Special Features
Strengthening Ties Between Schools And Nations
A group of six Principals and teachers from the UAE have returned after a successful five-day Study Visit to Stockton in the United Kingdom. The visit was organised by the British Council as part of the Connecting Classrooms programme, the British Council’s global flagship programme for schools.The Study Visit reunited the UAE teachers with teachers from their Connecting Classrooms’ partner schools in the UK. The teachers visited their partner schools - North Shore Health Academy, Grangefield School, Abbey Hill School and Technology College and Northfield School and Sports College. The visitors also attended meetings and training sessions at their partner schools, namely,
• ‘Raising Attainment Meetings to investigate: Pastoral System & Teaching & Learning’ at Grangefield School.
• Training on ‘Building Learning Power’ at Northshore Health Academy
• Presentation on ‘Teaching students with Visual Impairments’ at Northfield School
They received opportunities to share experiences, celebrate achievements, receive guidance on undertaking joint curriculum project activities besides receiving an introduction to the British Education system. The teachers got the opportunity to meet the students and staff involved in the project and attend classes and get a taste of British student life. The visit also paved the way for further joint curriculum project planning.
“Partnership between schools has become much more essential than ever as we can’t go on living in our own little bubble. I believe our partnership with the UK schools is getting more solidified. Rest assured that all of us share the same understanding, commitment and responsibility. Meeting here this week is an alliance aimed at testing and developing means of promoting the educational success of our students and how can we prepare them properly for life pinpoint new areas of collaboration.”, said Mr Attallah Mohamed Farag, Cluster Coordinator and teacher at Bu Krayyah School for Boys, Al Ain.
The British Council organises such visits between the Middle East and the United Kingdom schools every year, for new schools that join the Connecting Classrooms Programme. It is an excellent opportunity for the schools to strengthen their partnerships and develop a deeper understanding of the environment in which their partner school operates.
“The Connecting Classrooms project was endorsed by His Worshipful The Mayor of Stockton who joined us during our visit to North Shore Health Academy. He pledged his whole hearted belief in collaborations such as this. We believe that Connecting Classrooms UK & UAE partnership is certainly making the world a smaller place. I wish to thank all the members of the UK and UAE Clusters for their generosity, commitment and invaluable support throughout the year’, said Ms Gill Sangster, the UK Cluster coordinator and Marketing & Resource Coordinator at North Shore Health Academy.
“I am extremely happy with the outcome of our cohort four teachers’ study visit to the UK. They have come back with a better understanding of the education system in the UK and a better and changed perception of the culture and way of life in another country. I sincerely hope that this visit will pave the way for better mutual understanding and cooperation between the schools in the UAE and the UK”, said Priya Nandagopal, Project Manager, British Council, UAE.
Connecting Classrooms is a global British Council partnership programme which focuses on young people and builds an international dimension into education through the development of sustainable partnerships. This helps young people develop skills and understanding to enable them to become active global citizens and to prepare them for future employment in the global economy. There are now more than 200 schools in the Middle East and the UK operating in partnerships since Connecting Classrooms was introduced into the Middle East in 2006, with plans to increase that number by a further 180 over the next two years, 33 of the current participating schools are based in UAE.
