SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT - UAE Interact

S O C I A L D E V E L O P M E N T231teaching is increased and cost efficiencies are achieved throughnew practices in the management of individual schools and newadministrative structures for learning institutions across theemirate. These reforms are also intended to facilitate Abu Dhabi’sevolution as an education hub for the Emirates and the region.A number of public entities contribute to the managementand delivery of education in the emirate: the Federal Ministry forEducation and Youth sets the overarching educational strategy tobe implemented across the UAE. At an emirate level, the AbuDhabi Education Council (ADEC), established in 2005, guides thedelivery of education on the ground within the emirate’s threeeducation zones – Abu Dhabi, Al Ain and the Western Region.Together, these independent entities manage public school andtertiary education in the emirate, while overseeing the deliveryof education by a number of private sector partners. With adedicated mandate to improve educational performance andoutcomes in Abu Dhabi, ADEC’s role, at present, is advisory andearly in 2007 the Abu Dhabi government announced the plannedformation of a Department of Education to manage the deliveryof education within the emirate.A key component of government education policy is tostreamline processes and ensure all public and private entities inthe education sector are working in a coordinated way to achieveconsistent outcomes across the emirate.Three key platforms suffuse all education-related reforms andactivities in Abu Dhabi:• Improving the curriculum taught to students in all learninginstitutions.• Enhancing the professionalism of the teacher workforce.• Establishing a performance-based learning culture based onoutputs and outcomes rather than inputs.In addition, as the agenda points out, the hallmark of aninternationally benchmarked education system is the provisionof quality learning opportunities at each point of an individual’slifecycle. Providing for each of these distinct phases requires:The hallmark of aninternationallybenchmarkededucation system is theprovision of qualitylearning opportunitiesat each point of anindividual’s lifecycle.@www.uaeinteract.com/uaeeducation