At least it is if you're three. Al-Ahram Weekly reports on a ministerial decree designed to set a minimum age for school enrolment, reports Reem Leila The decree issued last week by Minister of Education Yosri El-Gamal banning children less than five and half years of age from being admitted to first primary (grade one) took parents and school administrators by surprise. Children less than five and half by academic year 2009/ 2010 will now not be allowed to begin first grade and must instead redo KG2. Confusion was compounded when it was mistakenly announced that students less than 15 years old when they reach grade nine will also have to repeat the year before being accepted into grade 10. "We find pupils being accepted in private schools when they are just three years old", says Reda Abu Serie, deputy to the minister of education. "It is clearly unfair to have students at private schools in grade one at the age of five when their peers in government schools are six and sometimes more." Less than 20 per cent of grade one pupils will be affected by the decree, claims Abu Serie, who defends the move as being in the interest of pupils as well as promoting equality of opportunity. According to Amin Abu Bakr, deputy for elementary education, "the new system encourages parents and schools to abide by the ministry regulations". The move, he says, is intended to dissuade parents from enrolling their children in schools at too young an age. "If parents know their children will redo a school year in order not to be less than 15 years when entering grade nine there will be less stress on pupils joining school early." Many parents and educators disagree, arguing that pupils should be judged on the results they have achieved and not exclusively by age. Mona Saber, a Cairo University professor of communications, points out that "the younger the child the better his or her assimilation of information". "Why should I discourage a child and force him or her to stay at home instead of studying at school?" she asks. "Research shows the younger the better when it comes to studying. Children do not forget the information received after the age of three." Hani Hakim, father of two children one of whom is currently in KG2, insists the "new system does not make sense". "The entire educational system needs an overhaul. Let's not kid ourselves. Who benefits from this decree which affects hundreds of families? How can I convince my child, who has succeeded in his exams, to redo the same year just because the minister of education said so?" Meanwhile, "a fine is to be collected from schools for each pupil they accept below the legal age of three and half years for KG1," explains Abu Bakr. Aida Sabri, principal of a Sixth of October private school, was as surprised as anyone by the decree. Until now, she says, her school's administration has yet to receive any official notice of the ministerial ruling. She predicts that private schools will have a hard time applying the new regulations, and expects "problems" to occur when parents start demanding refunds of fees already paid. Abu Bakr believes such concerns are exaggerated. "The decree will apply to pupils starting in the next school year so it is very unlikely there will be parents in a position to ask for a refund. School administration must work out any exceptional cases where parents have paid so far in advance. Parents cannot expect to violate the regulations without incurring some kind of penalty."
