"This is not a question of a secular education versus an Islamic education," he says. "The Islamists, they are on the defensive. So everybody who comes to them with a practical idea—they see him with a great amount of skepticism and paranoia. And that is delaying reform.
"We need to start a serious debate ... on this paragraph, that paragraph, of the textbooks. We need to start comparing our students' performance with students in, say, Jordan. We in the media have to be part of this debate. It's not just a question of making my sons and daughters good Muslims. It's making sure they can get a job in the future."
Saudi student Fatima al Khabbaz never thought she would be part of any debate. But then one day she brought an Arabic translation of Hamlet to school to read during a break. A teacher told her that "no books from outside are allowed."
"But I'm already finished with my work," Fatima told the teacher.
No exceptions, the teacher said.