ABSTRACT
Traditionally the ulama, in addition to their religious and judicial duties, were the teachers of the devout, and of the sons of the ruling elites. The puritanical Wahhabi ulama, however, limited themselves to the study of the Shari'a and its recognised interpretations and totally ignored all other subjects. Aramco provided modern education for their children and for other children in the Eastern Province. The enormous expansion of modern education and the substantial decline of illiteracy in Saudi Arabia since the 1960s are impressive achievements. Middle- and upper-class children, especially from the major towns in the Hijaz, were better prepared for modern education and also had access to better schools with more qualified teachers. The rapid expansion of Saudi higher education after the 1960s was partly facilitated by the growth of secondary education, mainly in urban centres. The ulama were given greater control of the education system and their influence seemed again to be on the rise.
