The changing face of education in the UAE

Policy makers in the UAE Government took a special lesson from top educationists at the session titled ‘Unlocking the potential of future education services’ at Government Summit.

His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, and Shaikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE Foreign Minister, attended a session on education during the first day of the Government Summit.

Salim Ismail, Dr Mugheer Khamis Al Khaili, Aulis Pitkala, director-general at Finnish National Board of Education, and Salman Khan. — KT Photo by Rahul Gajjar

Policy makers in the UAE Government took a special lesson from top educationists at the session titled ‘Unlocking the potential of future education services’. Discussing the future of education, thought leaders presented examples of successful countries and how education could blend with technology to harness student intellect.

The UAE has been at the forefront of smart learning, and tech giants like Apple, Microsoft and Samsung have partnered with public schools to launch various tech initiatives. Discussing the rapid changes happening inside classrooms, Dr Mugheer Khamis Al Khaili, Director-General of Abu Dhabi Education Council (Adec), noted the shift is in line with the UAE’s vision.

“The improvement of education is very important. When our state began developing, we depended on oil. Today we depend on our society. We can’t depend on oil forever and that drives the vision of our country’s government. We want to work on sustainability which follows the development of a knowledge based economy,” he said.

The UAE Government has invested heavily in educational resources and smart learning initiatives for public schools. Students at these schools have iPads and mobile devices inside every classroom. Interestingly, these students are quicker than teachers when it comes to embracing technology.

“The biggest challenge today is how to teach our teachers to use technology. I am not talking about internet and computers, but knowing how to use this technology in the teaching process. It is about engagement, commitment and curiosity,” added Dr Mugheer.

Experts on the panel discussed the need to create new models for public service and realign core areas like education, healthcare and service planning to meet people’s expectations. Salim Ismail, founding executive director of Singularity University, said, “All of the structures used to run the world are designed for a world few hundred years ago and not for a world with a trillion connected devices. We need to manage this new world. The stress we are seeing in the world today is created by a gap in this fundamental structure. How do we design education systems where we do not know the outcome?”

The Khan Academy, a non-profit organisation committed to providing free online lessons, has been part of this technological shift in education. Salman Khan, founder of the academy, said, “In traditional classrooms, sometimes we are bored and lost. We can’t ask for a repetition. Using technology, students can receive classes at their own pace.”

muaz@khaleejtimes.com