Geologists syndicate says geology should count in Tawjihi

AMMAN — The Jordan Geologists Association on Tuesday criticised the Education Ministry’s decision not to count geology in the final score of the General Secondary Education Certificate Examination (Tawjihi), making it a pass-fail subject. 

The association said geology is a basic subject that enriches students’ knowledge of the Kingdom’s resources, encouraging them to study and discover them, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. 

The association charged that the Education Ministry’s decision violates international educational standards which deal with geology as a basic subject in curricula.

The syndicate, which encompasses around 4,000 members, also highlighted the role of Jordanian geologists in exploring the Kingdom’s resources, such as phosphates, potash and oil shale, warning that the decision could have negative consequences on the economy.

Last week, the Jordan Teachers Association (JTA) also criticised the recently approved 2015-2016 study plan for the scientific and literary streams of secondary education.

Under the plan, endorsed by the Education Council, mathematics, physics, chemistry and biology are all to be counted in the scores of Tawjihi scientific stream students, whereas geology and computer science must be passed but are not calculated in the final score.

“Why on earth would a government that is serious about automation and e-learning put computer science as a subject that students should only pass and not excel in?” wondered JTA Spokesperson Ayman Okour, commenting on the decision.

 “We hope to be able to convince stakeholders to introduce changes to the plan,” Okour said.

The new plan is part of efforts to reform the educational sector in Jordan, especially Tawjihi, according to the Education Council.