Coronavirus in UAE: Trial run of e-learning system for public schools in begins on March 18

Abu Dhabi - The ministry said earlier that it had brought forward the spring break for students over fears of the spread of Covid-19.

 The Ministry of Education (MoE) will run a pilot launch of its remote learning platform today to ensure that all students can utilise smart education technologies to carry out their studies.
The system will be available for access from 4.30pm to 5.30pm as part of the ministry's efforts to carry out the first, second and third phases of the platform launch.
"This step aims to train students on how to use the platform and to ensure the effectiveness. School administrations need to draft working plans to adopt interactive learning programmes for teachers and students across all academic levels," the ministry said in a statement.
The MoE said working plans need to include instructions for teachers to encourage and motivate their students to utilise the system and their caretakers to ensure an effective educational experience.
According to the ministry, this week, week-long remote specialist training sessions will be organised for 25,000 teachers and administrative personnel before the launch of the initiative for all students on March 22.
The ministry said earlier that it had brought forward the spring break for students over fears of the spread of Covid-19. It also said the public schools will use the first two weeks of the break (March 8-19) to ensure all plans are in place to implement distance learning and from March 22, distance learning will start for all students.
The smart-learning programme, according to the ministry, was part of their plans to continue the learning process during times of natural crises and disasters.
The ministry said the e-learning programme will help achieve the requirements of government schools to complete the syllabus and keep up with the performance during the forthcoming break.
Parents were urged to create an appropriate learning environment at home by providing Internet services and other distance education resources like computers, tablets or smartphones to their children.
Students are also obliged to commit themselves to using the devices only for learning during the distance education process and avoiding other distracting activities.
What parents need to do
>Create an appropriate learning environment at home
>Ensure fast and reliable Internet
>Ensure children have access to quality digital devices like computers, tablets or smartphones
>Help kids stick to a study routine as communicated by the school
What students need to do
>Insist on a designated workspace that is free from clutter
>Make sure you use the allocated devices only for studying
>Avoid all distractions
>Stick to the study routine
ismail@khaleejtimes.com