Private schools across the UAE are taking steps to reduce the workload of teachers faced with an "increased burden" during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The outbreak prompted teachers to get to grips with new technology while juggling both in-person and remote learning.
Even before the pandemic, The National reported that long hours and heavy workloads were pushing UAE teachers into abandoning the private sector for government schools.
Some private school teachers told The National that they often worked up to 70 hours a week, especially ahead of annual inspections.
The unique demands of education in the Covid-19 age has led school leaders to strip away administrative duties and enforce cut-off points for work correspondence to ease the strain on staff.
David Cook, chief education officer at Repton schools and headmaster at Repton Dubai, said the group had worked to reduce or remove any unnecessary administrative work for teachers.
“Teacher workload was a key area as they were teaching both audiences," said Mr Cook.
“We have worked really hard to strip away anything that is excessive, which was unnecessary, which was not about teaching and learning. For instance, anything administrative.
“We carried out detailed surveys on how teachers were coping with the pandemic. Staff requested access to specialist help as they wanted to know more about how to protect their mental health.
“Some staff were worried about the health crisis turning into a financial crisis, so job security was a concern. We were able to reassure them that their jobs were secure.”
Teachers were supported to use technology to provide verbal feedback to pupils, which is faster than written feedback.
The Repton group of schools in Dubai and Abu Dhabi instituted a policy of no emails after 5pm, to help teachers separate work and home life.
Teachers who required support from specialists were provided with this.
Many teachers in the UAE are residents who move here for work and do not have a family network in the country.
Schools turn to technology to ease pressures
Rashmi Nandkeolyar, principal of Delhi Private School Dubai, said they had started using technology to help with marking papers, freeing up teachers' evenings.
"For teachers, one of the biggest banes is correction. We have introduced a lot of multiple choice questions which are automatically corrected, saving teachers' time," said Ms Nandkeolyar.
Teachers only have to grade long answers and the data is analysed by a system.
The school invested in DigiPen, a technological tool that helps teachers assess assignments.
Teachers at the school cannot be sent emails after 8pm.
Parents are informed of a particular hour in the evening during which they may ask teachers questions.
Ms Nandkeolyar said paperwork had been considerably reduced during the pandemic.
Taaleem, one of UAE's largest school developers, cut meeting schedules and limited emails sent to teachers, while also introducing counselling support.
"At the outset of the pandemic we believe that our decision to retain all staff on current salaries brought immediate stress relief," said Alan Williamson, chief executive of Taaleem.
“Since then we have reduced our meeting schedules, as we are aware of the increased burden on teachers from blended learning where, in some of our schools, pupils in classes are working at home and in school.”
Parent information evenings are held online across all Taaleem Schools now. They intend to continue this post-pandemic, as the decision has proven popular with families.
"Most teachers would comment on the burden of marking and planning, both of which were traditionally onerous and paper-based. Taaleem have pushed innovation in this area using technology which has been welcomed by our teachers," Mr Williamson said.
A good start but teachers need more support
Schools can still do more to help teachers reduce their work load, said Robert Welsh, founder of Teachers Social, a teacher support group in Dubai.
“For a lot of teachers, their workload has doubled but salaries are the same and some teachers are not receiving their full salaries. It’s very unfair,” said Mr Welsh.
Mr Welsh said government school teachers in the Emirates typically do not get emails or calls after 3.30pm.
“In private schools, the official timing is till 3.30pm, but teachers receive calls till 9pm," he said.
"I have seen teachers leave events in the evening because they had to prepare something immediately."
However, Mr Welsh said he was glad to hear that teacher wellbeing was high on the agenda.
“It is nice to see that schools are starting to look at teacher wellbeing," he said.
“A lot of schools don’t know what direction they should be taking. They should listen to what the teachers need."
Mr Welsh said online digital marking tools helped teachers.
Retaining teachers is a global issue, with four in 10 teachers planning to quit the profession, according to a 2019 international survey by the National Education Union in the UK.
What are the influencer academy modules?
- Mastery of audio-visual content creation.
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Director: Shahad Ameen
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Yahya Al Ghassani's bio
Date of birth: April 18, 1998
Playing position: Winger
Clubs: 2015-2017 – Al Ahli Dubai; March-June 2018 – Paris FC; August – Al Wahda
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World record transfers
1. Kylian Mbappe - to Real Madrid in 2017/18 - €180 million (Dh770.4m - if a deal goes through)
2. Paul Pogba - to Manchester United in 2016/17 - €105m
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Fuel economy, combined 9.2L / 100km
VEZEETA PROFILE
Date started: 2012
Founder: Amir Barsoum
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: HealthTech / MedTech
Size: 300 employees
Funding: $22.6 million (as of September 2018)
Investors: Technology Development Fund, Silicon Badia, Beco Capital, Vostok New Ventures, Endeavour Catalyst, Crescent Enterprises’ CE-Ventures, Saudi Technology Ventures and IFC
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AiFlux – renewables, oil and gas
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At Everton Appearances: 77; Goals: 17
At Manchester United Appearances: 559; Goals: 253
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How does ToTok work?
The calling app is available to download on Google Play and Apple App Store
To successfully install ToTok, users are asked to enter their phone number and then create a nickname.
The app then gives users the option add their existing phone contacts, allowing them to immediately contact people also using the application by video or voice call or via message.
Users can also invite other contacts to download ToTok to allow them to make contact through the app.
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What: One-off Test match, Bengaluru
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Red flags
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Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
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Under ‘snapback’, measures imposed on Iran by the UN Security Council in six resolutions would be restored, including:
- An arms embargo
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- A ban on launches and other activities with ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons, as well as ballistic missile technology transfer and technical assistance
- A targeted global asset freeze and travel ban on Iranian individuals and entities
- Authorisation for countries to inspect Iran Air Cargo and Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines cargoes for banned goods
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1 India 71 per cent
2 New Zealand 70 per cent
3 Australia 69.2 per cent
4 England 64.1 per cent
5 Pakistan 43.3 per cent
6 West Indies 33.3 per cent
7 South Africa 30 per cent
8 Sri Lanka 16.7 per cent
9 Bangladesh 0
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Why it pays to compare
A comparison of sending Dh20,000 from the UAE using two different routes at the same time - the first direct from a UAE bank to a bank in Germany, and the second from the same UAE bank via an online platform to Germany - found key differences in cost and speed. The transfers were both initiated on January 30.
Route 1: bank transfer
The UAE bank charged Dh152.25 for the Dh20,000 transfer. On top of that, their exchange rate margin added a difference of around Dh415, compared with the mid-market rate.
Total cost: Dh567.25 - around 2.9 per cent of the total amount
Total received: €4,670.30
Route 2: online platform
The UAE bank’s charge for sending Dh20,000 to a UK dirham-denominated account was Dh2.10. The exchange rate margin cost was Dh60, plus a Dh12 fee.
Total cost: Dh74.10, around 0.4 per cent of the transaction
Total received: €4,756
The UAE bank transfer was far quicker – around two to three working days, while the online platform took around four to five days, but was considerably cheaper. In the online platform transfer, the funds were also exposed to currency risk during the period it took for them to arrive.
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Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
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