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Over the past two decades, policymakers, international organizations, and scholars focusing on gender and education have largely concentrated their efforts on issues relating to girls. However, results from recent international assessments, coupled with data on higher education enrollment rates, have led to a new concern about the performance and retention of males -particularly those from low socioeconomic backgrounds.
The results of international assessments suggest that Arab students are falling behind students in other countries in terms of their academic performance and reading comprehension levels. Research suggests that Arab students may be struggling due to visual, linguistic, and social obstacles. This study uses perspectives from cognitive science to offer recommendations linked to how improving reading comprehension in the early grades can potentially have a positive effect on students' achievement levels and performance on international assessments.
Lack of English proficiency among secondary school graduates is a significant issue in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as English is the medium of instruction in federal universities. Due to this, one-third of the UAE government’s university budget is spent on remedial courses that seek to develop the English-language skills of incoming university students (Salem & Swan, 2014).
The Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi Foundation for Policy Research is pleased to partner with NORRAG to make select articles from its most recent edition of NORRAG News available in Arabic. Published twice a year, NORRAG News is a digital analytical report with articles addressing the policy implications of research findings and the potential impact of new policies on international education and training formulated by development agencies, foundations, and NGOs. Articles are selected for Arabic translation based on their relevance and potential interest to policymakers in the MENA region.
This Fact Sheet provides on overview of the education sector in the United Arab Emirates, and in particular, Ras Al Khaimah. It outlines the history of the development of formal education in the country, the important regulatory systems and bodies of both the private and public education sectors, the operational and curricular difference between private and public schools, and the demographics of both the students and teachers by region and school type.
Obesity is a problem of epidemic proportions around the globe and has reached alarming levels in the Arab Gulf countries. It is now recognized that intergenerational effects of poor diet on children’s health are perpetuated directly by obesity and diabetes in pregnant women. In addition, parental eating habits can contribute to the development of unhealthy diets in children. However, there are no studies focusing on expectant parents and their families in United Arab Emirates (UAE). This study uncovers several main themes influencing eating habits, and this paper presents strategies to positively influence family healthy eating habits in the region.
This paper examines teacher satisfaction in the United Arab Emirates. First, it examines the overall level of professional satisfaction among teachers in Abu Dhabi using data from the OECD’s 2013 Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS). It finds that there is a significant gap in overall teacher satisfaction that is driven by higher rates of satisfaction among expatriate teachers than Emirati teachers. It also finds that the perceived value of the teaching profession is a large and statistically significant predictor of teachers’ professional satisfaction. The second part of the paper investigates the reasons for this satisfaction gap further.
With an increasing emphasis on youth development and employability in the Middle East, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has made a substantial effort to re- imagine and reform its public education sector. Local education authorities have implemented many reforms to try to shift education from rote memorization toward a skills-based system that prepares students to thrive in the 21st century. This policy paper explores the history of curriculum development in the UAE, the role of various agencies, ministries, and current initiatives as well as the challenges and possibilities that lie ahead on the road of reform. It concludes with recommendations for policymakers relating to the implementation of sustainable curriculum reforms.
The Gulf Comparative Education Society (GCES) held its seventh annual symposium under the sponsorship of the Arab Open University Kuwait, the Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi Foundation for Policy Research from April 5th to 7th, 2016. Entitled “Innovation and Transformation: Values, Challenges, and Prospects for Education in the GCC,” the symposium was held at the Arab Open University in Kuwait City, Kuwait.
In the Arab World, and in the Gulf in particular, the father has traditionally occupied a unique and integral place, both in his own family and in his wider kinship networks. While much has been written about the role and function of the patriarchy in the Middle East, most of this has been negative, in particular with relation to the impact on women and children. Most of this research has also been qualitative in nature, relying on small sample sizes that make it difficult to extrapolate findings to the general population. As such, information on Arab fathers living in the Gulf and the impact of their lives on their children remains limited.