Tariq A. Al-Maeena

 

As the amnesty period ran out, concerns from another quarter grew.  This time it was from the thousands of teachers working in international schools across the Kingdom.  Many of them are housewives who had accompanied their spouses on their job assignment to the Kingdom, and then decided to better utilize their time by teaching at private schools while their husbands were at work.



A recent directive from the Ministry of Education stipulating that all such teachers must pass a qualifying test in their subject areas is being carried out by ministry officials.



Those teachers found to be qualified will be issued a work permit, whereas those who do not pass the test will not be granted one. The ones who succeed will then have to transfer their sponsorship to their institution of employment.



Naturally this has caused a great deal of concern among the thousands of expatriate housewives who feel that this is another insult to their stature as housewives.



This brings to mind an advertisement that appeared in a local daily by an educational institution in one of the larger cities which was recruiting prospective students for enrollment.  The ad went on to describe the buildings, facilities, number of students per classroom, curriculum on offer, etc, and upon touching on the qualifications of the teachers, it highlighted their educational and professional qualifications by adding "no housewives".



Needless to say, a day or two later, many people wrote to the paper venting their anger at what was perceived as an insult to housewives in general. Some even demanded an apology or retraction from those responsible for  the ad.



At the time, a South American housewife from Dammam called me to add her wrath to this boiling pot of fury among a growing number of housewives.  A mother of three, she had elected to teach her children at home, and was of the opinion that she was doing a much better job than some of these teachers.



Since, at that time, I wrote a weekly column in that paper, she felt that I would have had some authority over the contents of the ads that it contained.



After assuring her that I had nothing to do with this controversy and promising to look into the matter, I searched for the ad to get a firsthand look.  Sure enough, there it was: "no housewives".  



Apparently, what this educational institution was trying to convey to prospective students and their parents was that their instructors were born into the teaching profession, had not experienced the pleasures of matrimony or motherhood, and had no interests or aspirations in life other than to teach.



It also said in so many words that their teachers were "not housewives" picked to fill such an important assignment.



No sooner had I put the paper down when my thoughts were interrupted by a call from a Canadian from Tabouk who again criticized the ad and considered it a slur.  



She went on to describe her qualifications in detail: a Master’s Degree in psychology from a prestigious university in Montreal, an honor roll student and a housewife and mother…. By choice!  Did that make her any less of a human being, she demanded!



Once again, playing the role of a social pacifist, I sought to convince her that her qualifications were par excellence, and that she should not alarm herself about being labeled a "housewife".  



After all, Indira Ghandi and Mrs. Thatcher were housewives first and politicians later on, I added.



In a social gathering among friends, an American mother, and a homemaker at heart, unaware of this budding controversy, quickly displayed her ire as the story unfolded.  “How dare they?” she cried out, reaching out to tightly hold her 12-year-old son for sympathy.



Another interrupted her to add rather emphatically that she would never, never enroll her offspring in this institution, especially with such an insulting attitude toward housewives.



Generations of children, Saudi or otherwise, have been taught with care and affection by these women.  They filled a critical slot which was vacant at the time, and the Kingdom needed their support.  



Granted today there are new rules by the Ministry of Education regarding the employment of expatriate women in schools, but that should in no way be taken as a means of demeaning housewives.



Let us not forget the immense contribution that expatriate housewives have made to the education of our children over the years.  Let us instead honor them for what they have done.

 

– The author can be reached at talmaeena@aol.com. Follow him on Twitter @talmaeena