120 teachers, heads of faculty and cluster managers attend the first Curriculum Day launched by ADEC

The first event of its kind, which took place at the Fairmont Bab Al Bahr Hotel, helped encourage a variety of ADEC's stakeholders to engage in a professional discussion about the next phase of the education reform.

Arabic and English Medium Teachers, Arabic and English Heads of Faculty, Education Advisors, Subject Support Specialists, Cluster Managers and representatives from UAE University and Zayed University spent three sessions learning about some of ADEC's most important curriculum components, some of which include: key elements of the NSM in Cycle 2; pedagogical approaches; learning outcomes and standards; resources; assessment; professional development; e-learning and parental involvement.

"The Curriculum Day offers an opportunity for the Curriculum Division to build on the invaluable feedback from the field and to inform concerned stakeholders of the next stage of the reform. The event helps support the development of ADEC's curriculum as the NSM moves into Cycle 2 of the school system which forms part of ADEC's strategy to develop high quality education, while equipping learners with the skills and knowledge needed to drive socio-economic progress across the Emirate of Abu Dhabi," said Dr. Karima Almazroui, ADEC's Curriculum Division Manager.

ADEC's Curriculum Division is keen on working with all stakeholders, while extending its consultation with various institutions that can contribute to the ongoing reform of the education curriculum in Abu Dhabi.

"Feedback received from the field will contribute to the development of the curriculum to be implemented in the NSM in Cycle 2. The overarching aim is to develop a curriculum that will support ADEC's strategic plan to ensure that student's performance is at international levels; that students are prepared for higher education; that Emirati students are culturally engaged, active citizens; and that access and choice to education are universal," said Dr. Karima.

When asked about the importance of the Curriculum Day, Dr. Karima explained that the initiative included more than one educational and subject expert, some of whom include: teachers, specialists, school principals, cluster managers, and university lecturers.

"The meeting was of an interactive nature predominantly focusing on discussion which allowed for an exchange of opinion on educational issues and preparation for the implementation of the NSM".

In addition, Dr Karima explained that "The Curriculum Day included a focus on the Cycle 1 NSM Curriculum. The areas of the curriculum considered in Cycle 1 of the NSM included: clarifying a teacher's responsibility in education; developing a teachers skill in using elearning in the classroom; highlighting the link between outcomes as a goal and teaching as a means to a goal; familiarizing teachers with modern techniques and strategies that help students to become the centre of the educational process; developing teachers capabilities and skills in order to use different teaching resources, while providing clear indications of a teachers professional development."

Ms. Judith Mutton, Cluster Manager for 12 schools in Abu Dhabi is happy ADEC is sharing the design of the Grade 6 curriculum with teachers, administrators and principals since those are the people who will implement the new curriculum.

"As the New School Model moves into Grades 6, we must all be familiarized on the curriculum, and understand that it's designed differently. The focus is now on teaching adolescents skills that will help prepare them for tomorrow. The curriculum links teaching to what is needed out of students in the future," she said.

Mr. Adnan Abdullah Issa Mohammed, Arabic Language Specialist, ADEC's Al Ain Regional Office commended the steps taken by ADEC to encourage teachers and school principals to take part in their new reform.

"ADEC has obviously gained lot of experience from introducing the New School Model in KG to Grades 5, and are now ready to extend that experience to Grades 6, and realize that in order to do so, they must work hand in hand with teachers and school principals, which is why we are all meeting up today, to share different ideas and skills, and consider one another's opinions. I am currently sitting with a group of Arabic Language teachers for instance, and we are all discussing ways to improve writing skills among students in Grades 6. Each teacher and expert in that field is sharing an idea, which will be submitted to ADEC at the end," said Mr. Adnan.

Ms. Aisha Mohamed Al Zaabi, School Principal at Al Reem Cycle 2 Girls School explained that this year's batch of 730 students in the school have been taught Science and Mathematics in English, as per the New School Model conditions for Grade 6 students.

"Our students are perfect in English, so today's meeting is more of a refresher for me and applies for other schools that need to include English in their Grades 6 curriculum. However it's still beneficial to meet with different teachers, principals and cluster managers who are all specialized in different areas. Each person is discussing their opinion openly about the continuation of the NSM to Grades 6, which is a healthy method to use when including a new reform in education," said Ms. Aisha.

Dr. Farag Alaam, Arabic Language Teacher in the Al Shawamekh Cycle 2 School spoke among other attendees in the meeting spoke about his impression regarding the initiative. He said: "One of the topics discussed today is to integrate subjects with Information Technology (IT), so that an IT teacher can complement the work of let's say an Arabic teacher such as myself. That sounds like a great intitative4 as long as it doesn't affect the work of either teacher's; that's why this conference is healthy, because it encourages all of us to speak openly about our ideas and raise issues that we may have."

Ms. Amy Moser, Head of the Kindergarten Faculty at the Alyaher KG School in Al Ain is happy to attend a meeting about curriculum, however feels that ADEC should consider including parents in such meetings, since parents as she put it "always have good ideas for their children, and this can benefit teachers, principals and ADEC. It's always good to hear from them."