…. Or will it?

 GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council)  Kuwait, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, United Arab Emirates Each of these countries is undergoing major education reform with ambitious targets for school improvement.

 Each GCC country is committed to reforming their education sector with the strategic intent of creating a knowledge based society, and thus acquiring all the perceived benefits of such a society, whilst preserving their identity.

 The UAE consists of 7 Emirates that together make up the United Arab Emirates.  Whilst there is a Federal Education Ministry this mainly pertains to higher education.  Major education reform mostly occurs within the three largest Emirates; Abu Dhabi, Dubai & Sharjah.  For this brief synopsis I will relate to my knowledge of reform within these three Emirates, although the issues apply equally across all projects.

 Private: International; offering International (IBO, IPC) & National Curricula (UK, US, other) Students; diverse /Teachers; Western/Arabic  Private: National Curricula, 20 types Indian, Pakistani, Filipino, Arabic, UAE etc Students/Teachers; reflects curriculum  Public: UAE Ministry Curriculum Students; local children/Teachers; Arabic

 Numerous schools, within private and public domains have adopted western pedagogical approaches as part of the reform programme, believing these will address identified weaknesses within their own approaches to schooling.  These new approaches have been introduced through a variety of methodologies; wholesale purchase of curricula, teacher/mentor programmes, short/medium term consultancies, partnerships and principal coaching.

 Regardless of school type, importing a curriculum model in isolation, that is, attempted cloning of one school or one system’s DNA, will of itself not be sufficient to achieve the transformation being sought.  Some successes.....& failures.

 Understand the cultural norms.. morals, values, behaviours, communication, family, gender roles, “wasta”  Ensure teachers have addressed their own prejudices, misconceptions and knowledge gaps  Engage stakeholders as partners… do they want what they think they want….foster partnerships…stick to principles……  Focus on the quality of teaching & learning didactic v inquiry, teacher v student centred, outcome v process  Ensure cultural relevance of content and make connections  In unison with desire for proficiency in English ; respect, emphasise & nurture mother tongue  Preserve the history and culture of host country

 Traditional teacher-student relationship hierarchy/authoritarian  Gender differences… learning styles, motivation/aspirations, roles, subject choices, sports, camps…  Defining “learning” …deep understanding or memorisation & what of failure…assessment…..  Materials and resources… what’s appropriate, what isn’t, literature reflecting cultural heritage… multi-cultural literature ….  Breadth and depth of curriculum (music, drama, sport, camps, sciences, Arabic, Islamic Studies, vocational, integrated studies..)

 Teaching to fish requires much more than just throwing in the line……..  To be successful and ultimately sustainable, imported pedagogical reform projects require a coordinated approach in developing curricula responsive to the needs of a knowledge based society that builds community capacity for change, whilst respecting traditions, beliefs and societal values.