The long-awaited first day back at school next week will bring new challenges for teachers across the Emirates, who must swiftly learn new lessons about education in the Covid-19 age.
In some schools, pupils will follow a hybrid schedule, taking classes on campus on some days and online on others.
With so many moving parts, parents are curious as to how teachers will ensure all pupils have a coherent learning experience.
The National spoke to several schools in Dubai and Abu Dhabi to find out how the blended learning approach would be managed.
Some teachers will live-stream from classroom
More than 1,000 pupils will return to class at Jumeira Baccalaureate School in Dubai next week. About 80 pupils – or seven per cent – have opted for distance learning.
“We will implement a synchronous model allowing pupils at home to feel part of the in-person learning with their peers,” said Richard Drew, the school principal.
“We hope this model also allows for structure of the school day for the online learners so the transition back to school will be smooth.”
We hope this model also allows for structure of the school day for the online learners so the transition back to school will be smooth
He said teachers would not split their time between pupils in class and those at home. Instead, they would communicate with all pupils at the same time during any given lesson.
“The start of the lesson will be synchronous, while the middle part of the lesson is used to have students work independently,” he said.
“We will aim to do this so students are not online the entire day.
“We expect teachers to find time during the lesson to reach out to those online to check if they are okay and that they have understood the lesson content.”
Mr Drew said the school would have 84 teaching staff for the new academic term, compared with 89 last year. But once all pupils return to campus full-time, an additional two or three teachers would be hired to meet the demand.
Same materials distributed to all pupils
At Gems Wellington Academy – Al Khail, 234 pupils who opted for distance learning will follow the normal school timetable. Lessons will be live-streamed from the classroom to their devices at home.
“Our IT configuration in school, with cameras and microphones, means pupils will have direct access to the classroom, as if they were there,” said Campbell Douglas, principal and chief executive of the school.
“They will be able to interact with their teachers and peers and contribute to the classroom setting from home.
“Their work will then be completed digitally and uploaded through the normal school platforms for marking and feedback.
“The school platforms will also allow for personalised approaches to be implemented, with students able to ask questions and have their progress checked asynchronously.”
This year, the school has 97 teaching staff on-site, the same number as last year.
Schools across the Emirates said teachers would us the same materials in both settings and would stick with the same curricular progression to ensure a consistent quality of learning for all.
Buddies assigned to distance learners
At Dwight School Dubai, a new school which offers an International Baccalaureate curriculum, a blended teaching approach will be adopted.
“We have 400 pupils enrolled for the new academic year and 380 have opted to return to campus full-time,” said David Hutson, head of the school.
“We have a great team of 50 teachers and our class sizes are small so we can easily follow all safety and social distancing guidelines.
“There will be no separate teacher for in-person and online lessons.
“We have opted to integrate the class so those working from home will be included in the live learning.
“They can interact with the teachers and ask questions just the same as pupils in class.”
For early years to KG2 classes, he said the teacher to pupil ratio would be one to 10 and for all other classes, one to 15.
Buddy systems, or peer mentorship, will also be adapted to help pupils transition into the new blended learning approach.
Mr Huston said buddies who are on campus would be assigned to distance learners.
These pupils will make sure that those working from home are up-to-date with their work so they feel as connected with learning as those who opted for face-to-face lessons.
Not all schools will live-stream classes
Simon Crane, the headmaster at Brighton College Dubai, said it was trying to manage the new blended approach in a smart way so teachers’ workloads were not doubled.
Of the 400 pupils enrolled at the new school, about 380 pupils were expected to head back to campus full-time on Sunday.
“All of our curriculum and lessons will be shared on our platforms so that children can access these,” he said.
“At the moment there are no co-curricular activities, so during these slots teachers will use that time to talk to pupils who are learning remotely on an individual basis.”
Classes will not be live-streamed at the school but pupils will get individual support.
Teachers will be spending the majority of the time, about five to six hours, delivering in-person classes and one-two hours delivering online lessons every day.
Mr Crane said it has also prioritised teachers’ well-being.
“We have an email curfew from 6pm to 6am [so teachers] have the appropriate downtime away from their screens,” he said.
At Delhi Private School Dubai, teachers will conduct in-person classes for part of the day and online classes for the rest.
If a teacher is required to teach five English lessons per week, three of those may be on-campus and two may be online.
At Delhi Private School Dubai, only a few of the 3,800 pupils enrolled at the school have chosen in-person lessons, with the majority studying online.
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How to help
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THE BIO
Ms Davison came to Dubai from Kerala after her marriage in 1996 when she was 21-years-old
Since 2001, Ms Davison has worked at many affordable schools such as Our Own English High School in Sharjah, and The Apple International School and Amled School in Dubai
Favourite Book: The Alchemist
Favourite quote: Failing to prepare is preparing to fail
Favourite place to Travel to: Vienna
Favourite cuisine: Italian food
Favourite Movie : Scent of a Woman
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Ruwais timeline
1971 Abu Dhabi National Oil Company established
1980 Ruwais Housing Complex built, located 10 kilometres away from industrial plants
1982 120,000 bpd capacity Ruwais refinery complex officially inaugurated by the founder of the UAE Sheikh Zayed
1984 Second phase of Ruwais Housing Complex built. Today the 7,000-unit complex houses some 24,000 people.
1985 The refinery is expanded with the commissioning of a 27,000 b/d hydro cracker complex
2009 Plans announced to build $1.2 billion fertilizer plant in Ruwais, producing urea
2010 Adnoc awards $10bn contracts for expansion of Ruwais refinery, to double capacity from 415,000 bpd
2014 Ruwais 261-outlet shopping mall opens
2014 Production starts at newly expanded Ruwais refinery, providing jet fuel and diesel and allowing the UAE to be self-sufficient for petrol supplies
2014 Etihad Rail begins transportation of sulphur from Shah and Habshan to Ruwais for export
2017 Aldar Academies to operate Adnoc’s schools including in Ruwais from September. Eight schools operate in total within the housing complex.
2018 Adnoc announces plans to invest $3.1 billion on upgrading its Ruwais refinery
2018 NMC Healthcare selected to manage operations of Ruwais Hospital
2018 Adnoc announces new downstream strategy at event in Abu Dhabi on May 13
Source: The National
Origin
Dan Brown
Doubleday
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TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
Biog
Mr Kandhari is legally authorised to conduct marriages in the gurdwara
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Father of two sons, grandfather of six
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Although similar in its appearance, the concept of a fractional title deed is unlike that of a timeshare, which usually involves multiple investors buying “time” in a property whereby the owner has the right to occupation for a specified period of time in any year, as opposed to the actual real estate, said John Peacock, Head of Indirect Tax and Conveyancing, BSA Ahmad Bin Hezeem & Associates, a law firm.
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