Why UAE school closures are an important opportunity to fight coronavirus

Coronavirus is taking the world to school, but halting classes is a decision that deserves top marks

Physics teacher Regina O'Dwyer demonstrates how Dubai College's remote learning system works. Using Microsoft 365 and Cisco Webex - a Skype-style conference call tool - she can take pupils through live lessons as they sit at home. Victor Besa / The National

Instead of returning to school after the spring break, pupils will login from home for two weeks and watch teachers at Dubai College for each lesson. The school will remain empty except for teachers. Victor Besa / The National

Dubai College principal Michael Lambert said the teachers are preparing to use the remote system for two weeks. Victor Besa / The National

People disembarking from a UAE military transport plane, used to transport medical equipment and coronavirus testing kits provided by the World Health Organisation, upon their arrival in Iran. AFP

Workers clean the Grand Mosque, during the pilgrimage known as Umrah, in the Muslim holy city of Makkah, Saudi Arabia. AP Photo

Labourers unloading medical equipment and coronavirus testing kits provided by the World Health Organisation, from a UAE military transport plane upon their arrival in Iran. AFP

Tonnes of medical equipment and coronavirus testing kits provided by the World Health Organisation are pictured at the Al Maktoum International airport in Dubai as it is prepared to be delivered to Iran by a UAE plane. AFP

An Iranian lab technician loads a centrifuge with blood samples, taken from patients suspected of being infected with COVID-19 virus, at a hospital in Tehran. AFP

A man wears a protective face mask, following the outbreak of the new coronavirus, as he walks at the Grand Souq in old Dubai, UAE. Reuters

A worker splashes disinfectant in a classroom as part of sterilisation campaign against the new coronavirus, at the Evangelical School, in Loueizeh, east of Beirut, Lebanon. AP Photo

Lebanese workers spray disinfectant in classrooms and halls of a school in the coastal town of Rmeileh, 35km south of the capital Beirut in an effort to prevent a novel coronavirus outbreak in the country. AFP

People wearing protective masks are seen on a street in Kuwait City, amid a global outbreak of the novel Coronavirus. AFP

An empty classroom is seen in a private school in Hawally, after the Ministry of Edudution suspended schools and universities due to the coronavirus outbreak, in Kuwait city. Reuters

A health worker is pictured inside a newly erected coronavirus quarantine centre in Sanaa, Yemen. Reuters

Jordanian Health Minister Saad Jaber and Minister for Media Affairs Amjad al-Adaileh attend a news conference after the country's first case of the coronavirus was confirmed, at the headquarters of the Prime Minister in Amman, Jordan. Reuters

Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam (left) and Secretary for Food and Health Sophia Chan attend a press conference at the Central Government Offices in Hong Kong, China. EPA

Chinese President Xi Jinping learning about the progress on the vaccine and anti-body during his visit to the Academy of Military Medical Sciences in Beijing, capital of China. EPA

Starting today, schools and universities across the UAE will be closed for four weeks as a preventive measure to limit possible transmission of coronavirus. The annual two-week spring holiday has been moved forward and commences today. This will be followed by two weeks of regular lessons conducted via remote learning rather than in a physical classroom. The Ministry of Education has also announced it will be running a "sterilisation programme" for educational facilities and school buses.

Many residents of the Emirates are rightly concerned about the international coronavirus epidemic. It is important to remember, however, that countermeasures against the virus should serve as a source of comfort, rather than panic or fear.

A school bus passes in front of the Burj Al Arab hotel in Dubai on March 04, 2020. Dubai Health Authority confirmed that a school pupil in the city was diagnosed with coronavirus after contracting it from her father. Ali Haider / EPA

Minimising school activities for a limited period during epidemics helps to keep children safe. It also limits the conversion of the nation's schools into springboards for wider transmission of the virus into the community. The discovery of a case in a Dubai high school last week further underscores the risk.

In a study carried out by the University of Michigan in the United States on that country's 1918 influenza pandemic, it was found that early decisions taken in many American cities to close schools were some of the most effective moves authorities had made in combatting the virus's spread.

Today, health officials today are better prepared to make some decisions than they were a century ago. The pause in school attendance in the UAE is occurring in tandem with similar measures around the world. Nearly 300 million students worldwide are missing classes this week, from Italy to China to Japan.

Unlike the UAE, however, many of those students will not have access to tools like remote learning. The Emirates are proving to be a pioneer in ensuring that even when class is cancelled, education continues.

And so it must. If there is one thing that humanity's ongoing experience with the coronavirus challenge teaches us, it is that education and knowledge are not only beneficial to our development, but integral to our survival. Effective crisis management requires smart, capable leadership. Young people in school today are tomorrow's leaders. Some will be policymakers and health workers. Good decision-making – from parents and public officials alike – will be key to setting an example for future generations.

So far, at least 45 cases of coronavirus have been formally identified in the UAE. While the global number of cases has hit the 100,000 mark, Gulf countries have taken all measures necessary to control the situation, including cancelling international events, banning flights from heavily affected countries and keeping the public informed on the best ways to keep the virus at bay. It is no wonder, then, that World Health Organisation regional director for the Eastern Mediterranean Dr Ahmed Al Mandhari told The National he was "happy about what has been done" by members states of the GCC.

The closure of schools and nurseries will surely affect parents’ schedules, and we should all do our best to accommodate that. This means allowing employees to take leave or work from home, but also offering to help friends and relatives whenever it is possible and safe to do so. Health crises, naturally, can be unnerving. But they afford an opportunity for individuals to learn more about what they can do to be responsible members of their communities. School is out for the spring, but the lessons for all of us are ongoing.