THE COMMUNITY’S RESPONSE TO COVID-19

Major milestones in the journey of Dubai’s private schools during the Covid-19 pandemic:

March 8,202

■ Schools takes spring break holidays two weeks early followed by two weeks of distance learning.

March 30, 2020

■ The UAE Cabinet extends distant learning in all UAE schools for the remainder of the 20192020 academic year.

May 2020

■ KHDA launches the online Distance Learning Evaluation to evaluate the quality of distance learning in schools and provide educators with a tool to help them improve key aspects of their provision.

June 2020

■ Dubai Government announces that private schools will reopen for the 2020-21 academic year, provided they meet thorough health and safety protocols.

July 2020

■ Distance Learning Evaluation results are published by KHDA.

August 30, 2020

■ Schools reopen with all the necessary health and safety protocols in place and offer face-to-face, distance learning or a blended provision.

November 2020

■ The fourth consecutive year of the Dubai Student Wellbeing Census and the third year of the Adults@School Wellbeing Survey begins. The surveys were undertaken by more that 102,000 students and 18,000 adults from Dubai’s private schools.

January 2021

■ KHDA conducts a survey of all parents with children enrolled in Dubai private schools, to listen to their opinions on their children’s education.

March 2021

■ KHDA organises focus group interviews with school owners, principals and parents to seek their views on how they see the future of schooling in Dubai.

April 2021

■ Guided by the outcomes of the focus group meetings, KHDA conducts a ‘Reflection and Review’ exercise, which comprised of a questionnaire for all 210 Dubai private schools with a sample of 50 schools.