Dubai: Schools that promote reading will get better ratings in the UAE as the government schools are now being evaluated based on how they are promoting reading among the students.
The Ministry of Education (MoE) is overhauling its system to ensure teachers and schools encourage and facilitate pupils to read and be part of a knowledge-based society.
This is in line with the UAE’s 10-year National Reading Strategy that is backed by a Dh100-million fund to promote lifelong learning for all members of the community.
Sharifa Mousa Hassan, the director of Reading Project at the ministry, told Gulf News that the ministry is carrying out 450 initiatives and projects to support the National Reading Strategy in 420 government schools in Dubai and Northern Emirates whose evaluation will also take into account their performance in these initiatives.
“We are starting with teachers to change the method and culture of reading in schools. We have a plan to develop their skills and teaching methods and change their culture of encouraging students to read.
“Reading is not just limited to books. We must come out of the classic form of reading and embrace the process of learning though reading by using various avenues like e-libraries, social media and other digital platforms as well,” said Hassan.
She spoke after a press conference to highlight various government entities’ initiatives to support the National Reading Strategy.
As part of the strategy, the ministry is revamping the school libraries to develop them as Learning Resource Centres equipped with modern, digital platforms that support reading and learning. A fund of Dh1 million has been earmarked for this makeover.
“We have finished this project in seven model schools and we are now working on the rest.”
Thousands of books will also be distributed to school libraries. These books will be chosen based on new criteria that match with the curriculum, said Hassan.
An interactive platform for students to read and earn points using a reward system called Qutoof has also been launched.
A summer programme with the theme “Summer is Better With Reading” will be launched to encourage students to read during the summer vacation and earn points. They can redeem their points and enjoy the incentives during the back-to-school programme in September. These activities will be held in collaboration with various malls and parks.
The Reading Festival in October, the Month of Reading this year, will be another platform where students will celebrate the culture of reading.
Celebrities will be roped in to promote reading among young students. “We hope that these Reading Ambassadors who are stars from different fields can influence in promoting the culture of reading among students and families,” said Hassan.
The national policy for reading includes adopting a national health programme to encourage reading from birth, and providing three bags of books for each Emirati child during the first four years of his life.
