Dubai: The science and art streams in UAE public schools will be cancelled in the next four years, Marwan Al Sawaleh the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Education confirmed yesterday at the fourth educational conference.
Al Sawaleh told Gulf News that instead of having two different streams with their focus on particular subjects, there will be mandatory core subjects that all pupils will have to learn.
“In three to four years, there will be no art and science streams, we will be reshaping the streams, there will be core subjects that everyone is required to take and there will be electives,” said Al Sawaleh.
The core subjects will include math, science, Arabic, English, Islamic studies and national studies.
The aim of combining the streams in the third cycle of public schools is to mould a new generation of graduates who are equipped for the job market’s needs.
During the Ministry of Education’s fourth educational conference, Al Sawaleh also spoke about the ministry’s future and current initiatives as well as the UAE’s 2021 national goals.
Al Sawaleh said the performance of students from the UAE in the international assessment tests like the Programme for International Student Assessment (Pisa), Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) and International English Language Testing System (IELTS), had been noted to be low.
The Pisa 2012 results revealed that, of students from the 65 participating countries, UAE students ranked 48th in math (434 points), 44th in reading (442 points) and 46th in science (448 points). The UAE students fared below the 500 mark average in all the categories.
Al Sawaleh said that in line with the 2021 goals, UAE students attempting Pisa must be among the top 20 countries. In TIMSS, the UAE aims to be in the top 15; currently it is ranked 23 out of 42 countries.
“In addition to increasing students’ performance in international assessments test, the ministry will focus on increasing the number of students graduating from high school [74 per cent], to 90 per cent. We also want to increase the number of students going to university without going through foundation year,” he said.
Al Sawaleh said other targets include enhancing public school students’ language skills, increasing the number of students majoring in science related degrees and equipping them with skills needed in the job market.
The ministry will also focus on increasing the number of children attending kindergarten from 54 per cent to 95 per cent.
