Education
From The Report: Abu Dhabi 2019
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Billions of dirhams are being spent each year on education in Abu Dhabi by the emirate’s leaders, investors and families, with the aim of equipping new generations with the skills necessary to lead the transformation of the public and private sectors, and drive the development of a knowledge-based economy. Standards in schools and universities are closely monitored to ensure a quality learning environment for young citizens and residents, and efforts have been made to attract well-known international institutions in the tertiary and private school segments to open campuses in Abu Dhabi. The Abu Dhabi authorities have also focused on improving public schools, colleges and universities. This chapter contains an interview with Jameela Salem Al Muhairi, Minister of State for General Education.

Articles from this Chapter

Overview

Knowledge-driven growth: Demographic trends help private schools expand, even as short-term headwinds exert pressure on enrolment
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Billions of dirhams are being spent each year on education in Abu Dhabi by the emirate’s leaders, investors and families, with the aim of equipping new generations with the skills necessary to lead the transformation of the public and private sectors, and drive the development of a knowledge-based economy. Standards in schools and universities are closely monitored to ensure a quality learning environment for young citizens and residents, and efforts have been made to attract wellknown…

Interview

Educational attainment: Jameela Salem Al Muhairi, Minister of State for General Education, on strengthening English language proficiency in schools and developments in teacher training
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Interview:Jameela Salem Al Muhairi What is being done to strengthen English language tuition in schools, and how is the new Arabic curriculum being shaped? JAMEELA SALEM AL MUHAIRI: English proficiency skills are important in order for students to be able to compete nationally and internationally for the best possible tertiary education. It is an essential skill for the UAE to sustain its competitive edge and to ensure its full transformation into a knowledge-based economy. In order to face…

Analysis

Firm foundations: Federal education spending will remain high to achieve the aims of a five-year development strategy
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Although Abu Dhabi may have faced the twin headwinds of lower oil and gas prices and reduced international trade in recent years, funding for education has remained a key priority for the UAE’s federal government. In November 2018 the UAE Cabinet approved a balanced federal budget of Dh60.3bn ($16.4bn) for 2019. This represents a 17.3% increase over the previous year and is the largest in the UAE’s history. The largest portion of the budget, at 42.3%, has been allotted to social development,…

Analysis

Standing out: Private higher education institutions to boost enrolment in the face of challenging market conditions
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The tertiary education landscape in Abu Dhabi is characterised by a small number of private providers competing with several well-established public institutions. While the majority of pupils at independent schools are expatriates, at the university level the bulk of students (73% in 2015/16) are citizens, according to Statistics Centre - Abu Dhabi. Emiratis are entitled to free undergraduate education in public universities, and so it is perhaps not surprising that over 80% of 38,049 Emirati…