Thousands of pupils in the capital will move to new campuses when a new school year begins next month.
The Abu Dhabi Education Council (Adec) said yesterday it would close six schools, open five and merge several others as part of a plan to provide better learning environments for pupils across the emirate.
The closed schools will be repurposed, renovated or demolished - all in the name of creating sustainable schools equipped with the latest technology.
All new school buildings have been constructed according to Estidama principles - a rating system for sustainable built environments.
Light and fresh air are essential to increasing the efficiency and productivity of staff and pupils, says Jourdan Younis, the managing director of Alpin, a clean-technology consultancy working with Adec to build two high schools in Al Ain.
He said the new building would focus "on the indoor environmental quality, first and foremost" with special attention paid to the materials used in construction, and the amount of sunlight and clean air in the classrooms.
Apart from opening, closing and merging campuses, Adec also announced it would also change its gender policies at several schools: some will become co-ed campuses and others will be staffed exclusively by women.
Al Falahiya School will mix boys and girls from grades 1 to 12 (age 6 to 18), while Al Montaha will have mixed classes for children in grades 6 to 12, aged 12 and above.
Al Sariyah School in Al Ain will be co-ed from kindergarten one to grade one (aged 4 to 6), with girls-only classes starting from grade 2 (age 7).
Five schools will have a shake-up of their teaching bodies, as Adec further implements its "female teachers only" rule.
Female staff will be hired at Omair Bin Yousef, Sas Al Nakhl and Hamoodah Bin Ali schools in Abu Dhabi and Abu Bakr Al Siddique and Al Shaheen schools in Al Ain.
When Adec first announced plans to staff boys schools exclusively with female teachers in 2011, some were hesitant. But Dr Robin Dada, assistant dean at Zayed University, said their graduates were not overly concerned about the boys' classes they might be assigned to.
"Our students gain experience in mixed classes," said Dr Dada."They work on various behaviour management strategies among other skills for a child's age-appropriate development.
"They are not interested in teaching older boys, but at the lower stages they are fine."
Roqaya Al Shebani, principal of Al Jazeera school, said she believed female teachers had more of an effect on younger boys.
"I agree with a system where children up to 12 are taught by women," she said. "Female teachers are more nurturing. They can extend a family feel which is necessary in those stages."
Dr Dada said Adec's emphasis should also be on finding teachers who are ready to teach children in a specific grade.
"In the past, there have been schools where teachers were not prepared to work with young pupils. That caused a lot of confusion for the teachers and children alike."
In the absence of male Emirati teachers, she said, hiring female citizens was the best option.
"We would love to see more Emirati men but now there are more female graduates. If they see it as their role to educate, then they should take the opportunity."
aahmed@thenational.ae
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Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
THE BIO
Favourite book: ‘Purpose Driven Life’ by Rick Warren
Favourite travel destination: Switzerland
Hobbies: Travelling and following motivational speeches and speakers
Favourite place in UAE: Dubai Museum
Reading List
Practitioners of mindful eating recommend the following books to get you started:
Savor: Mindful Eating, Mindful Life by Thich Nhat Hanh and Dr Lilian Cheung
How to Eat by Thich Nhat Hanh
The Mindful Diet by Dr Ruth Wolever
Mindful Eating by Dr Jan Bays
How to Raise a Mindful Eaterby Maryann Jacobsen
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League quarter-final, second leg (first-leg score):
Manchester City (0) v Tottenham Hotspur (1), Wednesday, 11pm UAE
Match is on BeIN Sports
Match info:
Burnley 0
Manchester United 2
Lukaku (22', 44')
Red card: Marcus Rashford (Man United)
Man of the match: Romelu Lukaku (Manchester United)
more from Janine di Giovanni
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
Selected fixtures
All times UAE
Wednesday
Poland v Portugal 10.45pm
Russia v Sweden 10.45pm
Friday
Belgium v Switzerland 10.45pm
Croatia v England 10.45pm
Saturday
Netherlands v Germany 10.45pm
Rep of Ireland v Denmark 10.45pm
Sunday
Poland v Italy 10.45pm
Monday
Spain v England 10.45pm
Tuesday
France v Germany 10.45pm
Rep of Ireland v Wales 10.45pm
Company%C2%A0profile
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What is blockchain?
Blockchain is a form of distributed ledger technology, a digital system in which data is recorded across multiple places at the same time. Unlike traditional databases, DLTs have no central administrator or centralised data storage. They are transparent because the data is visible and, because they are automatically replicated and impossible to be tampered with, they are secure.
The main difference between blockchain and other forms of DLT is the way data is stored as ‘blocks’ – new transactions are added to the existing ‘chain’ of past transactions, hence the name ‘blockchain’. It is impossible to delete or modify information on the chain due to the replication of blocks across various locations.
Blockchain is mostly associated with cryptocurrency Bitcoin. Due to the inability to tamper with transactions, advocates say this makes the currency more secure and safer than traditional systems. It is maintained by a network of people referred to as ‘miners’, who receive rewards for solving complex mathematical equations that enable transactions to go through.
However, one of the major problems that has come to light has been the presence of illicit material buried in the Bitcoin blockchain, linking it to the dark web.
Other blockchain platforms can offer things like smart contracts, which are automatically implemented when specific conditions from all interested parties are reached, cutting the time involved and the risk of mistakes. Another use could be storing medical records, as patients can be confident their information cannot be changed. The technology can also be used in supply chains, voting and has the potential to used for storing property records.
