UAE: Newly appointed Ministers of Education discuss developments in the sector

The UAE Government Media Office organized a media briefing with His Excellency Ahmad Belhoul Al Falasi, Minister of Education, Her Excellency Sarah Bint Yousif Al Amiri, Minister of State for Public Education and Advanced Technology, Chairwoman of Emirates Schools Establishment; and Her Excellency Sara Awad Issa Musallam, Minister of State for Early Education and Chairperson of the Federal Authority for Early Education.

The newly appointed ministers discussed the developments in the UAE education sector with a number of editors-in-chief and media professionals. They also discussed the new policies and projects that were recently launched in keeping with recent ministerial appointments, including the 'Ajyal Schools' model, which will be implemented starting the next academic year (2022-2023).

Ahmad Belhoul Al Falasi, Minister of Education said, "The current stage requires serious work in order to strengthen and enhance the education in the UAE. Our aim is to achieve radical transformations in line with future national strategies and plans. We are keen to form a clear vision of the present and the future of education, and link it to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), in order to build qualified students."

The Minister of Education pointed out that the new structure is led by the Education and Human Resources Council, Federal Authority for Quality of Education, the Ministry of Education, the Federal Authority for Early Childhood Education and the Emirates Schools Establishment, in addition to the local educational authorities in each emirate.

Al Falasi said that the new stage requires joint efforts and work through which everyone, including educational leaders, teachers, parents and students, is involved. His Excellency emphasized the Ministry’s top priority, which is represented by the parents, students, teachers and administrators’ happiness. “We are committed to re-evaluating the quality of services, and providing a distinguished system that achieves rapid response, and best levels of achievement,” His Excellency concluded.

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Her Excellency Sarah Bint Yousif Al Amiri, Minister of State for Public Education and Advanced Technology, Chairwoman of Emirates Schools Establishment emphasized that the educational sector has always been a highest priority to the leadership, as the first and most important stage in the path of empowering Emirati people with appropriate skills.

Her Excellency said, "We are keen to prepare the next generation for the future, and arm them with knowledge and skills to achieve a more prosperous and brighter future for our country. Ajyal Schools have been launched to drive different pedagogies within our education system, by offering pioneering educational options, in cooperation with educational service providers from the private sector.”

Al Amiri concluded, "We will continue working with our partners from the public and private sectors to ensure the development of the education system in our public schools. 5,000 students will begin their education in Ajyal Schools by next academic year, while the school model is expected to cater to 14000 students after three years.”

Sara Awad Issa Musallam, Minister of State for Early Education and Chairperson of the Federal Authority for Early Education, spoke about the importance of building a child's personality, which requires acquiring basic skills from the first early stages. She said, "Establishing the Federal Authority for Early Education reflects the keenness of our wise leadership to provide the right to growth and education in a healthy and safe environment for each and every child, ensuring their successful transition to schools."

She added, “While working on graduating a new generation of learners, we need to lay the supporting foundations to empower students in their education journey, from the early years."

Musallam said that studies indicate that children who receive quality education before the age of five are less likely to repeat the school year by more than 8 per cent, their likelihood of needing additional support or intervention programs in education is reduced by more than 8 per cent, and that their chance of successfully graduating from high school is higher by 11 per cent compared to children who did not receive early education.

Minister of State for Early Education stressed the need to enhance the efficiency of the sector and empower the cadres working in it. She said, “We will coordinate with all concerned authorities to prepare a unified regulatory framework, which will be applied to more than 600 nurseries, all kindergartens and preschools of public and private schools in the UAE.”

• Dubai
• Abu Dhabi