Abu Dhabi-based Aldar Education Group is exploring the possibilities to continue providing distance learning even when schools are reopened after the coronavirus recedes.
All schools everywhere in UAE are closed since Mid-March as part of government measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19, with institutions encouraging teachers to handle classes remotely.
Though it was hoped that students could return to schools for the start of the new term in September, it is no longer a certainty. Aldar Education CEO Sahar Cooper expects distance learning as a possible avenue to mitigate the circumstances.
“I see a segment of parents or students who perhaps don’t have the access to quality education or their personal circumstances forces them or encourages them to utilize distance learning and I think that would be key for the future.”
“We have already started before this crisis to develop a program, but we have had to accelerate the finalizing of this program and we are definitely looking to provide a virtual schooling environment after these circumstances in September.”
Aldar currently has 3,000 teachers assisting 7,500 students across seven academies and nurseries in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain. Aldar Education had earlier acquired thousands of iPads and laptops to assist students who did not have access to remote learning.
The company, which financed AED 10 million in IT infrastructure, has given parents a 20 percent reduction on school fees for term three, with a further five percent offered to families who have been particularly impacted by COVID-19.
