During a seminar organized by the Egyptian-Canadian Business Council and the Egyptian Business Council for International Cooperation, Minister of Education Mohamed Abdel Latif said overcrowded classrooms and low attendance rates are some of the ministry's most serious challenges.
He explained that “student attendance remained critically low for many years, with rates not exceeding 9 percent across past academic years — a major challenge to the effectiveness of the educational process, especially given that classroom densities in some schools exceeded 200 students.”
Abdel Latif noted that the ministry adopted a multi-track approach, including utilizing underused school spaces, applying extended school-day models, and introducing mobile classrooms.
In tandem, the government has continued building 10,000 and 15,000 new classrooms annually.
Additionally, it stated that the total number of public school classrooms—380,000 by the last academic year—increased by an additional 98,000 in the current academic year.
As a result, the average classroom density dropped to fewer than 50 students per class in 99.9 percent of schools nationwide.
Bridging the teacher gap
The minister highlighted another persistent challenge: a nationwide shortfall of nearly 470,000 teachers.
In response, the ministry increased class loads for current teachers in exchange for financial incentives, rehired retired educators, and recruited part-time instructors with teaching credentials.
Adjustments to the academic calendar have also helped maximize teacher availability, leading to a 33 percent increase in adequate teaching capacity.
Additionally, as part of a five-year initiative launched by President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi to combat teacher shortages, the ministry hires 30,000 new teachers annually.
Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said only 12,000 candidates passed the education ministry tests to be employed under the presidential initiative in January.
The PM added, however, that the government approved steps to hire 72,000 teachers this year.
In January 2024, the Central Agency for Organization and Administration (CAOA) disclosed the Ministry of Education's need to hire 11,114 assistant classroom teachers for primary school grades (first, second, and third) for the 2024/2025 academic year.
Restructuring Thanaweya Amma
Turning to curriculum reform, Abdel Latif addressed the restructuring of Egypt’s Thanaweya Amma (high school) education system.
He criticized the previous format, which required students to take 32 subjects over three years, as unrealistic and unaligned with global standards.
He noted that the ministry is developing the proposed Egyptian Baccalaureate System, which will replace the decades-old Thanaweya Amma by introducing specialized learning tracks and multiple assessment opportunities instead of a single final exam. The new model reduces this load to 6–8 core subjects, each with approximately 100 hours of instruction annually.
Abdel Latif stated that the proposal had undergone broad public consultation and that surveys of Grade 9 parents showed strong support for the Baccalaureate system, which targets students entering the 10th grade—known domestically as the first year of Thanaweya Amma.
In earlier remarks, he said the Baccalaureate system aims to eliminate private tutoring and reduce psychological pressure on students and their families.
He added that the ministry will launch a new “educational booklet” next academic year to serve as an in-house teaching resource, reducing reliance on costly external materials and easing families' financial burdens.
Expanding technical education
The minister noted a significant expansion in technical education, primarily through the Applied Technology Schools model.
These schools will reach 90 by the start of the 2025/2026 academic year, under partnerships with private sector actors and international partners, including Germany, Italy, France, and Saudi Arabia.
The ministry will also convert several existing technical schools into applied technology institutions and 1,270 technical schools into international institutions, focusing on adding disciplines that match global and local labour market needs to improve students' employment prospects.
This will be done in cooperation with countries such as Japan and Italy and with private sector partners who support the model.
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