Students' health top priority, says UAE education minister

Gulf Today, Staff Reporter

Cabinet Member and Minister of Education, Hussain Bin Ibrahim Al Hammadi during a media briefing on Tuesday shared latest development on school resumption across the UAE.

Hammadi said, “One million two hundred seventy thousand of our students have resumed studying in the various stages of education, and by 130 thousand students in university education, and one million and forty thousand students in general education.

The minister said, “We have developed a package of integrated, preventive measures which are to be followed inside & outside educational institutions in order to protect students upon leaving their homes, travelling on school buses through to being at the schools, & until they return home safely.

“Student health is a top priority that all state institutions work and cooperate in order to preserve, and it is a major goal that we all strive to achieve under these exceptional circumstances.

“We implemented realistic simulation experiments for students' attendance in schools, in order to identify challenges and opportunities for improvement, and accordingly, a detailed plan was formulated for educational institutions to resume studies.

“We have adopted health protocols that include conducting a COVID-19 temperature checks before entering educational facilities, applying physical distancing, and continuous sterilization throughout the school day.

“We decided to implement a hybrid education system, giving parents the freedom to choose between their children’s attendance at school or distance education for the first semester.

“Overall students' attendance numbers will be initially limited to 25 percent in establishments, & after two weeks we plan to increase this to 50per cent, then 75 per cent, and until we reach, full time education for those wishing to attend the establishments in person over remote learning.

“We have developed monitoring and inspection methods, including the Ministry of Education's operations room, which operates 24 hours a day to ensure the implementation of the set plan and the commitment of all parties.

“With regard to higher education, distance learning & education has been adopted on university campuses according to the nature of the educational curriculum, as some lectures will be given remotely, but others require attendance to laboratories & practical training classes.

The Ministry, in cooperation and coordination with strategic partners, continually carries out a comprehensive evaluation process to determine the results of the intended plans, and take into account the new circumstances.

We ask parents to highlight the importance of adhering to preventive measures to their children as a means of protection to prevent infection and prevent the spread of infection.”