ABU DHABI // School children as young as 4 are to be taught simultaneously in Arabic and English, with two teachers in the classroom at the same time.
The change is part of a new, uniform model for all government schools in the capital unveiled yesterday by the Abu Dhabi Education Council (Adec). More than 600 new native English-speaking teachers will be hired to work in Abu Dhabi kindergartens alone.
In addition to bilingual kindergarten classes taught by two instructors, the plan includes a new curriculum, a longer working day for teachers, and a compulsory training programme for all teachers.
The new plan shares a number of the goals of Adec's Public-Private Partnership (PPP) programme, which was was launched in 30 private schools in 2006 and brought private companies into the management of select state schools. Like the new model schools, the PPP programme encouraged active rather than passive learning.
Dr Lynne Pierson, the head of school development at Adec, said the new plan had come about from looking at other countries that were successful in educating young children.
She said Adec had taken advice from staff at model schools and PPP schools.
The PPP companies are on three-year contracts, and will continue to work in public schools. Dr Pierson said they would "be used to support the new school model".
"Key to the new school model in kindergarten is the notion of two teachers working in a classroom," she said. "The goal is for students to become literate in both Arabic and English, not one at the expense of the other."
The first phase, which will begin this autumn, will affect 171 schools and 38,000 children. The model is scheduled to be in place in all state schools by 2016. Education chiefs hope it will reduce the need for many high-school graduates to take foundation lessons in English before beginning university degree courses.
According to Dr Pierson, extending the working day by an hour will give teachers time to collaborate and plan.
Dr Pierson said existing primary school teachers who are being replaced with native English-speakers would not lose their jobs.
"In kindergarten we're adding teachers, so the licensed teachers who are being hired will not replace expatriate Arab teachers or Emirati teachers," she said.
"In grades one and two the same staffing would be in place as last year, so there would be no additional teachers who would be replaced. In grade three, my understanding is that teachers would be reassigned to grades four or five, or another area that they are interested in pursuing."
The goal, she explained, is "not to remove people who are not performing but rather to provide significant opportunities for teachers to learn and improve their skills".
The school curriculum, which was overhauled four years ago, will be revamped again next year.
In 2005, Adec contracted the New South Wales Department of Education in Australia to draft a "standards based" curriculum for Abu Dhabi schools.
"Curriculum should always change. Curriculum is an evolutionary process," Dr Pierson said. She added that Adec had contracted the Parthenon Group, a Boston-based consulting firm, to review the curriculum and develop an "ongoing process for continuous review".
"Best-practice school systems always include that kind of process. We didn't have that kind of process," she said. "The student outcomes were reviewed, refined, and those outcomes are a part of the new school model and are the foundation for the various resources that have been developed."
According to Dr Pierson "significant" changes have been made to the existing curriculum.
"The new student outcomes and curriculum focus on activities. It's the difference between students watching and listening and students doing. The new school model is about students doing," Dr Pierson said.
The education council has developed standard classroom resources, such as an English alphabet kit.
"The little stories that were written to describe each letter, those sentences were developed by some of our local teachers," Dr Pierson said. "Each drawing was drawn by one of our teachers so it reflects local culture."
klewis@thenational.ae
Veil (Object Lessons)
Rafia Zakaria
Bloomsbury Academic
The studios taking part (so far)
- Punch
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Her most famous song
Aghadan Alqak (Would I Ever Find You Again)?
Would I ever find you again
You, the heaven of my love, my yearning and madness;
You, the kiss to my soul, my cheer and
sadness?
Would your lights ever break the night of my eyes again?
Would I ever find you again?
This world is volume and you're the notion,
This world is night and you're the lifetime,
This world is eyes and you're the vision,
This world is sky and you're the moon time,
Have mercy on the heart that belongs to you.
Lyrics: Al Hadi Adam; Composer: Mohammed Abdel Wahab
A State of Passion
Directors: Carol Mansour and Muna Khalidi
Stars: Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah
Rating: 4/5
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1 The kind of water athletes drink is important. Gwilym Hooson, a 28-year-old British performer who is currently recovering from knee surgery, found that out when the company was still in Studio City, training for 12 hours a day. “The physio team was like: ‘Why is everyone getting cramps?’ And then they realised we had to add salt and sugar to the water,” he says.
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
THE LOWDOWN
Romeo Akbar Walter
Rating: 2/5 stars
Produced by: Dharma Productions, Azure Entertainment
Directed by: Robby Grewal
Cast: John Abraham, Mouni Roy, Jackie Shroff and Sikandar Kher
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
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Based: Tunisia
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Investment raised: $4 million
School counsellors on mental well-being
Schools counsellors in Abu Dhabi have put a number of provisions in place to help support pupils returning to the classroom next week.
Many children will resume in-person lessons for the first time in 10 months and parents previously raised concerns about the long-term effects of distance learning.
Schools leaders and counsellors said extra support will be offered to anyone that needs it. Additionally, heads of years will be on hand to offer advice or coping mechanisms to ease any concerns.
“Anxiety this time round has really spiralled, more so than from the first lockdown at the beginning of the pandemic,” said Priya Mitchell, counsellor at The British School Al Khubairat in Abu Dhabi.
“Some have got used to being at home don’t want to go back, while others are desperate to get back.
“We have seen an increase in depressive symptoms, especially with older pupils, and self-harm is starting younger.
“It is worrying and has taught us how important it is that we prioritise mental well-being.”
Ms Mitchell said she was liaising more with heads of year so they can support and offer advice to pupils if the demand is there.
The school will also carry out mental well-being checks so they can pick up on any behavioural patterns and put interventions in place to help pupils.
At Raha International School, the well-being team has provided parents with assessment surveys to see how they can support students at home to transition back to school.
“They have created a Well-being Resource Bank that parents have access to on information on various domains of mental health for students and families,” a team member said.
“Our pastoral team have been working with students to help ease the transition and reduce anxiety that [pupils] may experience after some have been nearly a year off campus.
"Special secondary tutorial classes have also focused on preparing students for their return; going over new guidelines, expectations and daily schedules.”
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets