The Education Affairs Office at the Crown Prince Court in Abu Dhabi has announced that despite the restrictions related to COVID-19 virus, including the physical closure of schools, there are currently over 800 teachers working through the National Capacity Building (NCB) Program.
While face to face workshops have been postponed, the online program has been extended to provide a fully virtual experience and ensure teachers can continue to engage in their learning and development, which started from April to a pilot group of teachers.
The program, launched in November last year, is an interactive training platform for teachers, designed to enhance educational performance across the UAE, in line with the objectives of the Moral Education Curriculum, which was launched in 2016, under the guidance of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces.
Her Excellency Jameela bint Salem Al Muhairi, Minister of State for Public Education, said: “The Moral Education Curriculum initiative reflects our wise leadership’s vision to build Emirati identity on good values, ethics and behaviors, deepening the global and positive concept of citizenship. We are pleased with the continuity of the program despite the challenging environment facing us all. Moral Education is an essential component of children’s learning and it is imperative to pay particular attention to students’ wellbeing and health education in current times. One crucial way teachers can do this is through the Moral Education lessons conducted online as part of the NCB Program.”
The program aims to train 1,000 teachers nationwide with the help of a number of partners and experts in the field. In 2018-19, more than 1,200 public and private schools implemented Moral Education affecting the education of nearly 1,000,000 students, and the working practices of almost 65,000 teachers.
AlAnood Al Kaabi, Project Manager at the Education Affairs Office at the Crown Prince Court, said: “In the current climate, teachers are under huge pressure to adapt to the changing circumstances – to balance planning, teach their online classes, support parents, while also often simultaneously supporting their own children at home. The values and principles of Moral Education have never been more relevant and, as part of our commitment, CPC, as well as everyone involved in the NCB Program, will continue to build capacity for future generations across the UAE.”
To ensure that teaching and learning in Moral Education promotes strong outcomes for students, as well as to build best practice across the UAE, a new innovative “Performance Assessment Tool” (PAT) will be incorporated into the NCB Program to provide reliable and valid assessments of teachers’ competency and support their journey to licencing in Moral Education.
“We are very pleased with how the NCB Program has been positively received – there is a very high level of support for the program. Early results indicate a pool of local talent is emerging, including a good number of teachers, trainers, and virtual mentors. All regulators, including the Ministry of Education, Department of Education and Knowledge (ADEK) as well as the Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA) have been supportive towards our shared vision of raising standards of teaching and learning in the UAE, and we look forward to continuing to do so in the months to come” Al Kaabi, added.
The UAE is the only country in the world to have a national curriculum, resources and assessment process for Moral Education from grade 1 to Grade 12. The program leads to a qualification, and includes discussion forums, as well as an online e-portfolio designed to support teachers, while helping them demonstrate the application of their learning in practice.
