Back to school: Dubai head teacher heralds 'new beginning' as pupils return

Read also: Back to school - thousands of UAE pupils return to classrooms

A Dubai school head teacher said the return of pupils for the new academic year has brought classrooms back to life and offered the UAE's education sector "a new beginning".

Zoe Woolley, headmistress of Repton Al Barsha, highlighted the role that successful Covid-19 safety measures have played in winning the trust of parents.

Tens of thousands of pupils across the emirate resumed in-person lessons on Sunday, the first day of another school year affected by the pandemic.

Many of the same Covid-19 safety restrictions introduced in 2020 are still in place, although social distancing has changed from the mandated 1.5 metres to one metre.

Pupils arriving at the door of Repton Al Barsha chatted excitedly through their masks and waved at friends they had not seen since last term, as they received their temperature checks and sanitised their hands.

Each year group entered the school through a different door to ensure social distancing.

Ms Woolley said the atmosphere this autumn felt very different, compared with last year.

"This morning, the school is full of life. We have virtually all of our children back on site today, which is fabulous news," said Mrs Woolley, who has 770 pupils in her school this year.

"It is just a brilliant testimony to our safety precautions that our parents are confident to send their children back in.

"And because our teachers are so familiar with the social distancing and the health and safety protocols, there was a lot of confidence this year about what we can offer on site."

New term, new rules

According to the rules of Dubai's Knowledge and Human Development Authority, children over six must wear masks at all times. In addition, pupils must kept in "bubbles" where they learn and socialise only with their classmates.

The "bubbles" are kept separate from other groups to reduce the chance of transmission of Covid-19.

Children are required to sit at the same desk in their classrooms and on school buses, to make contact tracing simpler. Temperature checks will be taken at the start of each day.

Regular testing for Covid-19 is not required in Dubai but pupils who travelled over past two weeks must submit negative Covid-19 tests taken within 48 hours of the first day of school.

However, the KHDA has relaxed many of the restrictions regarding group activities. From October 3, distancing learning in Dubai will end and all pupils will be required to return to classrooms, unless there are extenuating circumstances.

Assemblies, school trips and interschool sports matches are now permitted – a change schoolteachers and pupils have welcomed.

"It is just an amazing start to the new school year. It really does feel like it is a new beginning, a fresh start, and we are all eager to resume fixtures, and for activities, events and assemblies to resume," said Mrs Woolley.

Swimming lessons and extracurricular school clubs are also allowed again. Repton Al Barsha's sports teachers have already created teams that are ready for matches, said Mrs Woolley.

"Last term, we very much focused on skills in order that when team sports did restart, we were able to put our teams back together. So, now we are ready for the fixtures and to play competitively. The children are very excited."