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With only two public nurseries in Dubai catering to 43 Emirati children in 2009, the number of public nurseries in the city is a cause of concern for families. In contrast, a total of 84 private nurseries cater to over 7,594 children across Dubai.
The results come from an extensive study undertaken during 2008-2009 as part of a research on ‘Early Childhood Education’.
“Less than five per cent of eligible Emirati children are enrolled in nurseries as the vast majority are raised at home up to the age of four years,” wrote Juman Karaman, co-author of the report for Dubai School of Government (DSG). The ‘Child-at-home’ model for children below four is a common phenomenon in the UAE where children spend a considerable amount of time with maids and nannies whose first language is not Arabic.
“The national culture in Dubai is based on extended families and homecare services, provided by maids who usually hold no qualification for childcare and cost considerably less than the fees for a nursery place,” added the report.
The result, children grow with increased exposure to a non-native language, which impedes their learning of Arabic.
The report also highlighted the need to create a more structured mechanism where the quality of education in private nurseries is monitored. Currently, private nurseries in Dubai are not required to follow a teaching curriculum.
In comparison to low enrolments in nurseries, the number of students attending kindergarten classes was fairly higher. A total of 7,461 Emirati students were enrolled in both public and private KGs in 2009.
However, most Emirati families preferred to send their kids to private KGs as they provide improved English instruction. “Public kindergartens are increasingly serving low-and-middle income Emirati families, creating a gap in choices of access to quality education,” added the report, which was presented at DSG yesterday.
The emphasis on learning English at a young age is becoming increasingly important among Emirati families as it is among the deciding factors while selecting a nursery and a KG.
Other aspects of they study included evaluation of the quality of teachers in early childhood education centres, governance framework and funding for education providers.
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