Saudi Arabia's first educational system was modeled on Egypt's system

Saudi Arabia's first monarch, King Ibn Saud, regarded education as a means to foster national unity and to enlighten the Saudi people. In 1925, public education did not exist. There were only four private elementary schools in the entire country. Therefore, a centralized educational policy was entrusted to the newly established Directorate of Education. Although compulsory education was mandated for a six-year elementary education followed by a five-year secondary cycle, enforcement was difficult without an adequate number of schools. Saudi Arabia's first educational system was modeled on Egypt's system, which, in turn, was heavily influenced by the French educational model. Saudi Arabia's educational system was designed to observe the teachings of Islam, disseminate knowledge, and construct schools.