Tips for Ramadan and what parents feel about English teaching reforms

Ali shares Ramadan tips and explains how Emirati parents feel about their children being taught in English.

Dear Ali: Many companies offer tips to expat employees about how they should show consideration during Ramadan but fewer remind their Muslim staff of what they should be doing during this great month. Would you share your own tips about how we should prepare ourselves for Ramadan? AK, Dubai Dear AK: Baraka allahu feeki, may God bless you. This question touched my heart. When it comes to increasing awareness of Ramadan, it's all about gentle reminders.

A great picture popped into my head when I read your question: an expat chief executive meets his Muslim staff and as he passes by each one, he either says Ramadan Mubarak or Ramadan Kareem, smiles at them and encourages them to be more patient and to do their best to be role models for others. I hope for the non-Muslim expat staff to be influenced by the chief executive, too, so they also enter into the spirit of Ramadan and do not feel left out.

My humble advice is as follows: we always beg and implore God to help us reach the month of Ramadan safely and to enable us to fast diligently for His sake. Every Muslim should remember that Ramadan is about strengthening our relationship with Allah via the practices that our Prophet advised us to do. The main thing is reading the holy Quran, getting into the spirit of fasting and, of course, recharging our hearts and minds with sincere obedience and good deeds.

Opening your heart and mind to embrace this holy month requires you to do the following: 1. Understand more about the benefits of fasting. 2. The true benefits come from true fasting. But fasting is not only abstaining from food, drink, smoking, and sex, but also restraining our minds and hearts as well as our eyes, ears, hands and tongues. 3. We must embrace the spirit of fasting as stressed in Hadith.

4. We should strengthen our relationship with the Quran. 5. Last but not least, we should focus on building a great community through acts of charity and compassion. Let us pray that we start Ramadan with great intentions and emerge from it with our faith recharged.

Dear Ali: I was wondering how Emirati parents feel about the education reforms that call for the hiring of English-speaking teachers to teach English, maths and science? VH, USA Dear VH: Thank you for your question. Parents understand the necessity of learning the English language and appreciate that our Ministry of Education is trying to enhance their children's education. As long as the new recruits asked to teach in our society are aware of our values, culture differences and faith, and are prepared to teach our children respect and good behaviour as well as maths and science, parents won't worry if they are speaking in Arabic or English.

The point of all of these changes is to ensure we have a new generation of boys and girls ready to face future world challenges and be able to contribute to our 2030 vision. Some parents fear this approach will destroy the Arabic language, but they are a minority. Parents can help by speaking Arabic at home and conveying its beauty to their children. This way we can develop a generation fluent in Arabic and English.

Arabic: Falek tayeb English: I'll do it for your sake or "done!" Falek tayeb is a sweet way in the khaleeji dialect of showing your positive intention of doing what is asked of you. It is most appropriate when answering an older person or a higher placed colleague. Falek tayeb, with a humble and warm smile, is the perfect answer to any request.