Teachers will be sent "into the wild" by their pupils to host remote classes among the thousands of marine animals at The National Aquarium in Abu Dhabi.
Those nominated by their pupils will be forced to face their fears by interacting with turtles, carnivorous three-metre lizards and other exotic sea creatures.
Through the live stream, pupils will meet Professor, the aquarium's resident water monitor lizard and education ambassador.
Pupils will learn about the water monitor species, which includes the Komodo dragon, and the key role it plays in forests, rivers and along coastlines.
The teaching programme, named Professor's Aquademy, seeks to get children excited and interested in marine life and its conservation – especially because school excursions are suspended under Covid-19 restrictions.
"Playful learning can have a positive and appealing impact on a child’s education," said Anne Bourbon, manager of education and conservation at The National Aquarium.
“What we are offering is an approach to learn by getting closer to animals and their environments, with the desire of inspiring young minds to reconnect with nature and think of solutions to achieving a sustainable future."
The programme will include lessons on the UAE's coastal heritage and conservation.
School trips were suspended in March because of the pandemic but will resume at the aquarium once authorities consider academic excursions to be safe again.
Until then, the aquarium will hold free online sessions streamed from the centre.
Aspen Heights British School was the first to take part in the programme and send a teacher to visit the aquarium.
A marine biologist answered questions from pupils and explained the importance of preserving the marine environment as well as how to protect the animals.
"Our children are passionate about the natural world, and an important part of our curriculum focuses on the ocean, how our students interact with their natural environment and sustainability," said Emma Shanahan, principal at Aspen Heights British School.
"Through this online lesson our students were able to develop an awareness and [we] support them in being more conscious about the world around them.
"Meeting ‘Professor’ has brought learning to life for them, answered a lot of their questions, while giving them even more to think about.”
Schools and teachers in Abu Dhabi can request a free online educational session to meet Professor and set up a video conference call.
What is an ETF?
An exchange traded fund is a type of investment fund that can be traded quickly and easily, just like stocks and shares. They come with no upfront costs aside from your brokerage's dealing charges and annual fees, which are far lower than on traditional mutual investment funds. Charges are as low as 0.03 per cent on one of the very cheapest (and most popular), Vanguard S&P 500 ETF, with the maximum around 0.75 per cent.
There is no fund manager deciding which stocks and other assets to invest in, instead they passively track their chosen index, country, region or commodity, regardless of whether it goes up or down.
The first ETF was launched as recently as 1993, but the sector boasted $5.78 billion in assets under management at the end of September as inflows hit record highs, according to the latest figures from ETFGI, a leading independent research and consultancy firm.
There are thousands to choose from, with the five largest providers BlackRock’s iShares, Vanguard, State Street Global Advisers, Deutsche Bank X-trackers and Invesco PowerShares.
While the best-known track major indices such as MSCI World, the S&P 500 and FTSE 100, you can also invest in specific countries or regions, large, medium or small companies, government bonds, gold, crude oil, cocoa, water, carbon, cattle, corn futures, currency shifts or even a stock market crash.
TEACHERS' PAY - WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Pay varies significantly depending on the school, its rating and the curriculum. Here's a rough guide as of January 2021:
- top end schools tend to pay Dh16,000-17,000 a month - plus a monthly housing allowance of up to Dh6,000. These tend to be British curriculum schools rated 'outstanding' or 'very good', followed by American schools
- average salary across curriculums and skill levels is about Dh10,000, recruiters say
- it is becoming more common for schools to provide accommodation, sometimes in an apartment block with other teachers, rather than hand teachers a cash housing allowance
- some strong performing schools have cut back on salaries since the pandemic began, sometimes offering Dh16,000 including the housing allowance, which reflects the slump in rental costs, and sheer demand for jobs
- maths and science teachers are most in demand and some schools will pay up to Dh3,000 more than other teachers in recognition of their technical skills
- at the other end of the market, teachers in some Indian schools, where fees are lower and competition among applicants is intense, can be paid as low as Dh3,000 per month
- in Indian schools, it has also become common for teachers to share residential accommodation, living in a block with colleagues
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RESULT
Kolkata Knight Riders 169-7 (20 ovs)
Rajasthan Royals 144-4 (20 ovs)
Kolkata win by 25 runs
Next match
Sunrisers Hyderabad v Kolkata Knight Riders, Friday, 5.30pm
The Lost Letters of William Woolf
Helen Cullen, Graydon House
