Teachers and Teaching Styles in Saudi Arabia and Chile

Although Saudi Arabia and Chile are similar in regard to their teachers and teaching styles, there are also a few differences. First, one similarity is that both countries have comparable educators. For example, both countries have men and women teachers with bachelors’ degrees. However, a difference is that in Saudi Arabia women teachers only teach girls and men teachers only teach boys. On the other hand, in Chile the teachers that are men or woman teach to girls and boys. Secondly, the classroom atmospheres in Chile and Saudi Arabia are rather different. For instance, the classroom atmosphere is mostly informal in Chile. Sometimes it takes teachers five to ten minutes to make the students quiet. In contrast, in Saudi Arabia classes are always quiet. An additional example is that in both countries the students stand up when the teachers enter the classroom on the first three years in elementary school. Furthermore, in both countries the students sit in pairs, and the organization of the desks form two or more lines. Third, the teachers use the same way to grade students, such as do many tests during the semester and one at the end. Finally, Chilean and Saudi students have the same levels of participation in the classroom. For instance, in elementary school the students just listen and answer questions asked by the teacher, while in the high school the students discuss and ask questions. In summary, even though there are some differences between Chilean and Saudi teachers and their teaching styles, they are fairly similar.