Gloria Brown, pictured at her home in Abu Dhabi, homeschooled all five of her children over the years. Khushnum Bhandari for The National
Gloria Brown, pictured at her home in Abu Dhabi, homeschooled all five of her children over the years. Khushnum Bhandari for The National
Gloria Brown, pictured at her home in Abu Dhabi, homeschooled all five of her children over the years. Khushnum Bhandari for The National
Gloria Brown, pictured at her home in Abu Dhabi, homeschooled all five of her children over the years. Khushnum Bhandari for The National

UAE homeschooling groups see sustained interest from parents, but format remains a fringe choice


Gillian Duncan
  • English
  • Arabic

Homeschooling groups that advise parents on how to teach children at home have received continued interest, even after many schools reopened this term.

Two associations in Dubai and Abu Dhabi have received dozens of queries, as some families opt to take their children out of schools in favour of learning from home.

Despite that, this method of education, experts say, remains a fringe choice – and one that can leave children lagging behind or missing social interaction.

Schools across the country began a return to in-class teaching from September, staggered in some emirates, after a long period of e-learning from March. Some schools have faced disruption or temporary closures due to isolated outbreaks and most today offer some form of 'blended' learning model.

We continually seek ways to give our children a well-rounded education

Gloria Brown, of the Abu Dhabi Homeschoolers Association, said she had fielded dozens of queries in recent weeks from parents who wanted to know more about how the format worked.

Ms Brown said interest reached a high in September and October but still continued today.

“One of the things we see are people who are accidentally homeschooling and they like it, and they think 'I can do this'," she said.

"My job is to encourage them [to know] that they can.

“We are our child’s best advocate. We know our child like no one else. And if you just listen to your child, you know how to teach them.”

Another group saw a surge in interest in homeschooling as learning was transferred online in March, as cases rapidly grew in the Emirates.

Facing the prospect of paying high fees for limited contact with teachers, more parents, some of whom faced pay cuts, considered the shift.

Abu Dhabi Homeschoolers Association raises money for Walk for Water to help provide people in sub-Saharan Africa with better access to clean water. Victor Besa / The National
Abu Dhabi Homeschoolers Association raises money for Walk for Water to help provide people in sub-Saharan Africa with better access to clean water. Victor Besa / The National

"Here in the Northern Emirates, we had an upsurge of interested parents between June and September," said Aminah Cooper, an American mother-of-five and co-founder of Dubai Northern Emirates Homeschool Association.

Things have since "mellowed out", she said.

Abu Dhabi resident Gabi Vasile, from Italy, took her 10-year-old son out of Raha International School to begin permanent home learning during the pandemic.

"We said 'let's do it, now is the time to join homeschooling', so we did," she said.

"So far he's enjoying it. He's very independent and he wants to do things his way, which is another reason why homeschooling suits him."

Homeschooling is neither prohibited nor regulated by authorities in the UAE. KHDA, the education regulator in Dubai, does not currently recognise homeschooling programmes. The Abu Dhabi Department of Education and Knowledge (Adek) said it does not recognise homeschooling as an official educational path.

“If a student wants to enrol back in a physical school, they may, but will return back to the year or grade they were in in the last time they were enrolled in a physical school or educational institute,” according to an Adek representative.

As such, no official figures have been compiled on the number of children who follow home learning programmes.

The number is probably in the hundreds, and possibly the low thousands.

Abu Dhabi Homeschoolers Association has about 1,000 members and Dubai Northern Emirates Homeschool Association has 400 members, a number which is growing every week.

Emiratis who choose to teach their children at home must show they are meeting certain educational requirements, while expats do not.

But pupils may face clear problems if they aspire to a university education without showing they had followed a curriculum and passed exams.

Signing up to an accredited programme, many of which are based in the UK and the United States, provides structure and a curriculum.

Critics claim the quality of the education taught by parents may vary considerably, and that a lack of development, or even forms of abuse, that could have been spotted by a teacher could go unnoticed.

Ms Brown has been homeschooling her children, who have a large age gap, for 30 years.

She said her now adult children did very well academically and in their careers, and she continues to teach her teenagers at home.

Costs for a curriculum programme vary from a "a few dirhams to a few thousand", she said.

She spends about $2,000 (Dh7,345) on a set curriculum, and about the same again on online classes.

She said one of the most popular questions the group received was about the social aspect of home learning.

“One of the biggest things that people don’t realise is, Covid-19 has affected us as well," she said.

"We are very social. It’s a community of kids and we get together for field trips.”

It has devoted a number of its recent zoom meetings, which would otherwise have been in person, to a project to help raise money and awareness about The Water Project, which works to provide safe drinking water in sub-Saharan Africa.

During the pandemic, the charity, which has an office in Dubai, also provides handwashing stations, health and hygiene training and homemade mask making.

“This has been great for our homeschool group,” she said.

“We continually seek ways to give our children a well-rounded education."

“Getting involved in community events, meeting other kids of different backgrounds, cultures and ages helps us do that.”

Blue%20Beetle
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Need to know

When: October 17 until November 10

Cost: Entry is free but some events require prior registration

Where: Various locations including National Theatre (Abu Dhabi), Abu Dhabi Cultural Center, Zayed University Promenade, Beach Rotana (Abu Dhabi), Vox Cinemas at Yas Mall, Sharjah Youth Center

What: The Korea Festival will feature art exhibitions, a B-boy dance show, a mini K-pop concert, traditional dance and music performances, food tastings, a beauty seminar, and more.

For more information: www.koreafestivaluae.com

It's Monty Python's Crashing Rocket Circus

To the theme tune of the famous zany British comedy TV show, SpaceX has shown exactly what can go wrong when you try to land a rocket.

The two minute video posted on YouTube is a compilation of crashes and explosion as the company, created by billionaire Elon Musk, refined the technique of reusable space flight.

SpaceX is able to land its rockets on land  once they have completed the first stage of their mission, and is able to resuse them multiple times - a first for space flight.

But as the video, How Not to Land an Orbital Rocket Booster, demonstrates, it was a case if you fail, try and try again.

The Bio

Name: Lynn Davison

Profession: History teacher at Al Yasmina Academy, Abu Dhabi

Children: She has one son, Casey, 28

Hometown: Pontefract, West Yorkshire in the UK

Favourite book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

Favourite Author: CJ Sansom

Favourite holiday destination: Bali

Favourite food: A Sunday roast

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Some of Darwish's last words

"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008

His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.

The five pillars of Islam

1. Fasting 

2. Prayer 

3. Hajj 

4. Shahada 

5. Zakat 

Why it pays to compare

A comparison of sending Dh20,000 from the UAE using two different routes at the same time - the first direct from a UAE bank to a bank in Germany, and the second from the same UAE bank via an online platform to Germany - found key differences in cost and speed. The transfers were both initiated on January 30.

Route 1: bank transfer

The UAE bank charged Dh152.25 for the Dh20,000 transfer. On top of that, their exchange rate margin added a difference of around Dh415, compared with the mid-market rate.

Total cost: Dh567.25 - around 2.9 per cent of the total amount

Total received: €4,670.30 

Route 2: online platform

The UAE bank’s charge for sending Dh20,000 to a UK dirham-denominated account was Dh2.10. The exchange rate margin cost was Dh60, plus a Dh12 fee.

Total cost: Dh74.10, around 0.4 per cent of the transaction

Total received: €4,756

The UAE bank transfer was far quicker – around two to three working days, while the online platform took around four to five days, but was considerably cheaper. In the online platform transfer, the funds were also exposed to currency risk during the period it took for them to arrive.

BMW M5 specs

Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor

Power: 727hp

Torque: 1,000Nm

Transmission: 8-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh650,000

The biog

Name: Mohammed Imtiaz

From: Gujranwala, Pakistan

Arrived in the UAE: 1976

Favourite clothes to make: Suit

Cost of a hand-made suit: From Dh550

 

KEY%20DATES%20IN%20AMAZON'S%20HISTORY
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The%20Mother%20
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Our family matters legal consultant

Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais

Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.

Sarfira

Director: Sudha Kongara Prasad

Starring: Akshay Kumar, Radhika Madan, Paresh Rawal 

Rating: 2/5

UAE v Gibraltar

What: International friendly

When: 7pm kick off

Where: Rugby Park, Dubai Sports City

Admission: Free

Online: The match will be broadcast live on Dubai Exiles’ Facebook page

UAE squad: Lucas Waddington (Dubai Exiles), Gio Fourie (Exiles), Craig Nutt (Abu Dhabi Harlequins), Phil Brady (Harlequins), Daniel Perry (Dubai Hurricanes), Esekaia Dranibota (Harlequins), Matt Mills (Exiles), Jaen Botes (Exiles), Kristian Stinson (Exiles), Murray Reason (Abu Dhabi Saracens), Dave Knight (Hurricanes), Ross Samson (Jebel Ali Dragons), DuRandt Gerber (Exiles), Saki Naisau (Dragons), Andrew Powell (Hurricanes), Emosi Vacanau (Harlequins), Niko Volavola (Dragons), Matt Richards (Dragons), Luke Stevenson (Harlequins), Josh Ives (Dubai Sports City Eagles), Sean Stevens (Saracens), Thinus Steyn (Exiles)

Mubalada World Tennis Championship 2018 schedule

Thursday December 27

Men's quarter-finals

Kevin Anderson v Hyeon Chung 4pm

Dominic Thiem v Karen Khachanov 6pm

Women's exhibition

Serena Williams v Venus Williams 8pm

Friday December 28

5th place play-off 3pm

Men's semi-finals

Rafael Nadal v Anderson/Chung 5pm

Novak Djokovic v Thiem/Khachanov 7pm

Saturday December 29

3rd place play-off 5pm

Men's final 7pm

Key figures in the life of the fort

Sheikh Dhiyab bin Isa (ruled 1761-1793) Built Qasr Al Hosn as a watchtower to guard over the only freshwater well on Abu Dhabi island.

Sheikh Shakhbut bin Dhiyab (ruled 1793-1816) Expanded the tower into a small fort and transferred his ruling place of residence from Liwa Oasis to the fort on the island.

Sheikh Tahnoon bin Shakhbut (ruled 1818-1833) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further as Abu Dhabi grew from a small village of palm huts to a town of more than 5,000 inhabitants.

Sheikh Khalifa bin Shakhbut (ruled 1833-1845) Repaired and fortified the fort.

Sheikh Saeed bin Tahnoon (ruled 1845-1855) Turned Qasr Al Hosn into a strong two-storied structure.

Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa (ruled 1855-1909) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further to reflect the emirate's increasing prominence.

Sheikh Shakhbut bin Sultan (ruled 1928-1966) Renovated and enlarged Qasr Al Hosn, adding a decorative arch and two new villas.

Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan (ruled 1966-2004) Moved the royal residence to Al Manhal palace and kept his diwan at Qasr Al Hosn.

Sources: Jayanti Maitra, www.adach.ae

Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills

Turkish Ladies

Various artists, Sony Music Turkey 

Sole survivors
  • Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
  • George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
  • Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
  • Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Zakat definitions

Zakat: an Arabic word meaning ‘to cleanse’ or ‘purification’.

Nisab: the minimum amount that a Muslim must have before being obliged to pay zakat. Traditionally, the nisab threshold was 87.48 grams of gold, or 612.36 grams of silver. The monetary value of the nisab therefore varies by current prices and currencies.

Zakat Al Mal: the ‘cleansing’ of wealth, as one of the five pillars of Islam; a spiritual duty for all Muslims meeting the ‘nisab’ wealth criteria in a lunar year, to pay 2.5 per cent of their wealth in alms to the deserving and needy.

Zakat Al Fitr: a donation to charity given during Ramadan, before Eid Al Fitr, in the form of food. Every adult Muslim who possesses food in excess of the needs of themselves and their family must pay two qadahs (an old measure just over 2 kilograms) of flour, wheat, barley or rice from each person in a household, as a minimum.

Company%20Profile
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