After 20 Years... 'Credit System' Returns in a Modern Format
- The project’s journey begins next academic year with the tenth grade, as part of a phased plan for secondary education.
- Six key pillars of the credit system support academic flexibility and continuous student assessment.
- Academic hours, cumulative grade point average, and academic advising are cornerstones of the new system’s philosophy.
- Two new educational tracks guide students toward future sciences and global humanities studies.
- Eleven courses in the first semester combine core, specialized, and free-choice subjects.
- New regulations govern student success and failure, with remediation plans leading up to graduation requirements.
- A student passes with a score of 50, and only failed courses are retaken, without repeating the entire academic year.
- Academic warnings are issued to monitor student performance... with expulsion after five consecutive or separate warnings.
- An additional semester is available to improve the GPA and fulfill graduation requirements under the new system.
- The project expands student options and aligns education with their interests and university education requirements.
- A comprehensive assessment system measures understanding, application, and skills, moving away from traditional exam formats.
In a new step reflecting the shift toward updating the secondary education system and enhancing its outputs to keep pace with global changes, the Ministry of Education is moving to reinstate the credit system in secondary education after a twenty-year hiatus. This initiative is part of an integrated educational project grounded in a modern pedagogical philosophy that promotes academic flexibility, fosters future-ready skills, and expands student choices, in alignment with the State of Kuwait’s vision to develop education, enhance the quality of its outcomes, and prepare qualified national cadres for higher education and the job market.
According to a recent educational report, the project stems from the state’s direction toward diversifying educational pathways and providing broader options for secondary school students, who represent the final stage before entering higher education or the workforce. This is achieved by adopting a more efficient and flexible system that contributes to building the learner’s cognitive, skill-based, and national identity, while enhancing their ability to keep up with rapid cognitive and technological transformations.
The Ministry of Education intends to implement the project to reinstate the credit system, which was previously in effect during the 1979–1980 academic year before being abolished by a ministerial decision starting from the 2005–2006 academic year. However, its anticipated return will take a more advanced form, based on the latest global educational practices. It will be anchored in academic flexibility, the development of critical and creative thinking skills, decision-making, responsibility, attention to individual differences, and linking learning to students’ interests and abilities. It will also provide broader opportunities for choice and gradual specialization, enhance positive engagement with society and national issues, adapt to modern labor market demands, and leverage modern technology in learning and daily life.
The project, submitted by the General Directorate of Guidance, Research, and Curricula, is expected to enter into effect at the beginning of the 2026–2027 academic year. It will initially be implemented with tenth-grade students, as part of a phased plan to gradually reintroduce the system fully across all three grades of secondary education.
According to the report, the credit system is one of the modern educational models based on academic flexibility, the development of critical and creative thinking, decision-making, responsibility, attention to individual differences, and linking learning to students’ interests and abilities. It offers greater opportunities for choice and gradual specialization, enhances engagement with society and national issues, adapts to labor market requirements, and utilizes modern technologies in accordance with the demands of the era and cognitive and technological transformation.
The report emphasized that the system places great importance on consolidating Kuwaiti national identity and strengthening values of belonging and pride in the history of the State of Kuwait, along with its national and constitutional constants, while preserving the Islamic and humanistic values upon which society is founded. It noted that developing secondary education represents a strategic step toward building a human capital capable of leading national development. Accordingly, a regulatory and procedural guide has been prepared, outlining the philosophy of the credit system, its implementation mechanisms, curricula, and the academic and administrative regulations associated with it.
The report clarified that the new version of the credit system is based on a modern educational philosophy that relies on the credit hour system and cumulative grade point average (GPA), enabling learners to continuously and systematically monitor their academic progress. This is complemented by the implementation of an academic advising system that assists students in selecting their courses and planning their academic paths according to their abilities, interests, and future aspirations, while granting them greater flexibility in choosing certain courses, thereby enhancing their sense of responsibility and autonomy in learning.
The system is also distinguished by diverse assessment methods, moving beyond traditional examinations to focus on practical and skill-based aspects that connect knowledge with real-life applications. It emphasizes the development of 21st-century skills, including critical thinking, problem-solving, teamwork, and communication, as well as the integration of digital learning and smart applications to support the educational process and develop modern learning environments.
Through these pillars, the system aims to reduce educational waste and minimize academic difficulties, while boosting students’ motivation toward learning by providing them with the opportunity to design their academic plans more flexibly, in alignment with their capabilities and future needs.
The credit system rests on six main pillars: academic flexibility, which allows students to build their academic plans according to their abilities and interests while meeting graduation requirements; the approved credit hour system; academic advising, which provides each student with an advisor to assist in course selection, determining the appropriate path, addressing academic difficulties, and planning for university and career; continuous assessment based on diverse measurement tools; integration among courses to holistically connect knowledge, skills, and values; and the incorporation of Kuwaiti national identity, national history, and Kuwaiti culture into all curricula.
The project proposes adopting two main tracks instead of traditional specializations, aiming to help students discover their interests early on while maintaining a balance between foundational knowledge and specialized skills, with a focus on future-oriented skills, practical applications, digital learning, and critical thinking.
The first track is the “Future Sciences Track,” which focuses on science, technology, innovation, artificial intelligence, and engineering applications, targeting students with scientific, analytical, and technical interests.
The second track is the “Global Humanities Studies Track,” which focuses on humanities and social sciences, law, media, economics, and intellectual thought, targeting students with leadership, analytical, and communication interests.
According to the project, a student’s academic program in the first semester of the first year consists of four common courses, five specialized courses, and two free-choice courses, totaling 11 courses during the semester.
The project establishes clear criteria for success and failure: a learner is considered successful if they achieve a score of 50 or higher in a course. In case of failure, the student retakes only the failed course, without needing to repeat the entire academic year, with grades calculated cumulatively.
A student receives an academic warning if their cumulative grade point average (GPA) drops to 1.0 or below after the end of the first semester. Such warnings are issued in each subsequent semester from the second through the fifth, provided the GPA remains at that level. The academic advisor is responsible for notifying the parent or guardian each time and coordinating with the social worker to develop a plan addressing the causes of the decline. If a student accumulates five academic warnings, whether consecutive or non-consecutive, they are expelled from the school.
The project stipulates that to obtain the General Secondary Certificate under the credit-based system, a student must achieve a final cumulative GPA of no less than 1.0. If this requirement is not met, the student is permitted to study one additional semester to improve their GPA, either by retaking courses in which they received a grade of “D,” or by taking courses they have not previously studied to fulfill the required credit points.
The project concludes by affirming the continued application of the Ministry’s anti-cheating regulations to all learners in the credit-based system, ensuring academic integrity and fairness in assessment processes.
• Students are permitted to retake only the failed course and are not required to repeat the entire academic year if they fail a single course.
• Academic workload is structured progressively, allowing students to register for between 4 and 6 credit units per semester.
• Students may register for up to 6.5 to 7 credit units if they achieve a high GPA of 3.5 or above, or if they are in their graduation semester.
• Students may temporarily study outside the school with the Ministry’s written approval, in accordance with approved regulations. This allows them to take certain courses at another school within Kuwait that follows the same system, except during the summer semester.
6. Academic warnings are issued in each semester, starting from the second and third semesters.
7. The academic advisor notifies the parent or guardian each time a student receives an academic warning.
8. A student is expelled from the school upon accumulating five academic warnings.
Students must achieve a final cumulative GPA of no less than 1.0.
One additional semester is allowed to improve the GPA and fulfill required credits, either by retaking courses in which they received a grade of “D,” or by taking courses they have not previously studied.
Withdrawal from a course is permitted during the second week of classes, subject to the academic advisor’s approval.
4. Dropping a course is allowed during the second and third weeks, with valid justification approved by the competent authorities, in any week where a legitimate excuse is provided.
The Ministry of Education emphasized in its report that the success of the credit-based system depends on effective partnership among schools, families, teachers, students, and community institutions. This collaboration contributes to achieving modern secondary education that aligns with Kuwait’s future aspirations, enhances the quality of educational outcomes, and reinforces the role of education in human development and societal progress.
