Schools here have schedules for their days that are similar to those in the U.S. My host brother’s school runs from 7:55 a.m. to 2:40 p.m., with two half-hour breaks in the day. As I discussed in an earlier field note, lunch here is typically eaten anywhere from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., so they do not have a long lunch break at school. Another key difference in the school schedule is that, here, most schools run from Sunday to Thursday. However, some of the private schools try to respect the holy days of both the Muslim and Christian faiths, so they have school Monday through Thursday, and also on Saturday.
My host brother’s favorite classes at school are science and English. He is at an international school, so his classes are taught in English, but he studies Arabic, English, and French each week. Science classes in Jordan, from first grade to high school, are a mix each year of each science subject: chemistry, physics, biology, and more. They also have a religion class each week that teaches them about both Christian and Muslim beliefs, as well as discussing other major world religions.
Also, almost all schools in Jordan have uniforms. For the public schools in Amman, the boys wear blue button down shirts and pants and the girls wear blue dresses. For private schools, they also have uniforms, but they can vary a lot. One private high school here has a uniform of matching sweatshirts and sweatpants in their school's green color with the school logo!
