Abu Dhabi: As many as 95 per cent of students who clear secondary school are not prepared enough to study in universities, the Federal National Council (FNC) heard on Tuesday.
Humaid Al Qutami, Minister of Education, was quizzed by three members about a plan to make a foundation programme for secondary school leavers redundant, and a new system for schools to have three semesters from this academic session.
Khalifa Abdullah Bin Howaidan, from Sharjah, said: "More than 95 per cent of secondary school leavers in the UAE lack skills in Arabic, English and maths and they need remedial teaching." He said parents have to spend up to Dh20,000 for each of their wards to improve these skills.
Salem Mohammad Al Naqbi, another member from Sharjah, posed a question about the three-semester system, while Ahmad Bin Shabib Al Daheri, First Deputy Speaker of the House, raised the question of an educational programme to improve skills of students and create jobs for them in the public organisation known as Masar.
Members argued a greater emphasis on problem-solving and creative thinking was key, followed by investing more in local teaching staff and an increased focus on foreign languages.
Suggestions
They also suggested measures for improving secondary education, including increased emphasis on verbal communication skills, stricter enforcement of school attendance and greater investment in facilities.
A Ministry of Education study in 2005 found that by grade seven — around 12 years old — 68 per cent of pupils in public schools were two or more years below grade level in English reading and 74 per cent were at least two years behind in writing.
Bin Howaidan said many English teachers did not speak the language fluently, leaving students with inadequate English skills. He added it was not just an English-language issue, as most students are as poor in Arabic and maths as English.
The FNC discussions came as the Ministry of Education is planning to phase out remedial courses for students about to enter university, which cost the ministry about a third of its budget, according to Shaikh Nahyan Bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, Minister of Higher Education.
