“We all know that the education sector is the first employer in Algeria. All disciplines, apart from English, are saturated. English will be taught at primary schools this year, so I chose to study it at university.”
Othman Hamna, director of education of Sétif province, in eastern Algeria, told Al-Fanar Media that education directorates in 58 Algerian states had started receiving applications for English teaching jobs at primary schools on August 2.
The recent decisions appear to have influenced some recent high school graduates to put English at the top of the list of majors they want to study at university.
Bahia Kars, a guidance counselor at Abderrahmane Mira University of Bejaia, in eastern Algeria, said 56 percent of new high school graduates at his university wanted to study English.
Saida Saklili, who recently graduated from high school, said she had chosen to study English without hesitation. “At least it will be the gateway to employment in the education sector in the next five years,” she said.
Fouad Rajeh, another new high school graduate, has also chosen to study English.
“We all know that the education sector is the first employer in Algeria,” he told Al-Fanar Media. “All disciplines, apart from English, are saturated. English will be taught at primary schools this year, so I chose to study it at university.”
A Cautious Welcome and Concerns
A spokesman for Algeria’s National Council of Secondary Schools said the council welcomed the decision to make English a general subject in educational curricula because it is the language of science, development, and technology, and the first language globally.
The success of the changeover, however, will depend on the Ministry of National Education meeting certain conditions, said Faouaz Mazkour, the council’s media officer.
