365 blue-collars ace in English communication
dubai — The pride on the face of Zahid Mahboob, a blue-collar worker, was palpable as he walked up the stage to receive his certificate for completing a four-and-ahalf-month course to improve his English and communication skills.
A total of 365 blue-collar workers proudly received their certificates and awards on Friday, culminating their participation in the 2018 H1 SmartReading, an Eng- lish-speaking programme first launched by the Dubai-based NGO SmartLife in 2016.
Forty-four graduates topped the current programme and received special prizes, while 41 students were honoured for their dedication in maintaining an excellent attendance record.
Launched in 2016 in line with the UAE’s Year of Reading, the programme started with a handful of blue-collared workers wanting to sharpen their English-speaking skills. In just two-and-a-half years, the number of students increased from a modest 35 to a whopping 1,050. Every batch is split into Junior 1, 2, and Senior 1, 2, 3, and 4 levels, depending on their skills.
Held at the Gems Wellington Academy-Al Khail, the awarding ceremony was attended by Brigadier Hamdan Alraisi, Senior VicePresident, Government Relations, Gems Education; Lalitchandra Kandpal, Group HR Manager, Galadari Brothers; Dr Reza Khan, an award-winning conservationist and wildlife expert; Danish Rizvi, Chief Operating Officer, ASA Ventures; Kalyan Chakravarthy, CoFounder, PARFI India; and Steve Burnell, Managing Director, STS.
Extending its support to the SmartReading programme, Khaleej
Times volunteered and printed the 500 certificates that were awarded at the graduation ceremony. Nine workers from the Galadari Brothers Group, Khaleej Times’ parent firm, were part of the proud graduates who completed the programme with flying colours.
Lauding the effort of the SmartLife team, Kandpal said: “A human being is a social animal and communication plays a very important
This programme will definitely boost the workers’ confidence and help add value to the organisations they work for.”
Lalitchandra Kandpal, Group HR Manager, Galadari Brothers
With SmartReading graduation, what comes to the forefront is the determination of our students to succeed in their life.”
Manjula Ramakrishnan, President, SmartLife, and project lead of SmartReading
role in interpersonal and professional relationships. This programme will definitely boost the workers’ confidence and help add value to the organisations they work for. Therefore, organisations should support such good initiatives.”
Another segment of the programme that the audience loved was a panel discussion between the students and teachers. The workers displayed their fluency in speaking English by discussing why they chose to enrol in the course, what difficulties they faced due to weak English-speaking skills, and how SmartReading has benefited them.
Matric pass Zahid Mahboob, a worker at Galadari Brothers, said: “I couldn’t complete my studies when I was young; hence, my communication skills were weak. But I’m grateful to my company and SmartLife for letting me be part of this programme. It has given me a chance to hone my skills and an opportunity to further develop myself and my career.”
Manjula Ramakrishnan, president, SmartLife, and project lead of SmartReading, said: “With each SmartReading graduation, what comes to the forefront is the determination of our students to succeed in life. And if through SmartLife and SmartReading we are in any way able to help that journey, our goal is achieved.”
Besides certificates and prizes, three laptops were also given to the three most helpful, disciplined, hard-working, dedicated, and popular workers from the junior and senior batches.