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Schoolteachers threaten to quit

Three teachers and the school's Public Relations Officer (PRO), who resigned from their jobs on June 1, in addition to the 10 teachers who quit in a span of one year, complained to the Ministry of Education and Youth (MoEY) about the "unruly and unprofessional behaviour" of the school principal and asked for her removal from her position.

"The principal, an Indian national, hired two years ago by the newly set up school in Ajman, is still not familiar with the rules and regulations of the MoEY pertaining to private foreign schools. She treats teachers with no respect and has openly displayed favouritism among a few teachers and staff resulting in conflicts among the teaching staff," complained a teacher who resigned on June 1.

"Like me, some of my colleagues who resigned were unable to undergo the mental torture by the principal who is highly unprofessional in her job. She would pull us up for silly mistakes and treat teachers like her housemaid," the teacher who spoke on condition of anonymity said.

Besides, the principal also paid no heed to teachers' request to increase their salaries according to the ministry's guidelines. Another teacher revealed that the school maintained an internal contract with them where the salary stated was not more than Dh 1,200. "But, we were also forced to sign a voucher for Dh 2,000 for the ministry records," she said.

The Public Relations Officer, a UAE local, said, she was forced to resign from the job since it was becoming increasingly difficult to cope with the principal's whims and fancies. Even parents complained against the principal's rude behaviour towards them and the students, and last year some 115 students decided to leave the school and were issued Transfer Certificates, the PRO disclosed.

She said the school, established only two years ago, was authorised to operate only up to Grade six, but the principal decided to expand classes up to Grade eight without the ministry's approval. As a result, the ministry imposed a fine of Dh 10,000 for violation of the rules.

"Previously, the principal had received several warnings from the ministry, but they have made no difference," she said, stating such unprofessional behaviour of a school head could jeopardise the career of the students.

"We just hope the owners of the school realise the problems arising due to the mismanagement of the institution's head and take strict disciplinary action against her," the PRO pointed out.

The principal was not available for any comment since the school has closed for its summer break. However, a source at the ministry confirmed that several complaints were received against the school and also the fine of Dh 10,000 has been imposed for illegal expansion of classes. As a result, Grades seven and eight classes would be closed down and the school has been instructed to pay the fine amount before the end of this month.

• UAE