DUBAI // The incentives promised to high achievers this year helped the national pass rate jump several points, education officials say.
A total of 24,396 students in government and private schools following the national curriculum took their final year examinations last month. Students received their scores by email and SMS on Monday.
At state schools, 96.27 per cent of students in the science stream passed, as did 89.74 per cent of students in the literature stream. About 60 per cent of all students were in the literature stream.
"The pass rate has exceeded the previous years' and is better than what we expected," said Ali Al Suwaidi, assistant undersecretary to the Minister of Education.
Last year, the pass rate in science was 84.3 per cent and 69.6 per cent in literature.
The percentage difference between boys and girls was also reduced. In the science stream, girls had a pass rate of 96.06 per cent as opposed to 90.94 per cent among boys. Girls in the literature stream had a pass rate of 90.52 per cent while 85.15 per cent of boys passed.
Mr Al Suwaidi attributes the success to government support. "Students know that if their perform well they will get scholarships and so they have started working hard to be among the top scorers."
He said other awards and incentives offered by each emirate - such as cash prizes and congratulatory phone calls from the rulers - helped motivate students, too.
As in previous years, private schools following the national curriculum did not fare as well. The pass rate was 89.41 per cent among the science students and 79.91 per cent among students in the literature stream.
Students in Al Gharbia performed the best out of all the education zones with a pass rate of 97.54 per cent. In Fujairah, 95.77 per cent of students passed, while Abu Dhabi had a 94.34 per cent pass rate. Ras Al Khaimah students fared least well with a pass rate of 84.33 per cent.
Mr Al Suwaidi explained differences would arise because of the distribution of schools between emirates.
"Al Gharbia has very few schools," he said. "Additionally, there is very little distraction there, so those students tend to concentrate more on education."
Earlier this week, the Ministry of Education announced the top 10 achievers in both tracks.
Noor Mohamed Seoudy, an 18-year-old from Dibba, was not expecting the 99.3 per cent she got. "When we saw the SMS, my mother and I started screaming," she said. "We could not believe it."
Noor, the top-performing literature student in the country, said she had always been studious: "But you never expect to be a top achiever."
She will be applying to universities in Egypt and abroad later this year for a programme in media studies.
"I heard that those who get the highest will receive scholarships from the government," she said. "I am looking forward to that."
aahmed@thenational.ae
Global institutions: BlackRock and KKR
US-based BlackRock is the world's largest asset manager, with $5.98 trillion of assets under management as of the end of last year. The New York firm run by Larry Fink provides investment management services to institutional clients and retail investors including governments, sovereign wealth funds, corporations, banks and charitable foundations around the world, through a variety of investment vehicles.
KKR & Co, or Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, is a global private equity and investment firm with around $195 billion of assets as of the end of last year. The New York-based firm, founded by Henry Kravis and George Roberts, invests in multiple alternative asset classes through direct or fund-to-fund investments with a particular focus on infrastructure, technology, healthcare, real estate and energy.
Dirham Stretcher tips for having a baby in the UAE
Selma Abdelhamid, the group's moderator, offers her guide to guide the cost of having a young family:
• Buy second hand stuff
They grow so fast. Don't get a second hand car seat though, unless you 100 per cent know it's not expired and hasn't been in an accident.
• Get a health card and vaccinate your child for free at government health centres
Ms Ma says she discovered this after spending thousands on vaccinations at private clinics.
• Join mum and baby coffee mornings provided by clinics, babysitting companies or nurseries.
Before joining baby classes ask for a free trial session. This way you will know if it's for you or not. You'll be surprised how great some classes are and how bad others are.
• Once baby is ready for solids, cook at home
Take the food with you in reusable pouches or jars. You'll save a fortune and you'll know exactly what you're feeding your child.
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
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
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially