that the regulatory framework also extends to all members of the school community, clearly defining the rights and duties of students, the role of parents, the responsibilities of teachers, and the authorities and procedures of school administration.
He emphasized that the work on the framework reflects the Ministry’s commitment to comprehensively developing the regulatory system. The preparation process included a broad review and update of existing educational systems and regulations, aiming to build an integrated framework responsive to developments in the educational field. He commended the efforts made by work teams, relevant sectors, and participants from the field.
Regarding the framework, the Ministry of Education stated in the bulletin that the process involved a comprehensive review of existing systems, achieving a 100 percent update rate in the kindergarten stage, 87 percent in the general system regulations, 70 percent in the primary and religious education stages, and 65 percent in both the middle and secondary stages.
The Ministry explained that the framework consists of 22 chapters covering all components of the educational process, starting from the principles and rules governing pedagogical work and the kindergarten stage, progressing through primary, middle, and secondary education, and religious education, and extending to registration, transfers, school discipline, social and psychological services, activities, school media, distance education, the educational environment, examinations, behavior, and professional discipline.
It was noted that the framework dedicates regulatory provisions to each educational stage, taking into account their specific characteristics and nature. It addresses the kindergarten stage in terms of objectives, developmental characteristics, identity building, admission, and transition to primary education. It also covers geographical scope, density, inclusion of students with disabilities, teaching staff, schedules, assessment, absenteeism, school discipline, children’s rights, the role of the family, and distance education.
It noted that the regulations for primary, intermediate, and secondary stages covered curricula, standards, assessment tools, grading schemes, projects, attendance and absenteeism, examination violations, as well as general provisions and those specific to religious education.
Regarding the secondary stage, the Ministry of Education stated that the regulation included a comprehensive overhaul of the assessment and grading system, whereby a student’s grade in each semester is distributed between 40 percent for classwork and continuous assessments, and 60 percent for the end-of-semester examination.
It added that classwork is allocated 25 marks for student performance and 15 marks for a short test, while 60 marks are reserved for the final exam. It clarified that the 25 marks allocated for student performance comprise 6 marks for participation, 6 for assignments, 6 for behavior, and 7 for projects, with controls established for school projects linked to learning outcomes, independent work, creativity, innovation, source documentation, presentation, and discussion.
The Ministry also explained that the regulation adopted a system of digital points and verbal descriptions (GPA), which converts student grades into achievement levels and digital points starting from 4 points for an A+ grade, corresponding to scores between 97 and 100.
It highlighted that a key development introduced by the regulation is the implementation of a cumulative grade point average for the secondary stage, whereby the tenth-grade result accounts for 10 percent, the eleventh-grade result for 20 percent, and the twelfth-grade result for 70 percent of the final average.
It pointed out that if a student fails in any grade of the secondary stage but subsequently passes in a later year, the cumulative average will be calculated based solely on the year of passing, with no impact from the previous failure on the cumulative average.
